PRESIDENT’S CORNER MAY 2011
A TIME FOR CHANGE
Hi all,
This month’s letter is actually going to have a theme, something new for me.
Some of you may already know that we have recently lost our social director For the time being, Dan McClaren, Dave Pierce and I will be splitting the social director duties. This position is open for a volunteer. If you are interested in this position, please review the duties in the bylaws so there no questions about the responsibilities of the position. As of Thursday, may 5, Ed Fowler has accepted the position of field maintenance officer recently vacated by Eddie Francisco. Eddie has done a great job for many years & we appreciate his efforts.
Ok, on to the theme.
This club has been around for many years, the exact date is a matter of question, but that has no bearing on the subject. When I joined this club 6 years ago I was a new wide-eyed guy trying to figure out how to keep that infernal thing in the air. The club at that time was, for the most part, being run by the founding members and they were doing a great job as far as I was concerned. I was made to feel welcome and was taught unselfishly by many of the long-time members. In the years that followed, I felt compelled to join in on the day-to-day matters of the club by becoming an officer and was welcomed by the members.
It has been, so far, very enjoyable followed by challenges and personal rewards.
As time goes by, life, business and the whole world must change and evolve, if you will, to keep up with the times. This brings me to the topic of change.
As I mentioned before, the club has been run very well for many years by some of the senior members. As great a job as they did, I feel it is time for some of us younger members to step up, take some officer positions and carry the torch that has been handed to us. This club has a great history of fun flying and great fellowship, it’s time to continue that tradition. What I am getting to is I am asking all members to take a good look at this club and ask yourself. “Where do I want to see this club in the future”? If you feel you have something to contribute, consider being an officer. We have enough positions that the work load is spread out and being an officer is not as difficult or time consuming as some might think. As an officer, you also have a great support network in your fellow officers. For me, it has been, in the long run very rewarding to serve the membership of this club.
So, I ask you, do you want to be a part of the evolution of this fine club? We would love to have you aboard, it’s a great ride.
Keep your wings level,
Mark
Event Announcement
Hi all,
Well here we are at the beginning of another great flying season. Now if the weather would just cooperate, we might just be able to get in some stick time!
We had another great winter banquet, thanks again to Roz & Dan Osborn. Our first event this season will be our annual TAG event, May 21. Please contact Ben Lopez if you can help out, he will also have a sign up sheet at the May meeting. Also, we will be doing another static display at the K-Zoo Air Zoo, once again spearheaded by Nikolei Zinsli. May 28, setup around 7 am. Contact Nik for further info.
This promises to be an interesting year for us as the landowners are going to be expanding their operation by constructing several barns & buildings around the field. At this time we do not foresee any interference with our field. They are also planning on paving the road, most likely in a year or two. After our meeting with the owners, I am very excited about the future of our flying field.
At the club banquet I made a request to the membership to contact their legislators about the FAA regulations currently being rewritten. The R/C aspect has been removed from any restrictions. The AMA has said we don’t need to be sending off letters to Washington as they were inundated by more than 80,000 letters!
As of the writing of this, the field has been rolled & marked off for the new dimensions. 2 more things left to do, field will be closed all day on Monday the 25th & sprayed. I also need to get started on my fence repair project. Will have that done as soon as the weather backs off a little.
That’s about all I have for now, hope to see as many of you as I can out at the field.
Keep your wings level,
Mark
Presidents Corner – April 2011
Well here we are at the end of another great year for KRAM.
We had our elections at the last meeting and I would like to welcome George Orphan, Dave Pierce & Ben Lopez to the executive board. For the returning members, Jim Peterson, Eddie Francisco, Nikolei Zinsli & Dan Mclaren, great have you back. A special thanks to past board members Dan Osborn, Jim Hiest & Bernie DesPress for a job well done.
Presidents Corner – December 2010
Hi all,
It's that time of year again, time to elect our 2011 officers. Looks like we have all the positions covered. voting will be at the December meeting. We have only one person per office, nothing is contested. Therefore, we will just have a show of hands to accept or reject the nominees rather than a ballot system. We have done this before, seems as though that's how I got to be vice pres if my memory serves me correctly.
Presidents Corner – November 2010
We had a good meeting on Tuesday, although it was a tad windy! Thanks to all who braved the elements & came out to the field.
Since the last meeting, we have had the Mel Trotter Display, TAG & Veteran’s Fly-In. Mel Trotter & Tag went well, but the vet’s event, well, let’s just say I had all the best intentions when I decided to go ahead with it. Unfortunately, the rain decided to come in a few hours early & put a damper on the flying & cooking. Thanks to all who got wet & helped set up & tear down. BUT, we did have a silent auction of some of the items Bob Gezon donated to the club. Folks walked away with some pretty interesting stuff & the club drew about $560.00 for the coffers. Thanks so much to Danny, Jim & Ed for getting it all together. The remainder of the lot will be sold at the swap meet. I myself purchased a "Kloud King" old time plane that was built by none other than Bill Whitney. A nice bit of club history there.
Presidents Corner – September 2010
Greetings all,
We had another good meeting 18 members & 3 guests, Jake Williams, Mike
Kemp & Burt Smith who had to take an early leave. Nice turnout despite the
95 degree heat!
Flying season is in full swing & the events & fly-ins are a plenty!
Our first Sunset Big Bird fly-in is Wednesday, July 14th. Setup is at 3pm, event
from 4pm to dusk. Any help in setup & running would be great help. The weather
is looking fantastic! Thanks so much to Lee Lubbers for doing all the legwork
Presidents Corner – July 2010
Well here we are, into a great flying season so far.
Lee & I attended the CARDS Warbird fly on the 5th. It was well attended, some incredible planes & pilots! This is a great event to attend, CARDS does a great job.
We have our first fly-in this weekend, praying for the weather to hold. Thanks to all the volunteers, going to be a good one once again.
Presidents Corner – June 2010
Well, here we are with the flying season starting to get into full swing. We have a lot of events coming up. We will be going on a little road trip on Wednesday, May 19 to the CARDS field for some casual flying. We will be meeting at the park & ride at I-96 & M-50 @ 3 PM. The more the merrier! We will be hosting the CARDS on Thursday May 27 at our field. June is going to be a busy month. There will be the CARDS warbird fly in, our Memorial fly-in, fun fly at Muncie & the airshow at Tramps in Traverse City.
Presidents Corner – May 2010
Meeting was called to order on time, a nice group of 22.
We now have 2 new members, James Korringa and Mark Tucker. Welcome to the club guys!
The K-Zoo air zoo event is coming up, looks like it's going to be a good time. Let's hope the weather holds, that way if you wish, you can set up your display outside. We could use some volunteers for the make – and – take. Please contact Nikolei if you can help.
