General Meeting called to order at: 18:55 (6:55 pm for those of you who forgot how to tell time in the military)

Pledge of Allegiance by: Gene Goldsmith

Invocation and Moment of silence for POW/MIA by: Lonnie Rose

Roll Call of officers:                                                                    term expires

Gene Goldsmith, Pres                                        Present      2018

Dave Loomis, VP                                                Present      2018

Tom Grinstad, Secretary                                    Present      2018

Bill Cox, Asst. Sec.                                               Excused      2018

Ken Richardson, Treasurer                                Present      2018

Tom Marsich, B of D                                          Absent       2020

Larry Martin, B of D                                           Absent       2020

Kirk Lyon, B of D                                                 Present      2019

Peter Pavlik, B of D                                             Absent       2019

David Osinski, B of D                                          Absent       2019

Tom Modica, B of D                                           Present      2018

Guests:      Rosie Loomis, Benita Lipayon, Nancy Blackketter, Virginia Pace

Potential new members present: Richard Williams, Thomas Landray

Secretary’s report:      After gentle ribbing regarding the lack of reportage of the December dinner, the non-report was approved by acclimation.

Treasurer’s report:      moved to stand as read, the chapter is apparently 10 grand ahead.

Membership Update: at last count, 285, subject to change as 11 have deceased this year, but we have some new members not on the national roster as yet.

Old Business:     

1. Donation to LaFrienier family – they are doing ok. A donation is deemed not necessary.
2. Bottle auction Feb 23^rd, members (that means you) are encouraged to show up and participate. Gene Goldsmith will not be the auctioneer this year. After discussion Bill Bowen is stepping up to take that slot, with Ken Richardson as assistant. Those two guys should be able to strong-arm money out of us.
3. The December dinner was a gustatory success. There were about 80 attendees. See the previous post for a more complete (?) report.

New Business:

1. Service account issue regarding Lauri Anderson. After a bunch of discussion, the chapter decided to approve repaying Gene for the $1000 in bills he paid for her. All chapter officers, less one, were in favor of the action. Motion for approval by Randy E, 2^nd by David
2. The chapter received an anonymous donation of $3,000 to begin the funding of our memorial fund – to finance the Vietnam Memorial at Greenacres. The memorial is slated for construction in 2019, with a budget of $9,000, more or less.
3. Nominations and election for chapter officers and Board of Directors happen next meeting. Put on your thinkin’ caps and be ready to nominate or volunteer to help run this chapter. A few men have been the stalwarts to keep this thing going and it is not fair that we rely on them exclusively. Others need to come forth and participate.
4. Nancy Blackketter has volunteered to contribute membership notes to the Veteran magazine for the chapter. She and BK have become active here in the past year or so. A big “thank you” to her.
5. Jim Pace proposed that the chapter buy a life membership to VVA ($100) for Caroline Davis, who is a volunteer at the Vets Center, assisting with lots of paperwork (nursing home forms etc), and she is a vet. 2^nd by Ray R, approved.
6. Bill Bowen has received no correspondence from the state organization regarding his letter of November. Typical of action by state.

Good of the Order:

1. check your VFW calendar
2. Gene has VVA business cards and applications, take them and hand them out to any Vietnam vet who is not a member of the chapter.
3. the DAV needs van drivers. It takes a month or more to get the certificate. The Bellingham van is now picking up for other locations as they have no drivers to put in the driver’s seat.
4. Don’ forget the breakfast on the third Saturday at VFW 9301.

Motion to adjourn: There being no other business, meeting adjourned at 19:55 (7:55 pm)

A report of the December dinner is notably late. This reporter humbly asks for forgiveness. The need of reportage simply went above his head. Should anyone feel less forgiving, let him (or her) step forward and relieve me of this responsibility.

Since it is so late, many details have abandoned my memory, but I shall do the best that I can with the depleted resources at my disposal. The first notice as one stepped into the building was the wonderful aroma of roasting beast wafting from the lower floor. As you descended the stairs the hubbub of lively conversation arose in the ears. There were about eighty (80) folks in attendance, so the cacophony was nearly overwhelming. At times it was hard to hear what the neighboring person was thinking. It seemed that nearly every couple was engaged with others at their table discussing the state of the world – or recounting the best cartoon strip of the day.

Wojo (our notable chef) acquitted himself admirably. The roast baron of beef was cooked within an inch of perfection. There were more than ample sides for the omnivores among us. Potatoes, beans, corn, salad, and it seems to me more, as well. When all were stuffed to the bursting point, dessert was announced. There was a sheet cake with the chapter insignia and ice cream to top.

