Veteran's Club Meeting Minutes for November 12, 2014
Meeting opened at 1600 with 32 members and four guests in attendance. Total club membership is 165.
Army veteran Rubin Rosenthal of Valencia Cove attended the meeting as our guest. Rubin is exploring the possibility of starting a veterans club at the Cove. President Jules Harper met with him and provided background information on our Club that may be helpful in their efforts to establish a similar organization in their community.
An informal "Meet and Greet" with refreshments was held from 1600 to 1620.
Formal business commenced at 1620 with the "Pledge of Allegiance".
The Secretary's Report was presented and the minutes of our last meeting were voted upon and accepted by the membership.
The Treasurer's Report was presented. It was noted that 300 individuals attended the Veteran's Day Dance, and both the auction and the 50/50 yielded significant funds for donation to the Wounded Warriors of South Florida. Total funds on hand after the party exceeded $7,500.00.
The President's Report was presented. It was noted that the Veteran's Day Party was a great success, and the President thanked all of our veterans who helped with the event. Financially, everything that we did at the Party exceeded our expectations. The silent and live auctions were especially profitable. The President reported that numerous letters of appreciation for the Party have already been received.
50/50 Committee Chairman Sol Kleinman and his assistant Morty Gray took in a total of $650.00, yielding $325.00 for the club. It was noted that Alan Weisberg donated his $45.00 third place winning back to our club, bringing the total funds generated by the 50/50 to $370.00.
We had 29 silent and 7 live auction items that brought in significant funds for the Wounded Warriors. It was noted that Bob Goldenberg did his usual fine job of handling the live auction. A vote was taken and it was decided to send a letter of appreciation to Bob in recognition of his exceptional efforts.
Roger Ruddick, Less Underleider, Michael Heiserman, Alan Weisberg and Les Melville were recognized for their efforts in obtaining items for auction. Special recognition was made for Mark Schwartz's efforts in obtaining tickets from South West Airlines that went for $600.00, and for Michael Golden who obtained 10 watches for us to sell that brought in another $600.00. The President noted that if we are able to get more of our membership involved in soliciting items for auction next year we should be able to raise even more funds for donation to the Wounded Warriors of South Florida at the auction.
The President noted that the Kings Academy performers were particularly well received, and many attendees indicated that they would like to see them perform at every year's dance. Much to the delight of the crowd the performers mingled with the party goers after their performance. A vote was taken and it was decided to invite them back to next year's dance. It was also decided to have them perform on the stage next year rather than on the dance floor as they did this year.
The possibility of establishing a Veteran's Club members picture board in the clubhouse featuring photos of our members during their military service was discussed and will be further explored to determine it's feasibility.
It was noted that due to lack of interest the Superbowl Party in the clubhouse originally planned jointly with PAP would probably be cancelled.
Jules noted that on November 11th, 2015 a brief changing of the flag ceremony was held at 0830 at the clubhouse. A new flag was raised to replace the old one which had become weathered from the elements.
Members interested in running for officer or board member positions being voted on in the elections to be held at our December annual meeting should contact Elections Chairman Norm Beck. Officers standing for re-election for two years at December's meeting include President Jules Harper and Secretary Tom Nowak. Board Members standing for re-election for two years at December's meeting are Nelson Cusher and Mike Silverman. It was noted that Board Members Marty Merluzzi and Roger Ruddick are moving, and a round of applause was given in recognition of their work as Board Members. Michael Heisserman and Joe Franze have indicated an interest in running for these two vacant positions.
The 50/50 drawing was held.
Scheduled Sunday breakfast meeting dates for 2015 are indicated below:
--Sunday December 13, 9-11:30 (Annual Meeting)
All meetings will be held in the Social Hall.
Scheduled Sunday breakfast meeting dates for 2016 are indicated below:
--Sunday January 10, 9:00 AM--12:00 noon
--Sunday April 10, 2016, 9:00 AM--12:00 noon
--Sunday June 12, 2016, 9:00 AM--12:00 noon
--Sunday September 11, 2016, 9:00 AM--12:00 noon
--Sunday December 11, 2016, 9:00 AM--12:00 noon (Annual Meeting)
All meetings will be held in the Social Hall.
Scheduled Second Thursday of the month meetings for 2016 are as indicated below:
--Thursday February 11, 2016, 4-6 PM
--Thursday March 10, 2016, 4-6 PM
--Thursday May 12, 2016, 4-6 PM
--Thursday October 13, 2016, 4-6 PM
--Thursday November 10, 2016, 4-6 PM
All meetings will be held in the Social Hall.
2016 Projected Schedule of Veteran's Club Events is indicated below:
--Car Show: March 20, 2016 (this date may be subject to change)
--Blood Drive: March 11, 2016 and October 28, 2016
--Canned Food Drive: March 17, 2016
--Veteran's Dance Party: April 30, 2016
--Fleet Week in Fort Lauderdale: May 2 to 9, 2016
--Pool Party with HOA: May 30, 2016 (Memorial Day)
--Veteran's Day Dance: November 11, 2016 (3-11 PM)
Secretary Tom Nowak made a picture presentation reviewing his experiences as the gunnery officer on board the aircraft carrier USS Ticonderoga in the Pacific during the Vietnam war, including his experiences during the Easter Offensive of 1972, and the manned spacecraft recoveries of Apollo 16, Apollo 17 and the first manned Skylab mission, for which the Ticonderoga was the prime recovery ship. The presentation was well received by all hands.
The President in his concluding remarks noted that our next meeting will be a breakfast meeting on Sunday December 13, 2015 from 9:00 AM until 11:30 AM in the Social Hall. Our presenter will be Mike Heiserman who will discuss his active duty experiences in a Hawk surface to air missile battery in Germany.
The meeting concluded at 1800.
Minutes submitted by Tom Nowak, Veteran's Club Secretary