Covered Wagons President's Corner

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! We all have many things we are thankful for—family, friends, health, etc. As President, I want to also give a special ‘THANKS’ to all Covered Wagons members who have contributed so much to making our 2009 rallies wonderful experiences! Without the efforts you expend for the chapter, our memories would not be so memorable or pleasant. We hope all the members have the opportunity to join us for at least a few of the 2010 rallies.

All of you should have seen next year’s rally schedule by now and we hope you are thinking about your 2010 travel plans. Please let our Wagonmaster, Loren Brown, know which rallies you may attend so he can be sure we have enough sites set aside at each campground. Also, if you have made a reservation and have to cancel, be sure to notify Loren (and not just the campground). This will allow the rally hosts to adjust their arrangements accordingly and avoid any unpleasant shortage or overage.

We also want to thank those of you who have already signed up to be hosts or co-hosts for 2010 rallies. There are still some open slots so don’t be afraid to give Loren or myself a call to volunteer for a rally. Don’t worry if you have never been a host/co-host, we have some excellent information on the website (prepared by our Host Coordinator / Advisor, Bill Speer) and any previous host would be happy to answer your questions. While being a host/co-host will assure you a very busy rally weekend, it is always an exhilarating experience (best appreciated at the end of the rally perhaps)! I will attempt to provide assistance to both Loren and the hosts/co-hosts next year by acting as a ‘Rally Coordinator’ to spread out the responsibilities and lower everyone’s frustration level.

Finally, I want to give a very special ‘Thank You’ to all the new members who joined us in 2009. We know you will enjoy attending our rallies and want you to become active participants in the Covered Wagons Chapter. See you at the January Meeting!

July 2009

My how time flies when you’re having fun! Since I am way behind in getting a new column posted, I assume that I (and all of you) are having fun this summer—either with or without your motorhome! The Paulsons elected to forego all the big rallies this year in favor of more family-oriented, short-term visits and vacations. (I would love to be going someplace in the motorhome every week but Vic is still working full-time and we have to schedule a lot of our travel around her office duties.) We will be at the August rally at Melvern Lake and hope to see you there.

Speaking of the August rally, the info I have at the moment indicates we should have a nice turnout. This is the rally where we will finalize the ballot for officer positions. The slate of nominees from the Nominating Committee will be announced and the floor opened to additional nominations. The vote will be by mail ballot and the results will be announced at the October 2009 rally. Those elected will serve a two-year term through the end of 2011. We also need to fill a vacancy on the Nominating Committee at the August rally to serve through 2010. We encourage all members interested in filling an officer position or serving on the Nominating Committee to contact Lynn Baker or Mike Steed.

See you at the rally!

Virg Paulson
Covered Wagons President

We held our May rally held at the Kansas State Fairgrounds in Hutchinson, Kansas. The weather was absolutely perfect and all who attended had a most relaxing and enjoyable weekend. We were sorry rally co-hosts Brad and Alice Elkins were unable to attend because of last minute coach mechanical problems but hope to see them at the next rally. Due to the last minute change in venue from Emporia, we did not have a formal meeting room. However, our hosts, Wanda and Rod Ryel, secured the use of a covered shelter in Yoder, Kansas for our meeting on Saturday. Since we did not have an official quorum, we did not conduct any formal business and did not record official minutes. The chairpersons presented pertinent information concerning their latest activities and May birthdays and anniversaries were acknowledged. As you have seen from recent emails and mailings, we have several members with serious medical situations and we ask that you remember them in your thoughts and prayers.

Wagonmaster Loretta Marlowe discussed the initial 2010 Rally Schedule and all her suggestions seemed to be well received. The Paulson’s will be hosting the June rally at Smith’s Fork Park in Smithville, MO and I believe we also have volunteers lined up to host the August rally at Melvern Lake in Kansas. Check the website for additional information and updates. Be sure to let Loretta know if you plan to attend a rally (or not) so she can more effectively represent our chapter when interacting with the campgrounds.

The chapter extends a warm welcome to our newest members, Harry and Loretta Spencer from Ozark, Missouri. We look forward to seeing them at many more rallies in the future.

We will be sending out additional information about the June rally in Smithville very soon. Our special guests for the June rally will be Fred Kennedy, National Vice President South Central Area and President Six-State Rally Association, and his wife Lou. Please attend the rally and help us extend them a hearty Covered Wagons welcome!

Our 2009 rally season got off to a good start last weekend at the Cozy Corner RV Park in Clinton, MO. We want to thank Hal and Marilyn Heineken for serving as the ‘hosts’ by collecting the rally fee and securing the morning doughnuts we all loved! Speaking of rally hosts, we still need hosts for the June and August rallies. Contact our Wagonmaster Loretta Marlowe to volunteer and she will provide you with all the details!

Loretta also reminded everyone there has been a change in the 2009 Rally Schedule for the May Rally. We will be going to Hutchinson instead of Emporia. Check the website frequently as there are several rallies that require members to contact the campground and make individual reservations. The sooner you make those reservations the better your chance to get a parking spot! Be sure to let Loretta know if you plan to attend a rally (or not) so she can more effectively represent our chapter when interacting with the campgrounds.

The chapter extends a warm welcome to Scott and Nancy Sidwell who became our newest members at the April rally. We look forward to seeing them at many more rallies in the future.

We want to start by thanking all those CW members who showed up at the January meeting at La Hacienda Restaurant in Olathe to kick off the 2009 rally season. Our host, La Hacienda owners (and CW members) Lynn and Anne Baker, especially appreciated the excellent turnout and gladly moved additional tables and chairs into the meeting room to accommodate all of us. Check the meeting minutes to catch up on what we discussed.

Wagonmaster, Loretta Marlowe, reminded everyone to carefully read the 2009 Rally Schedule and periodically check the website as there are several rallies that require members to contact the campground and make individual reservations. The sooner you make those reservations the better your chance to get a parking spot!

The one piece of bad news we received in January was that our hard work at the Six-State Rally in North Little Rock earned the members who attended a lot of interesting memories—but no financial reward for the Chapter. Even though the rally was well-attended and rally income was 49% higher than 2007, the rally expenses were 79% higher than 2007. This created a net loss of almost $3,000 and no money to distribute to any of the volunteer chapters. Guess we will have another chance in seven years or so!

As I finish this I note that the economy continues to struggle but there is more talk that the markets are in a bottoming process. I hope they are right and that 2009 will be a better year for all of us. See you at the next rally!