Everyone this reporter talked to thought the dinner was a roaring success. For those of you who chose not to inflict themselves on the rest of us – too bad. You missed an evening that was pretty close to terrific.

The meeting was called to order at 18:57 (6:57 pm) by President Gene Goldsmith

Pledge of Allegiance and Invocation was led by Lonnie Rose with a moment of silence for POW/MIA.

Roll Call of officers & directors:                                            term expires

Gene Goldsmith, Pres                     Present                          2018

Dave Loomis, VP                              Present                          2018

Douglas Spangler, 2^nd VP                Absent                         2018

Tom Grinstad, Sec                           Present                          2018

Bill Cox, Asst. Sec                            Present                          2018

Ken Richardson, Treas.                   Present                          2018

Tom Marsich       B of D                   Absent                           2020

Larry Martin        B of D                   Absent                           2020

Kirk Lyon   B of D                            Present                          2019

Peter Pavlik         B of D                  Absent                            2019

David Osinski      B of D                  Absent                            2019

Tom Modica       B of D                     Present                          2018

Guests:      Agnes Kenny, Dorothy Rood, Mary Boice, Liz Rose, Nancy Blackketter

New members:  Possible new recruit introduced as Dick O’Bryan a member of the Seabees from 1967 to 1971. Welcome, Dick.

Secretary’s report:      Moved to accept by Kirk L, 2^nd by Bill B, approved

Treasurer’s report:      Moved to accept by Tom G, 2^nd by Dave L, approved

Membership update:  The latest roster from national listed 283 members. AVVA 7

Old Business:

1. The donation to the LaFrienier family is tabled until Pres. Gene can talk to Jessica LaFrieniere.
2. Kirk Lyons reported on the BTC breakfast, where members met three of the scholarship recipients. One is somewhat advanced in years, 54, the others are in their 20’s. They are too busy with school and work to come to our meeting.
3. The spouse dinner will be held at the VFW on 5 December. After a motion by Randy T, 2^nd by Dave L and discussion it was decided to make Wojo whole for the last year’s event. This year the chapter will ask for donations at the door and make up the difference. Pres. Gene will work with the VFW bar to have two tickets per attendee for drinks.
4. We still need help for the DAV fundraiser please sign up with Gene, three locations available and lotsa time.

New Business:

1. Bottle auction date somewhere around Valentine’s Day to be coordinated with Cindy of the VFW aux. for the dinner and setup.
2. Pres. Gene asked to see hands of all under 70 years old. Then he gave a pep talk to encourage them to step up to leadership positions in the VVA. Several in the leadership have been doing their jobs for quite a while and it is time for “new blood”. Come on guys, do your part.

The next meeting is December 5, 2017. A fancy dinner with guests – presumably your respective spouses (or is that plural spice ?)

Good of the Order

1. Check the VFW calendar
2. Keep a few VVA business cards and applications on hand to help recruit.
3. the DAV badly needs drivers. Stanwood and Sedro Wooley have no buses because they have no drivers. If you’re fit, can drive and have insurance help get vets to the VA.
4. Remember the breakfasts, 3^rd Saturday at VFW 9301 and 4^th Sat. here.
5. The VFW 9301 auxiliary is sending 30 troop boxes to deployed Whatcom county servicepersons for the holidays. Liz Rose requested postage money in the amount of $532.50. Motion by Kirk L, 2^nd by Randy E approved unanimously.
6. Ray R displayed a drawing of the proposed Korean War memorial for the Whatcom Allied Veterans Council Memorial at Greenacres. They intend to raise $10,000.00 by the sale of memorial brick at a cost of $125 / brick. Give if you can
7. Lonnie R was selling raffle tickets for a Henry lever action 22 cal. rifle benefiting VFW
8. Bill B. shared the proposed design of the new VVA Chapter #165 banner. Discussion suggested a couple of changes in the design. Motion by Kirk L, 2^nd by Bill C approved.
9. VP Dave Loomis obtained a copy of the WASC “Financial Report” while attending the October Council meeting as the Chapter delegate. The report was presented and discussed. After having been presented with the Chapter’s financial report earlier, consisting of a Balance Sheet and Profit & Loss Statement, membership could see a stark contrast in the reports. Chapter Treasurer Richardson stated the Council report was not a financial report. Many questions arose regarding the Council report. A discussion point was that a substantial amount of funding for service offices in the state come from State Veteran funding (WDVA). As such, several senior chapter members will be addressing the matter to the State Council Treasurer.
10. The 50/50 raffle for $80 was won by Ken R – donated back to the chapter.

