Norris and Joanne Warner

My apologies for not making the August meeting, and my thanks to Steve Carlson, Vice President, who by all accounts handled both the Board meeting and the evening general membership meeting very, very well. Now let’s see—more people attended that meeting than we generally expect, and new Secretary Lee Ann Carlson filled in for the absent Treasurer Joanne (and incidentally gathered in more dinner donations than ever before)—so is there a message in all of this for me??? Maybe I should stay away???

Attending Air Venture (Oshkosh) is something every EAA'er needs to do—at least once. This year made me a many timer, and I started to feel my age in tramping down the 5 ½ mile flight line plus pouring through hundreds of acres of exhibits, indoor and outdoor. We decided (again) this year that you cannot possibly see everything, so we sort of took our time. We supped (and sipped) with the many Chapter 35er’s there, and also enjoyed being with many old friends from around the country. I think we’ll skip next year and make plans for the 2005 affair.

We were invited to a couple of breakfast parties in one of the huge pavilions on the grounds. The food was good, and the speakers mercifully short! We were also invited to a luncheon hosted by the Air Explorers, a branch of scouting for youth from around 13 to 18. Their message was that an Air Explorer Post would be a natural follow-on to our Young Eagle program, wherein three or more chapter members would be Advisors, and five or more youngsters would be the starting group for a Post that would undertake aircraft building or restoring as a mission. If someone in our chapter would like to learn more about this intriguing idea, pleases call or e-mail me.

Our annual Christmas Banquet is now set for the 2nd Saturday in December, and your Board of Directors has decided on a split menu (beef or fish) for this year. Our Secretary, Lee Ann Carlson will be handling all ticket sales this year, and with only—and exactly—100 seats available, plan on getting in line early. This is our most enjoyable “party” of the entire year, so make every effort to get your tickets early!

Our September event—the 13th—will be our last fund-raiser for the year. Our hard working Bob Masters will be chairing the pancake breakfast which starts at 8:00 AM, and our Young Eagle Coordinator Brad Doppelt will be organizing our final YE event for the year. Both of these gents need your help so take the time to call or e-mail them at once. All of their info is on page 2 of this publication.

We will be having a five-minute general membership meeting at 9:30 sharp on that same day to approve minor By-Law changes, so please be prepared to listen up to the PA system at that time. Thanks!

One more note—elsewhere in this issue Don Staats has written a “conscience-tickler” to the chapter membership. Don has been a guiding light for this chapter for many, many years, and his article deserves your full attention. After digesting it give Don a call and/or write up your thoughts and send or e-mail them to our Runway 35 Editor.

One last important announcement! Kris Niswonger, a member of our chapter for six years, is working into the position of Newsletter Editor. Now Kris actually lives in Madison, Wisconsin, and won’t be moving to San Geronimo Airpark for another year or so, so e-mail is the means for getting the job done. During this transition phase, David Talley is still receiving all of our input, and he forwards them on to Kris. Our ultimate goal, of course, is to furnish the newsletter electronically to all of our chapter members who have the capability, thereby dramatically lowering our publishing and postage costs. Watch for further info on this new initiative. We know that many chapters have annual dues in the range of $25 to $40 per year, and we’re not about to do that if at all possible!

Norris Warner