Fall Chapter Meeting

Text section for Chapter Meeting

Mark up another first for Chapter 33! True, we didn’t meet the quota requirements to hold a chapter meeting. There were only 15 members who showed up for this fall event. True, in the far distant past when our membership was small, we held meetings in peoples homes, and picnics on military bases and member’s farms. But never once did we hold a fish fry. Yes, you unfortunate few who missed this meeting, a FISH FRY!

Sid Morgan and Bill Phipps were hosts for this meeting and they promised at the last meeting they would throw a fish fry. They spent weeks, maybe even months, on the shores of the Great Lakes trolling for the perfect Walleye. When they were done they had over 70 pounds of perfectly proportioned Walleye. Satisfied that they had enough fish to feed an army they returned to Crossville, Tennessee to prepare the horde for the upcoming chapter meeting in October.

Sid then published the Alert Order: “Come one, Come all! The meeting will be held on 7-9 October, 2016 in Crossville, Tennessee. Reserve your rooms at the Hampton Inn and prepare for the feast of a life time.”

The agenda was simple---Friday, sign-in for your room. 1630 (Central Time) head out to Chez Sid for the evening meal. Help yourself to a buffet of hush puppies (homemade), deep-fried Walleye filets, slaw (home made), shredded pork (home made) and a selection of fine wines, premium beers, and soft drinks. The finishing touch was home baked blueberry cobbler and ice cream.

Sometime around 2130 the party ended. As we passed the buffet table on the way to our vehicles we noticed what had originally been stacked with mounds of deep-fried fish, heaping plates of pulled pork, stacks of hush puppies and slaw, was now bare. I think I spied, as I passed the buffet table, a spoon-full of ice cream left.

Saturday---The hospitality room opened at 1000 hours. Hostess Beth Morgan arrived shortly before noon with the fixings for lunch. Sorry, guys and gals but there were no deep-fried Walleyes or hush-puppies for this go-round. However, there was a variety of meats, chips, breads and condiments. Like the night before, by meeting time at 1330 the buffet table was nearly bare.

There were’t enough members present to have a quorum so the meeting was for information only. A few items (like the “Memorial Pavers” for the members who died this year) are ongoing and only need to have the secretary write a check for the new pavers. Stan Shank gave a briefing on the annual Alaskan Bear Hunt. This trip has become so popular, the number of hunts has been increased from two to three hunts a year. Once again, Chapter 33 donated $500 towards this hunt.

The chapter also gave our very own member/doctor Dale Betterton and his Haiti health clinic $500. Dale was not present to accept this check, however. He was probably in Haiti helping the locals dig out from Hurricane Matthew. Good luck, Dale, and stay safe.

The evening was a do-it-yourself type schedule. Many of the members and ladies chose to stay in the lobby of the hotel to watch wall-to-wall football games. Sorry to all the UT fans but by now you know Tennessee lost big time to Texas A&M. Some of our members threatened to move to Texas. At least those who watched the failures did enjoy pizzas.

Some of us visited a local steak house, Vegas. It wasn't too crowded and the 6 members at the table were just enough to make the evening enjoyable and relaxing. By the way everyone had steak and it was very good. The employees were cheerful, courteous and helpful. If ever you get to visit Crossville, give the Vegas restaurant a try. You'll enjoy it.

The week-end weather was perfect for an outdoor fish fry and meeting. During the day it was warm and windy. During the evening it was cool but not too cold.

A big tip of the beret to Sid and Beth Morgan and Bill Phipps for hosting a great weekend. The work and effort (including the 2-3 months vacation on the Great Lakes) put into this affair resulted in one hell of a great meeting. One, I do believe, will be the subject of many future conversations.

Our record setting attendance was broken at this meeting. For those of you who didn’t make it, you couldn’t have picked a worst time for not attending a meeting. But don’t fret. Those of us who did make the meeting made sure the fish, hush-puppies and pulled pork didn’t go to waste.

As you can see, I have added some photos of this weekend. You can view them at your leisure.

The Chapter Winter meeting will be in Marion, Virginia on 3-4 February, 2017. Dave Hensley is hosting this meeting. You can read the particulars on the Chapter Website Bulletin Board, so mark your calendars for Marion, Virginia in February.

Thanks, Sid, Beth and Bill for a job well done. We’ll have to do this again so Sid and Bill can make another 2-3 month trip to the Great Lakes.

See you in Marion, Virginia in February 2017.