Meeting adjourned at 7:58 (19:58) to the delight of all, or most all.

Minutes of Meeting 3 October 2017

Seeing that nearly everyone had finished dinner, V.P. David Loomis called the General Meeting to order at: 6:35 pm (18:35)

Invocation by: Ken Rood

Pledge of Allegiance by: Dave Loomis

Moment of silence for POW/MIA

Roll Call of officers:                                                                    term expires

Gene Goldsmith, Pres                                        Excused      2018

Dave Loomis, VP                                                Present      2018

Douglas Spangler, 2^nd V.P.                                 Absent       2018

Tom Grinstad, Secretary                                    Present      2018

Bill Cox, Asst. Sec.                                               Present      2018

Ken Richardson, Treasurer                                Present      2018

Tom Marsich, B of D                                          Absent       2020

Larry Martin, B of D                                           Absent       2020

Kirk Lyon, B of D                                                 Present      2019

Peter Pavlik, B of D                                             Absent       2019

David Osinski, B of D                                          Present      2019

Tom Modica, B of D                                           Present      2018

Guests:      Mary Boice, Rosemary Loomis Darlene Carlson, Virginia Beauford, Mary Gilliland

New members present:

Secretary’s report: Moved, seconded and accepted

Treasurer’s report:      Moved Tom G, 2^nd Bill C, approved

Membership Update: Current membership is 284 (as of 31 July), which means that 11% of the membership showed up for the meeting. And that’s rounding up. The AVVA has 7 members

Old Business:     

1. Randy Turnbull suggested tabling the discussion of a donation to the LaFrienier family so he can get more information. Approved.
2. The chapter has four representatives to attend the BTC breakfast this coming Thursday: Bill B, David L, Kirk L and Ray R. we hope to get a short report next meeting.
3. The Northwest Classic Trucks club donated $500.00 to the chapter as a result of the car show. It was suggested that we invite a member of that club to the next meeting to receive our thank you. Tom M will arrange.

New Business:

1. The date for the spouse dinner was selected – our December meeting which is 5 December. Moved by Bill B, 2^nd by Kirk L. approved
2. DAV Veterans Day sign-up sheet passed around. We still need volunteers for the 11 November day.
3. The date for the bottle auction is up in the air. Suggested by Kirk L that the chapter coordinate with the VFW Auxiliary to firm up the date since they work so hard providing the dinner.
4. Bill B presented a motion to allocate $250 to buy a new banner for the car show. Motion amended by Bill B to not be exclusively a car show banner – with “Victory Lane” on the reverse side cost approximately $300. A 2^nd from Bill C, approved.

Good of the Order:

1. Darlene Carlson, Vice Regent of the local DAR expressed thanks to the chapter (specifically Dave L and Doc H) for providing transport from the Sheraton 4 seasons to the Pickett House and bridge.
2. Check the VFW calendar for events and activities
3. Please take some VVA business cards and application for distribution.
4. The DAV needs van drivers please help
5. There’s a VFW breakfast at post 9301 on 21 October. Be there or be an equal sided rectangle.
6. f. Kirk L shared some thank you notes and letters from the scholarship awards. Check with the secretary if you would like to read them.
7. Extra Veterans magazines are available from Tom M or Dave L.
8. One of the guys from the Skagit chapter invited all to a townhall meeting by Rep. Rick Larson on 20 October at 4:30 to 6:30 (16:30-18:30).
9. On a sad note, new member Tom Hoddox lost a grandson in the Las Vegas Mandalay Bay shooting. Austin Davis was 29.

Motion to adjourn: by somebody but I didn’t catch who. Meeting adjourned at 19:15 (7:15 pm).

