C.L. Elms Post 9951
Department of Pacific Areas
Veterans of Foreign Wars of the
January 09, 2010
1. CDR Oden opened the C.L. Elms Post 9951 regular monthly meeting IAW the VFW ritual at 11:15 on this date in the Conference Room of JUSMAGTHAI located at 7 South Sathorn Road, Bangkok, Thailand.
2. There was a roll call of officers and all were present or properly excused, Surgeon Brose, SVC Ooppapan, Trustees Harrison and Hudson were absent. There were 20 members and 4 guests (Mike Taylor from New Jersey, Bill Baltrush, Member at Large, Soter Libaris from Illinois and Richard Masin from Texas) attending. CDR Oden called for the Officer of the Day to drape the charter in memory of the passing of Comrade James W. George.
3. There were no applications for membership to our post.
4. Minutes of the previous meeting were distributed by the Commander to those in attendance. Advocate Nestle made a motion to accept the minutes subject to correction and Chaplain Owens seconded it. The motion carried.
5. QM Neutzler delivered the Quartermaster’s Report for the period 1 to 31 December 2009. JVC Key moved to approve the report subject to audit. Advocate Nestle seconded and the motion carried.
6. There were 4 bills presented for collection. Commander Oden presented 1 bill for Baht 1,000 covering the Wreaths for James George’s cremation, and a bill for photocopies in the amount of Baht25. Quartermaster Neutzler presented a bill for exchange loss from using his personal credit card to pay membership dues of Baht 160 and for an ink cartridge of Baht 600. It was motioned by Comrade Picha to approve and pay all bills, seconded by Advocate Nestle. The motion carried.
7. Service Officer Harrison was absent and there was no report due to his absence.
8. Comrades in distress: Advocate Nestle advised that Comrade Bob White is moving slowly with his back and leg problem, using a walker. Also that Comrade Pete Evers is recovering from back surgery and currently in therapy. Both members live out of Bangkok and have not attended a meeting for several months.
9. Committee Reports: (a) Membership: goal 265 and we now stand at 269 members for 101.51%. (b) Bingo: no receipts. (c) Buddy Poppies: no receipts. (d) POW/MIA: Comrade Picha made his report, explaining the process of handling the return of excavated remains to Hickham Field in Hawaii. (e) Community Activities: JVC Key made his report on post activities for December 09. (f) Safety Report: Safety Officer Owens gave a report on police enforcing jaywalking ordinance again, Commander Oden reported on cameras at various intersections catching persons running red lights. (g) Independence Day: Comrade Stan Rose volunteered to be I-Day Chairman this year. Commander Oden will pass his contact details to American Chamber management so he will be invited to meetings starting in February. QM Neutzler motioned that we should approve up to Baht 6,000 to hire workers to cook burgers and pull beer at I-Day. Comrade Riopel seconded and motion passed.
10. Remembrance of our National Home was at 11:39.
11. Old Business: QM Neutzler reported on the December 09 Christmas Party, after all bills were paid the post cleared $66.95. There was a good turnout with 71 members and guests in attendance; a good time was had by all. Extra food and drinks were available for members to share and take home after the party.
12. New Business: (a) Convention Chairman Jon Brazee reported on the selection of the Karnmanee Palace Hotel on Pradiphat Road in Sapan Kwai for the Convention. The facilities are very good on ground floor level and room rates are in the $40-45 range. The dates of the Convention will be Monday 20 June thru Thursday 23 June 2010. (b) The post will also be responsible for the Convention Book and we need someone to be responsible for the layout of the book as the ads come in. We have a printer that will print the book; we need someone with desktop publishing software to lay out the book for the printer. We have already received ads for the book. At the next meeting in February advertising rate sheets will be available and we need to start selling locally. (c) A letter thanking the Post for attending the War Veterans Organization Ceremony for WWI on November 11, 2009 was received and read by Commander Oden. (d) Comrade Nicholls read a letter from Kelly Feral and a $500 donation to the Prostheses Fund received by his company in the US. Many thanks for Comrade Nicholls continued support in raising funds for the Prostheses project.
13. For the Good of the Order: The Post raffle of Baht 1,200, a Marine shot glass and MIA/POW coffee mug was won by Comrade Brazee. It was announced that the War Veterans Organization have invited the VFW members to their Veterans Day services at Victory Monument on 03 February 2010. The ceremony starts at 07:50, an e-mail will be sent out with more details. Comrade Picha mentioned that he had several medical items available including some almost Viagra, members interested to see him after the meeting.
14. CDR Oden closed the meeting at 12:15 IAW with the VFW ritual. The next regular meeting of C.L. Elms Post 9951 will be at 11:00 on February 13, 2010 in the JUSMAGTHAI conference room.
FOR THE COMMANDER:
Lee Shotwell
Walid (Lee) Shotwell, Acting Adjutant