By Vice Regional Coordinator Admiral Bob Vosseller
Welcome to the winter of 2014 which has reminded many of us of the winter of 2003 when a good portion of the 7th Fleet had the fun and frustration of being stranded at Farpoint.
We’re in the second month of the new year and already it has proven to be a very active year filled with event and convention plans and a number of goals being made. Progress on the USS Serling’s hosting of this year’s Regional Conference in October is steady.
Wayne and I would like to thank Lt. Gen. Joe Dorffner and Comm. Karen Mitchell Carothers for taking on the duty of running this year’s R7 Breakfast and SF Meeting at Farpoint. Karen also oversaw all recruitment operations at our recruitment area this year.
Due to the weather, Wayne and my plans to come out to Farpoint changed earlier this week and I type this having just shoveled my walk from yesterday’s storm. Some Wi Fi issues created some difficulties in sending this edition of Sub Space so I apologize once again for the delay.
R7 MEETING AT FARPOINT
Joe presented Wayne’s report during the meeting while details of this year’s Regional Awards Program in March under the direction of our Awards Director Cmdr. Doris Hutley, were also discussed. Joe also touched on this year’s RC Election in April. Wayne and I are seeking another term as your RC/VRC team.
RC Wayne’s report included the following:
Snow, snow and more snow. Welcome and thanks to those regional members who were able to attend this year’s Farpoint. I am sorry I was unable to make it, but the weather certainly went out of its way NOT to cooperate.
Currently, Region 7 has 28 chapters and 540 members. The USS Robert E. Lee is now under the command of Tom Gorman and the chapter has relocated to upstate New York; USS Frank W. Ault has a new XO- Gerry Sylvester; USS Abraham Lincoln is celebrating its fifth year since being launched and their XO Willie Yee is retiring from Starfleet service. The Lincoln will soon have a new XO. My chapter, the USS Britannic recently celebrated its 7th year as a commissioned chapter in STARFLEET.
As always, I thank all of the chapters for submitting their MSRs on time and for maintaining 10 plus paid members in STARFLEET.
We have few rules for maintaining chapters and it is not difficult in following those rules.
As you know, the 2014 Region 7 Conference is being hosted by the USS Serling in October- please attend this event which promises to be fun, informative and full of surprises.
Our regional awards nominations will begin in next month. This will be covered by Doris Hutley, our Awards Director contact her if you have any questions and please participate in the program.
Also coming up is the election for Regional Coordinator. That will begin in April. I would like to announce that the Augustson/Vosseller team WILL be seeking a 4th term of office. This region has been very kind to us and we would look forward to serving you again for another two years.
hope all the chapters will participate in this year’s election and I hope everyone had a great Farpoint weekend. I look forward to seeing you all again at Shore Leave in August.
RECRUTING
Karen also spoke about recruiting and membership retention during the Farpoint SFR7 meeting. If you would like some advice or feedback on your chapter’s recruitment operations or have some ideas to share about recruiting, contact Karen who can be reached at co@ussredbaron.org or trekkieturtle@gmail.com
REMINDER
COs, PLEASE go into the SFI DB and double-check that your chapter contact information is correct. Our recruitment department utilizes this information to generate a spreadsheet flier that we run off to give to prospective members. You’ll want to take special care with website URLs and email addresses.
Prospective members aren’t going to take a second look at broken URLs, out-of-date websites, or email addresses that bounce. If your chapter doesn’t have a website yet, it’s easy to get a free one set up on Google Sites, or Webs.com, or even WordPress or Tumblr. Don’t depend on Facebook for your PR.
IN CONCLUSION
While we’re enduring what seems like an endless winter watching a lackluster winter Olympics and missing the TV shows that would normally be on during the two weeks of the Olympics, new films have come out like RoboCop and I’ Frankenstein and The Walking Dead has returned to the small screen.
Feel free to share your thoughts about those shows or films that fall into our genre of interest on our Facebook page. Spring is coming but there are several events coming up during the winter that you can enjoy. My chapter, the USS Challenger will hold its annual Intergalactic Food Festival on April 5, at the Seaside Heights Community Center. The event starts at 1 pm (though you can come at noon if you need to heat up your item) . All we ask is that you bring a dish to feed 6 people or beverages. We encourage you wear a Star Trek uniform (though this is not mandatory) to add to the fictional flavor of the event.
Other activities coming up in the next several months around the region include Eterna Con in Long Island, Monster Mania in Cherry Hill NJ, and Steel City Con in Pittsburg Pa.
There are also early plans in the works concerning a gathering in Mt. Laurel NJ for a fun filled afternoon at an indoor amusement facility.
All my best to all of you and feel free to reach out to Wayne or I should you have any ideas, suggestions, complaints, compliments or just want to say hi.
For now endure the winter, be safe and have fun!
