The meeting was called to order at 7:00 by
President Ken. Present were: Dave
Martin, Tom Ritchey, Ken Hardwick, Andy Andersen, Robert English, Wayne
Nutsch, Deborah Plymate, Harvey James,
Bob Zafran, Danny Jaffer, Doug Birge, John Wilson, and Joe Winter.
The first item on the agenda was to replace Tom
who is retiring as the chair of this event.
Tom spoke briefly, introducing the emcee-elect Danny Jaffer. Danny went on to say that he would be glad
to "learn the ropes" to chair the event in 2012, but would be glad to
volunteer as emcee only this time around.
The discussion centered around who would occupy the chairman position. The consensus was that two people, Andy and
Danny, should co-chair the event so that if one is temporarily absent the other
can fill in. The formula of this event
is pretty much the same for the last several years, which helps. Ken then presented Tom with an American
flag, supplied by the AMVETs, as a token of appreciation for the many years he
has chaired the committee for this event.
Those attending responded with heartfelt applause.
Dan then proceeded to go through the agenda,
starting with the ODA requesting permission to hold the event, and John Wilson
(as rep for the ODA) granted that permission.
The F-15s need to have paperwork filed to request a flyover: Pete Weber
used to do that, and Bob Zafran has been contacted to take Pete's place. John said that the form needed to be filled
out and got back to him in proper time.
Bob would also try to get the Coast Guard in as we have in years past.
The flag ceremony will be handled by the AMVETs
reps, Harvey James and Doug Birge.
Suzanne Bladow may be interested in singing the Anthem, and Steve
Springer (who has supplied the PA in years past) would also like to sing the
Anthem; it was decided to check with Susan first then let Steve be the backup
singer. The Pledge of Allegiance
involves the Boy Scouts and the Cub Scouts, and it was agreed to involve them
in any way possible. Robin Reid is the
contact man for that.
Doug Hedland is the current interim director for
the ODA, though he may not be before Memorial Day (at the pleasure of the
Governor), and the intention is that one member of the ODA will officially welcome
the event. It will likely be Mitch
himself, but the decision will be made by April first.
Reverend Bob Roach is still on medication and
will continue to be on one until March 3, still recovering from an
operation. Michael Parks from the
Baptist Church, who is a pilot, is also on tap to provide the invocation.
The tribute to pilots will likely be presented
by Stanton Rickey and John Bruning, who has also assisted in providing the
memorial placards for MIAs. The 99s are ready to provide the memorial wreath as
they have before. Civil Air Patrol is
out of touch, and Dan suggested the Salem area Junior ROTC though Bob said that
they might be already committed for Memorial Day. Calls will be made to find out.
The flag presentation this year may be assisted by Congressman Kurt
Schrader as he is not campaigning as he was last year. The current count for needed flags is
approximately 20.
The missing man formation has been assisted by the RV pilots in the airpark, and either Dennis Krummel or Denny Jackson is the contact man for this. John brought up the issue that Mitch Swecker had mentioned to him, that last year a few airplanes were at the same altitude as the F-15s and that could be dangerous. Dave Martin said he would take care of contacting the RV pilots.
The recognition of Veterans present is going to
be handled as it has been in past years by Steve Springer. Dannielle Ritacco, who is now a Sergeant,
may still be available to play Taps.
The static display of aircraft used to be handled by Doug Davis, and
there were a few others who helped.
Dave said he would contact John Horn to see who else in the EAA may be
available to help with this. For the
fly-by of other aircraft, Lynn McDonald and Dave Martin have assisted with that
before. Dan said that he was happy with
whatever gets up in the air on that day, though too many is not good.
The picnic lunch has been the resource to help
pay for the event, and it will start at 11:30 and end at 1 PM. Wayne is providing the hangar space, and
commented that the hangar is cleaner after the event than before so he looks
forward to this. The dumpster will be
provided as it was last year, and the port-o-potty (the handicapped unit)
should also be provided by the FBO; Robin Reid should be contacted to confirm.
The shuttle buses from the Marquis Spa parking
lot can be partially handled by Wayne with his bus, and Andy said he would
contact the Church to assist with another bus.
The Marquis Spa will be contacted by Andy also. The program, as usual, is to be printed by
Farnstrom Mortuary, with Lois Martin supplying the artwork. Andy said he would contact the mortuary.
The signs that were used last year have been
mislaid, but they may be above the kitchen in the EAA hangar. Dave said he would look for the signs
tomorrow morning, and Dan suggested painting new ones if the old ones cannot be
found.
Volunteers for directing traffic have been the
CAP and Boy Scouts during previous events, though we need to ask and make sure
that there are enough people to help with this. Ron Hanna has handled the radio work, and Andy said he would
contact him and ask him if he is available to do this again.
Date and place for the next meeting: the library
is a good spot, and there is a room in the New City Hall that could be available
if this room is not. Andy said he would
check on the library's schedule. The
next date is March 7, same time. Next
Meetings after that are April 4 and May 2.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:36 PM. Respectfully submitted by Robert English,
ISAS secretary.
Meeting0207.doc