President’s Nov/Dec 2021 Message

by
Arthur Lee

I want to wish everyone the best holiday greetings and share my hope for a happy and healthy New Year. The 2021 Annual Meeting is history now. Thanks to all who made the extra effort to attend, and to the members who pitched in to make this meeting a very enjoyable one. It was not without its issues, but I believe everyone had a great time. Thanks again.

Now that the AGM meeting is in the rear view mirror, we can look forward to the Florida meeting this coming February. Don Smith and his team are planning a great come back to Dennis Wilson #2324L Lake Yale but has not had the number of registrations we need. Lake Yale is organized differently from all our other meetings. There, we must predict the number of attendees a year in advance and sign a contract to pay for all the anticipated rooms and meals we will need for the meeting. We have to pay a substantial percentage of the total cost as a non-refundable deposit a year in advance. Last year, when we had to cancel the meeting, we lost that deposit. We did cancel before the second installment was due, so we did not have to pay the balance of the contract. We are now closing in on the second deposit check date for the 2022 meeting at Lake Yale. We will then have to pay the remaining balance at the actual meeting. Without registrations now we are not certain if we will have enough people attending to pay for the rooms we contracted to pay for. If not enough members attend, we must pay for empty rooms. So, it is very important that everyone sends in their registrations now. Otherwise, Don will come to the second payment date and have to make the decision whether to cancel, and lose our first deposit, or proceed and run the risk of not enough members attending and not receiving enough registration money to pay for our contracted expenses. We are anticipating a great program and a large crowd so please do not delay and send your registration in today.

I am pleased to announce that retiring Northeast Trustee Mark Peet has concluded an election in the Northeast Region. We all welcome Mark Hauser as the new Northeast Trustee. Thank you Mark for stepping up, adding your voice to the Board of Trustees. On a similar note, the Northwest Trustee, Alan Curtis, has decided to resign after serving for over 15 years, I believe. Unfortunately, Alan has not been successful in locating a replacement. Until another person(s) step forward to run for the Trusteeship, that region’s position will remain open. Anyone interested please contact me.