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October President’s Letter

I am honored to serve the membership as the 63rd President of the Men’s Club. Sixty-three years represents a lot of Festivities, Fun, and Fellowship!!! I would be remiss if I did not take a moment to thank our previous president, Henry Fischer for his leadership of the Club and his mentorship of those who follow. Henry will remain on the Board of course, as immediate past president. We will miss the Board members whose terms have ended. Thank you to Ed Benz, Al Spalding and Jerry Teagan. Ed Benz has faithfully led the Special Events Committee for a number of years and has agreed to continue on as its chairman and continue to attend Board meetings. Jerry Teagan will continue serving on the Site Committee, Attendance Committee, and Newsletter Committee. It is my sincere desire that he will agree to be a chairman of a committee and continue attending Board meetings. Dave Morrow decided not to stand for re-election as Assistant Secretary and we thank him for his services. Thanks to Chip Rohde, who elected not to stand for First Vice President but will continue heading the Veterans Initiative. Our Editor of the Newsletter, John Snyder, has not allocated enough space to do these gentlemen justice. Watch for their member profiles and the holdover Board members and officers in a future Newsletter.

We are welcoming four newly elected Board members: Phil Alber, Jim Callahan, John Prost and Ken Mokray to the Board. There will be four past presidents (Henry, Jim, John, and Ken) on the Board with a rich knowledge of history and tradition.

Every coin has its flip side. Although I am privileged to have these past presidents offer their support and advice, it is indicative of an issue that is very much on my mind. I am not aware of a past president needing to join a Board to fill a slate in the past. We need to identify our talent and encourage more members to use their talent in serving on the Board or Committees. Getting involved is a great way to increase your Festivities, Fun, and Fellowship.

I plan to form a strategic committee to look at what we do well and what we do not do well – membership, general meetings, sub-clubs, and how we communicate. I envision that the committee will gather facts and analyses to facilitate making decisions for the future.

The Club is rich with traditions. We will continue to face challenges as opportunities and respect traditions while surviving and flourishing.

Best regards,
Jim Hoekwater