January 2026

Morning Brew at the Village

By Karen Bagnard
Posted: 10/28/2025

Morning Brew began as a pilot program to increase the transparency of Board activities. The hope was to open a new avenue of communication between Villagers and the Board. A couple of the Board Directors met with any Villagers who wanted to discuss anything related to the Village, such as Board decisions. It ran for six weeks during the months of September and October with much success. The intention was to keep them relaxed and informal to encourage candid participation.

While only the first Morning Brew had significant attendance, all subsequent meetings were still very productive. Jeff Gutstadt was asked what he thought about the meetings and his response was a solid, “They were terrific.”  In fact, it was Jeff who suggested the agenda be made available to the Villagers prior to the Board meetings.

Of the 19 Board Directors currently serving, 13 are Villagers. However, few Villagers other than Directors themselves attend the Board meetings, and hence it appeared to some that there was no flow of information, ideas and concerns initiated by Villagers to the Board. By opening a comfortable space for Villagers and Board Directors to meet in an informal environment, many ideas were shared and concerns addressed. 

At times this gathering may have sounded more like Morning Brouhaha than Morning Brew, but it was all part of the process of hearing different views and ideas and to hear new perspectives. One of the most important things that resulted was the publishing of the Board agenda in the Friday Bulletin just prior to their Tuesday meeting. This allowed Villagers to know in advance if the meeting would be of particular interest to them. Since few Villagers ever attended the Board meetings as guests, the hope was that participation may change with the agenda going out in advance. 

There has been a lot of discussion about the growth of the Village and the ability to sustain its cohesiveness at the same time. A new Villager attended Morning Brew and  shared his/her sense of being overwhelmed by all the new activities, the hustle and bustle of our busy office and sometimes feeling unnoticed at events. It was affirmed that it is up to the “older” members to welcome the new ones. Other points touched upon were the idea of whether neighborhood meetings need to be limited to Villagers living in that neighborhood and reinstating new member potlucks hosted by seasoned members.

After attending the Morning Brews, I did actually attend a Board Meeting and found it to be most interesting. It was gratifying to learn about all the areas that are being addressed in a vibrant and growing organization. I felt the Board appreciated my presence as well as that of Ron Scott who also attended. The Board also expressed their sense of success with the Morning Brew. At the end of the meeting we were asked to make any comments we wanted. Ron had left, but I said, “I love Pasadena Village and want to do my part to keep us connected.”

Morning Brew will continue through December. What the next forum will be is yet to be determined. Watch for announcements and plan to attend. It’s very informative and a great way to share your own ideas and concerns and to learn more about the Village. 

Board of Director meetings are open to any Villager interested and minutes are published on the website. Board Directors are also being profiled in the Voice of the Village. Hope to see you at one of these gatherings!