Club Calendar & Speaker Assignments

THE VALE NEWS May 25, 2011 Vol. 35 Issue No. 42 Spring Conferences

NOTE - We will be meeting at the Castlerock Pub until next December.

June 1 Doug Stoehr - Beverly Kehoe, Vt. Festival of the Arts 8 Karen Winchell - Martin Hahn, Director of Community Capital of VT 15 Manny Apigian - Peter Boynton - Friends of Northfield Ridge 22 Ralph Walker 29 Changeover

Sept 21 District Governor Visit

Editor’s Note: Please inform Wini (496-6710) of the name of your speaker at least 2 weeks in advance. If you can’t get a speaker for that date, please try to trade with another person on the list.

Birthdays: Brian Crandall 5/25; Gary Plewak 5/28 Anniversaries: Karl & Susan Klein 5/24

Meeting News Guests: Ben White, Rob Alberts, Tom Roach, Sally Molnar

Announcements:

The board voted to donate $1,000 to MRV Seniors, $500 to the Festival of the Arts, and $3,000 as seed money to Waitsfield Operation Backpack that will send food home on weekends with children who are challenged by serious food deficiencies in their homes. The backpacks are to carry the food. The project is hoping to raise $7,000.

The board voted to increase dues from $150 to $180 to cover increased administrative costs. Bob Holden pointed out that this requires a vote of the membership that must be warned in accordance with Club By-laws

Dinsmore asked for volunteers to park cars at the MRPath annual meeting. The Mad River Path is hosting it's Annual Meeting at the Lareau Farm this Friday. It's a pizza party with the Big Basin Band!! Volunteers are needed to direct parking from 3:30 to around 7:00 PM (perhaps in two shifts--3:30 to 5:15 and 5:15 to 7 PM.) Volunteers will be offered 1/2 price entrance for pizza and dancing. Contact Dinsmore if you can help.

Doug updated the sponsorships for the Duck Race. There is discussion about a one- time solicitation of sponsorships each year so that businesses are not asked constantly for sponsorships. Mega Bucks - $757 to the winner. Peter Laskowski drew the 5 of clubs.

Happy Bucks

Jim Leyton- happy we have two distinguished speakers

Monk -happy to have a nice day for his first golf outing of the season

Ken Amman- happy his father-in-law visiting

Clayton Paul -says everyone needs two riding lawn mowers

Peter L. -happy son and girl friend coming to visit

Joe Klimek -getting ready for opera sets

John Daniell- happy it isn’t raining

Dinsmore -happy youngest son is coming for visit

Gene- going to three graduations in three different states

Doug and Sue- visited his mom in St. Louis for her 91st birthday and snuck in a trip to the outer banks-8 out of 9 days were sunny.

PROGRAM

Ken Amman introduced his father in law, Tom Roach. Tom was in the “Ghost Army” in WWII. This was a top secret decoy mission in Europe to fool the Germans. The Ghost Army included 1,100 men including 7 West Point graduates and many more officers than usual. The group was mostly young men 19-21. They moved around all over Europe. The four units included combat engineers, sonic deception, camouflage, and a signal company. The group had rubber tanks to fool the Germans into thinking the allies were someplace they were not. At night, Tom’s sonic deception group played sounds of tanks moving and other sounds indicating military activity. Often, the Germans were only about 400 yards away. Often, the men would go to local bars where they knew there were enemy “spies”. Tom and his fellows would chat about and provide false information to the Germans. They would wear various army patches, sometimes Patton’s 3rd army, sometimes Bradley’s 12th army. The mission was kept secret for 50 years. Only recently were the brave acts of Tom and his group publicly recognized.

Al Molnar introduced Rob Albert from Eastview, a new senior living facility in Middlebury that will open this fall. There will be 30 independent cottages, 32 independent living apartments, 19 assisted living units and 18 memory care units. 70% of the cottages and 16 apartments have been “sold”. The purchase price is really an entry fee. When someone leaves, 90% of the entry fee is returned to the resident or their heirs. There are also monthly fees to cover maintenance, property taxes, etc. Eastview is next to Portland Hospital and the Helen Porter Nursing Home. There are spectacular views of the Green Mountains. There will be three dining rooms, a library, an auditorium, fitness center, and beauty salon. Their website is www.eastviewmiddlebury.com that has pictures, description of services, fee schedules, floor plans, etc.

THE FOUR WAY TEST

of the things we think, say or do:

1) Is it the Truth?

2) Is it Fair to All Concerned?

3) Will it Build Goodwill and Better Friendships?

4) Will it be Beneficial to All Concerned? ______-

The Vale News PO Box 267, Waitsfield, VT 05673

Club Officers President Audrey Witschi Pres. Elect Lorraine Keener V. Pres. Doug Stoehr Treasurer Dave Ellison Secretary Bob Grant

Committee Chairmen Community Dinsmore Fulton International Al Molnar Club Al Barillaro Foundation Chair Jim Leyton Sgt. at Arms Gene Scarpato Public Relations Karen Winchell Editor Wini Thorsen Assistant editors Karen Winchell, Sissy Walker