In November, 1987 I had just finished my three year term as a Director of the Minnesota Baseball Association. I was publishing the Minnesota Amateur Baseball News and still playing baseball for the Dundas Dukes. It was a busy time in my life, however, I still made time to attend most meetings of the MBA.
When I attended the November meeting of the MBA in St. Cloud, it created a stir that I will never forget. As I sat in a corner chair in the meeting room of the Holiday Inn, I noticed a certain chill enter the room. As soon as the meeting started, Dick Putz, the MBA President, told me that I had to leave because the MBA meetings were closed. I replied that I felt that all MBA meetings should be open. "What could possibly go on here that anyone that is involved in baseball in Minnesota should not hear?" was the jist of my response. I was then told that the meeting would not start until I had vacated the room. I told them that I would not leave.
Putz called the manager of the Holiday Inn to evict me. When he came into the room he told me that I was in a private room and that I must leave. My response was "it's going to take someone bigger than you to get me out of here." His response was "if you don't leave voluntarily, I will call the St. Cloud Police." I told him to go ahead and call, I wasn't going. So he did.
We sat in that room for over 25 minutes while waiting for the public servants to arrive. In that time I attempted to talk to some of the board members and get them to realize that open meetings should be mandatory. In the last year the Board had testified in court that they held open meetings. No one would say a word. None of them would even look at me. It was a sad, sad turn of events.
When the police arrived, I got up and was ushered out of the room and into the party area by the swimming pool. "Are you going to attempt to go back in?" asked the cop. "No," I replied, "that is enough for today." So he took off and I pondered the whole situation.
The next meeting, I went again and no one said a word. I sat through the meeting and took notes. In the Spring of 1988, I went to the March meeting (all leagues come and get their packets) and explained what had happened to all of the attending league members and Directors. The league officiers made a motion (I think it was Tink Larson) that all further meetings of the MBA be open. It passed unaminously.
What does this have to do with the present? I think the present MBA board is drifting more and more to closed meetings and I don't think we should have to fight that battle again. I will explain more next week.
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