United States Power Squadrons® “Come for the Boating Education...Stay for the FriendsSM” Official Publication of the Grosse Pointe Power Squadron L/C William Stano, JN with our Marine Guests Inside VOLUME 44 NO. 1 Commanders Message ..............1 MI DNR Free Fishing Weekend ...........8 January 2017 Executive Dept ...................... 2 MI DNR HeartMISnow Virtual 5K .........9 www.gpps-d9.com SEO Report .. .........................3 MI DNR Tawas Lighthouse Keeper Program. 10 PLEASE JOIN US FOR THE Administrative Dept. .............. 4 GPPS Burgee & New Name Tags .........11 Secretary Dept ......................5 2017 USPS Annual Meeting, FL . ......12-13 Membership Meeting Membership Matters/Birthdays ..6 Ships Store 2017 Spring Conference ...14 and USPS - Are you a Comfortable Boater Article ....7 GPYC Commadore’s Ball & COW pics ...15 Change of Watch GPPS Christams Party Pics ..........16-17 Wednesday 11 January, 2017 2017 Events and Rendezvous Schedule - Inside Back Cover January 2017 Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Membership Meeting GPPS Change of Watch Commander’s Ball GPYC - 18:30 GPYC ® www.gpps-d9.com 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 E-Board Meeting MacRay Harbor & GPYC - 19:30 ABYA Seminar 29 30 31 January 14 GPPS Commander’s Ball GPYC United States Power Squadrons States Power United Grosse Pointe Power Squadron 1 Commander’s Message Cdr Frederick T. Muller, SN Bridge COMMANDER Cdr. Frederick Muller, SN [email protected] January 2017 and Tripe Squadron Tars Power Grosse Pointe EXECUTIVE OFFICER Lt/C William A. Stano, JN [email protected] See You at The Ball! EDUCATIONAL OFFICER Commander Fred Muller Lt/C Chester Dunbar Jr., AP [email protected] ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER Lt/C John J. Sulkowski, AP [email protected] SECRETARY Lt/C Rose Stano, P [email protected] TREASURER Lt/C John Bennett, SN Commander William A. Stano [email protected] and his Lady Rose Request the honor of your presence Seventy Eighth Annual at the ASSISTANT EDUCATIONAL Seventy Eighth Annual Grosse Pointe Power OFFICER Grosse Pointe Power Squadron Squadron 1st/Lt Janet Curle, SN Commander’s Ball Commander’s Ball Saturday the 14th of January [email protected] Two Thousand and Seventeen Grosse Pointe Yacht Club Saturday 788 Lakeshore Road ASSISTANT SECRETARY Grosse Pointe Shores the 14th of January 1st/Lt Valeriia Miller Michigan Grosse Pointe Yacht Club [email protected] Featuring the Reception and Cocktails 1800 hours • Dinner 1930 hours • Dancing 2030 hours Uniform A with a Bow Tie ~ Semi Formal Attire Guests Cordially Invited Jimmy Buffet Tribute Band ASSISTANT TREASURER Free Valet Parking 1st/Lt Jay Kaiser, JN Air Margaritaville [email protected] Send articles to the Editor: Lt/C Rose Stano, P [email protected] Publisher: Copyrite Printing [email protected] 2 Grosse Pointe Power Squadron Executive Department Lt/C Bill Stano, JN Happy 2017 Grosse Pointe Power Squadron Members! This article completes my year as your Executive Officer. I wish to thank all the members of the Executive Department. Everyone did a fantastic job in 2016. It is time for 8 bells and our Squadron’s Change of Watch. I am inviting all Squadron members to our Change of Watch on 11 January 2017 at the Grosse Pointe Yacht Club. The meeting begins at 1930. Mariners throughout history maintained the course and safe operation of their vessels through a system of watches, during which a portion of the crew took responsibility for the ship’s activities for a certain period of time. To those crew members were entrusted the lives and fortunes of the entire crew. So great was the responsibility for the success or failure of the voyage and so demanding were the challenges that no single group of crew members could bear the burden alone. Thus developed a system of watches where crew members shared responsibility for the fate of the vessel. The passing of responsibility from one group of crew members to the next became known as the Change of Watch. At our Change of Watch newly elected officers will be installed and we will recognize the accomplishments of the outgoing officers. I will assume command of our organization on the 11th of January. I would like to hear from YOU. What activities would you like to see? Can you sponsor a rendezvous (land or water)? Do you have an idea for a speaker to present at our monthly meetings? Your ideas are important! Email me with your thoughts or suggestions. 