General Meeting called to order at @ 6:45 PM by President Gene Goldsmith

Pledge of Allegiance

Invocation by Lonnie Rose

Moment of silence for POW/MIA

Roll Call of officers                                                                 Term Expires

Gene Goldsmith, Pres.                    Present

Dave Loomis, VP                             Present

Doug Spangler, 2^nd VP                    Absent

Tom Grinstad, Secretary                 Excused

Bill Cox, Asst. Sec.                            Present

Ken Richardson, Treasurer             Present

Tom Marich, B of D                         Absent                 2020

Kirk Lyon, B of D                              Present                2019

Larry Martin, B of D                         Absent                 2020

Peter Pavlik, B of D                         Absent                 2019

Tom Modica, B of D                        Present                2018

David Osinski, B of D                      Absent                 2018

Guests and their acknowledgement

Rosemarie Loomis

Melinda Quayle

Agnes Kenny

Dorothy Rood

Jim Smith

New members present and their acknowledgement

Howard Quayle

Secretary’s July minutes were reviewed prior to the meeting by the membership. The minutes are also posted on the chapter website, VVA165.org. Minutes were approved as drafted.

Treasurer’s August report was read by Ken Richardson. Discussion and questions followed. The report was approved as read.

Membership Update was given by Gene Goldsmith. The chapter currently has 279 members. There are 7 Auxiliary VVA members. Both totals are as of July 31, 2017.

Old Business

The Car Show was discussed. The Gearheads made a $500 donation. The Antique Truck Association has discussed making a $500 donation. Thanks were given to the Car Show Committee and to all of the volunteers for making this a successful event. The chapter made approximately $10,500 in profit from the show. Ken Richardson mentioned that next year he can probably get 10 to 12 Starbucks employees to work as volunteers at the show. Several thank you letters were read and Barkley Village wants us back next year and a tentative date has been set. There were 260 cars registered this year. Bill Bowen will look into the design and cost of acquiring a new VVA165 banner that can be placed over Victory Lane and be used for other chapter events. Ken Richardson mentioned that next year the Car Show Committee should prepare a budget and get approval of that budget from the chapter before any expenses are incurred.

A Plaque for Gary Lysne was shown to the membership. It is a plaque which commemorates the dedication of the new service office in Gary’s name and remembrance.

The Welcome Home Picnic was discussed by Gene Goldsmith. It was well attended and fun was had by all.

New Business

The VVA National Convention in Spokane in 2018 was discussed. Prior chapter approval set aside $4,000 of car show funds to support our chapter attendance at the convention. Funds will be set aside for that purpose. Motion made, seconded and passed.

Children of Vietnam Funding was discussed. $715 was allocated to support 5 children’s scholarships for the coming year. Motion made, seconded and passed.

A VVA165 Plaque from National was shown to the membership. It was a plaque honoring the chapter with the “National Membership Growth Award” for 2016. Thanks were given to the appropriate chapter members for their letter writing campaign.

The Silent Auction Winners were announced among the bidding chapter members. These auctioned items were undistributed car show items that needed to be auctioned.

The BTC Scholarship Breakfast was discussed by Gene Goldsmith. Kirk Lyon, Dave Loomis, Bill Bowen and one member to be determined will attend and represent the chapter. It will be held October 5, 2017 at 7:30 AM. See Kirk if you want to attend. The plaques commemorating Gary Lysne and Chiyoko Harada Radke are now up. Kirk requested that he be notified sooner on correspondence from BTC.

A Policy Statement was made by Gene Goldsmith regarding chapter purchases and donations to the chapter. One, only Gene approves and disburses money from the service account subject to the review and recommendations of the chapter officers and board. Two, no one can order items for the chapter without the approval of an officer. Three, VVA165 is a 501 (c) 3 corporation which means that donations to the chapter are tax deductible by the donor. Therefore, to protect that tax deductibility all donations must run through our accounts.

The Growing Veterans organization was discussed by Mike Hackett. They have two farms and they grow food to sell benefiting veterans. They also try to foster veteran fellowship. All chapter members are invited to visit the farms.

DAV and Chapter Volunteers are needed for Veterans Day signup. Gene Goldsmith passed out signup sheets. Volunteers will have booths in front of three Haggen stores this year.

Next meeting is October 3, 2017.  Dinner will begin at 6 PM with the meeting at 7 PM. Spouses and guests are invited. Dave Loomis will fill in for Gene Goldsmith.

Good of the Order

First, Gene Goldsmith reminded the members to check their VFW monthly calendar for upcoming events.

Second, Gene Goldsmith requested that members consider volunteering to be drivers for the DAV van.

Third, Gene Goldsmith has VVA business cards and VVA membership applications to give out to members who may need them for recruitment or for other chapter business.

Fourth, Gene Goldsmith reminded the membership of the monthly breakfast the third Saturday of the month at Post 9301.

Motion to adjourn meeting at @ 7:50 PM. Motion seconded and passed. The meeting was adjourned by Gene Goldsmith.