Presidents Report
Hello Dogwood members. Spring is finally here and in April and May, we had 2 great rallies. More info on those rallies is included in the rally schedule. Susan and I attended both rallies and really enjoyed seeing our Dogwood friends. We are now busy planning and preparing for a 7 week trip to the northwest. Stopping in WI to visit my family, and then on to Glendive, MT to attend a memorial for Susan’s mother and aunt. From there we will head to the west coast, and we are so looking forward to the trip.
There is a lot going on in Dogwood and FMCA at the present time so I have numerous subjects and items to cover.
First and most important is a proposal by FMCA to allow all RVs to be members of our association. Detailed information pertaining to this proposal can be found in the April FMCA magazines Presidents message. You can also go online to FMCA REMODEL for additional information. Due to the importance of this proposal, we will be sending out a separate mailing to all members with detailed information put together by our National Director, Ed Fisher. I strongly recommend your review this proposal and provide inputs back to Ed and Dogwood. The initial vote on this will be in July at the National convention.
Elections for FMCA National Officers will take place in July at the National Convention. The only contested position is for Treasurer. John Reynolds, our past EAMA President and long time GEAR Host and FMCA volunteer is one of the candidates. Frank Taber is the other candidate. Their biographies can be found in the May issue of the FMCA magazine. Ed Fisher will be our representative at the convention, so if you have any inputs, please provide them to Ed ASAP.
We used our new Keurig coffee maker for the second time at the May rally, and it was well received. The only issue was the wait time if several people show up at the same time. We will use it again in September and go from there.
A new Rally Expense form has been produced and reviewed by our Executive Board and members present at the May rally. It is much less complex than the old form and well received by the members. I will make the suggested corrections, update the Rally Instruction form, and ask Paul to put the new form on our blog so we can begin using it.
Last December, the Cummings presented the idea of purchasing shirts for Dogwood. We came up with a logo, had a few shirts printed and showed them off at the May rally. Members liked the logo and shirts, so we will proceed with the next step. Right now we are doing T-shirts, but that could grow to other things in the future. Original cost was around $8.00, but members requested pre-shrunk shirts and pockets if you so desire. That may change the cost a bit. In addition, sizes larger than xtra large will be a few dollars more. Color options include blue, pink, athletic grey and possibly teal. Pink for the men of course, and they will come with a ribbon (LOL). I will put together an order form and get it out in the next few weeks. As we will not be back until July, it will be after that before you can take delivery. There is no middle man involved in this. My son-in-law does the shirts and what he charges is what you pay. The cost for the logo will be about $25.00 which Dogwood can pay for. Hope you like the wardrobe.
Late breaking personal good news from the Buelow’s. I took a break yesterday from writing this message so Susan and I could go look at a TOAD. A friend of mine sold his coach but still had his TOAD and he offered to let us use it for our trip. We checked it out yesterday, liked what we saw and made an offer to buy it. An hour later we were on our way home with our new TOAD in tow. Deal included a 2012 Nissan Versa in excellent shape, tow package, and break system. Needless to say, we are very HAPPY CAMPERS. After 14 years, we finally have a TOAD. Many thanks to all of you whom over the years offered us your back seat or the keys to your car when we were in need. Hope we can reciprocate in the future.
As I close, just a reminder. As you travel, please make a point to reach out to other motor home owners you see along the way. Make a new friend and invite them to join Dogwood and FMCA. Members are the best ambassadors FMCA has.
Regards and SAFE travels,