2017 VSC decal distribution United States Power Squadrons is currently awaiting delivery of 2017 vessel safety check decals from the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. As has been the policy the last three years, when we receive the 2017 decals, they will be distributed to squadron commanders who should pass them on to local ® www.gpps-d9.com VSC chairs. Districts are not included in the distribution and will not receive decals. The decals a squadron receives are equal to the number of decals awarded and reported to USPS by Oct. 30, 2016 plus 10 percent. If a squadron awarded and reported 100 decals in 2016, that squadron will receive 110 decals for the 2017 season. Safe Voyage everyone, P/D/C Bill Stano, JN [email protected] 2017 VSC Decal Distribution The decals a squadron receives are equal to the number of decals awarded and reported to USPS by Oct. 30, 2016 plus 10 percent. If a squadron awarded and reported 100 decals in 2016, that squadron United States Power Squadrons States Power United will receive 110 decals for the 2017 season. Grosse Pointe Power Squadron 3 SEO Report Lt/C Chet Dunbar Jr., AP It’s time to start thinking about Boating Classes. We have some new additions to the Bridge and they are interested in starting new classes. Natalie Dunbar and Valeriia Miller want to start Seamanship and Piloting, January 2017 and Tripe Squadron Tars Power Grosse Pointe so we will begin if we can get a few more to join them starting Monday, Jauary 9th , 6:30pm at GP Farms Pier Park. Cost will be $120.00 for the 2 class combo since it requires 2 new books and is a 10 week class. We are attempting to send out emails to potential members who are eligible to take this class. Think about it and give me a call at 313-744-7472. Did you know this is the phone number for any information about the Grosse Pointe Power Squadron? Please call with questions or give to anyone interested in classes. We will be starting the America Boating Class later in February after the Cobo Boat Show when the interest is the highest. Monday, February 20th , 6:30pm at the Grosse Pointe North High School. The cost will be determined before the class starts, depending if we subsidize to generate interest. How much do you think Boating Safety is worth? Other Squadrons are hosting other classes, they include- Birmingham Power Squadron is offering a JN course beginning Monday January 9 in Pontiac. To register, go to the website bpsd9.org or email [email protected] Dearborn Sail & Power Squadron is starting an Advanced Piloting class on Monday Jan 16, 2017 at RTI in Livonia Fred and Bill will be the instructors. Let me know if you are interested. Frank at [email protected] We will be starting the America Boating Class later in February, after the Cobo Boat Show when the interest is the highest. Monday, February 20th, 6:30pm Grosse Pointe High North High School 4 Grosse Pointe Power Squadron Administrative Department Lt/C John J. Sulkowski, AP A while back Rose Stano challenged us to write about how any why we joined the Grosse Pointe Power Squadron. For me it was because in 1983 after 15 years as a boat owner I hadn’t seem to have learned as much as those boaters around me although I had taken the Basic Boating course from the Detroit Power Squadron three years after I bought my first boat and the Coast Guard Auxiliary basic boating class five years after that. I had read all the boating magazine articles I could get my hands on. At work I had been talking about boating to a co-worker, Clara Sumeghy who along with her husband, were GPPS members but I didn’t realize it. Clara seemed to know so much more than I did. I finally asked her about which of those two boating organizations, the Power Squadron and the Coast Guard Auxiliary that I should join in order to learn more. She told me to join the USPS and to join the Grosse Pointe Squadron (what a surprise!). Since I was living in Detroit at the time, I said that I would join the Detroit Squadron since Grosse Pointe might not take me in. Clara assured me that I would be accepted and that GPPS was the larger squadron with more opportunity to learn. As they say……the rest is history! After I joined and started taking classes I realized that the members were a vast source of information. I then realized why Clara could answer my questions right away or get back with the answer. She was tapping into the membership! So now with the new year make a resolution to talk up the benefits of Power Squadron membership to your boating friends, and come to the ABC course spread the word. ® www.gpps-d9.com HELP WANTED Event Helpers Help to plan Jimmy Buffet Theme Commanders Ball for Bill Stano, to be January 14, 2017 - GPYC Fellow Travelers To plan attending National USPS Conference in Orlando, FL.