.jpg) Spring Newsletter March, 2010 SPRING NEWSLETTER – 2010 Dear Cousins, I believe spring has finally arrived here in Florida. As I sit here writing this letter I can look outside and see some sunshine and the thermometer reads 71 degrees. By Florida standards it has been a cold winter here. Of course I know everyone else probably has experienced even worse weather. We are just getting settled back into our home here after experiencing some cracks in the drywall and on the exterior of the house that required us to move out for three months into temporary housing while the house foundation was being stabilized. The soil beneath our house had become unstable due to what the geologist termed “sinkhole activity”. This required the soil and foundation to be stabilized. What an experience. Now to the business at hand, during our recent spring meeting of the Board, final details of the 2010 National WFA reunion were reviewed and approved. By now you should have received the registration and schedule of events in the mail. I encourage you to return the registration form and to make lodging reservation as soon as possible. I hope to see many of you there this year. One thing of particular note is scheduled tours of the Fort House. These tours will be available starting Thursday afternoon for early arrivals and continue through Sunday afternoon for late departures. You must sign-up for them at the registration table at the Fort House. There are a limited number of tours and a limited number for each tour, first come, first served. By-Laws -The Board voted to present to the membership at the Annual meeting, an amendment to our by-laws, which will allow honorary board members to vote on board decisions. The specific language to be changed is: Article 5, D. Members who have contributed unusually beneficial services to the corporation may be elected as Honorary Directors, up to a limit of five at anyone time. They may attend the meetings of the Board of Directors. but may not vote. The words “but may not vote” would be deleted. One other possible by-law changes involving memberships and assistant officers were also reviewed but they were deemed not necessary. As a matter of explanation they involved Article X, A. Members in arrears for more than two years who do not respond to the Corresponding Secretary shall be dropped from the membership rolls. It has been a practice to send the OWL and our news letters to members even if their dues were in arrears for two years. As a matter of policy we will no longer be mailing OWLs and new letters to these people. The costs of mailing and publishing the OWL prohibit continuing this practice. Fort House – The completion of the Fort House singling project is scheduled to be completed this spring before the Reunion. Last year during the work on the back of the house, when the singles were removed the rear foundation was exposed and revealed the need to be rebuilt/restored before proceeding with the singling work. As a result our restoration fund is depleted and we need an additional $3000 - $4000 to complete the work. Any donation you can make to our restoration fund will be greatly appreciated. It was also discovered that in the near future additional work on the sills under the keeping room floor will have to be done. A section of flooring will be left open during the reunion for observation by members, of this condition. The recently appointed Genealogy Committee, chaired by past presidents, Jeffrey Miller and William “Bill” Cox, has been diligently considering the best possible format to present/publish the next two or three generations of the Wing Family genealogy. The committee has asked for some additional input. I believe it is necessary to hear from the membership on this subject. Any member who has an idea or opinion on this can write to either of the chairman, letting them know of your preferences. Their addresses both e-mail and regular mail, can be found in the OWL. There are several issues involved; private or public publishing on the Internet, books, CD’s, in the OWL, other media forms, or not doing anything right now. I’m sure they will appreciate your opinions. There is an old saying that may apply here: “How do you eat an elephant?” Answer: “One bite at a time.” Electronic delivery of our newsletters and other communications, except the OWL, officially starts with this spring newsletter. I urge everyone that has Internet capability with e-mail to opt for this option. Just drop an e-mail note to Toni Nash at tnash74528@aol.com our Corresponding Secretary requesting it. Selecting this option saves the family the costs of printing and mailing charges, which approach $.75 per person per mailing. There are currently about 200 members utilizing this option. I’m sure there are many more that could help us reduce our expenses by opting for this form of delivery. Communications are so much faster with this form of delivery. A long range goal of mine is to be at 98% electronic delivery within the next 10 years by 2020. We will not abandon those of you that do not have Internet capabilities.Toni ran a beta trial of this form of delivery last year with the fall newsletter and many positive comments were received. Membership is currently 945 members of which 259 are life members. This is down from our high of 1200 a couple of decades ago. I encourage every one of you to recruit a sibling or one of your children to join the WFA, Inc. Expanding our membership will help cover our operating expenses and help keep the organization viable and strong. New membership forms can easily be downloaded from our website, wingfamily.org or by writing to Toni at tnash74528@aol.com Along this same line, I encourage you when you are considering your end of life planning to remember the Fort House and the Wing Family of America, Inc. Nominating Committee: I have appointed Raymond Wing and Lois Wing Smith to co-chair the Nominating Committee for the 2010 election of officers and directors. We are looking for individuals to serve as officers and district representatives in several areas. The positions of Recording Secretary, currently filled by the very capable Lizabeth J. Wing Fisher, must retire due to terms limits. The position of Historian is vacant due to the resignation of Beverly Vorpahl. We are also in need of an Assistant Treasurer, an Assistant Curator, and well as Representatives for Districts 8, (Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas) and 9. (Texas) as well as Sharon Wheeler’s of District 7, (Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota) desires to retire. E-mail me or the Nominating Committee of your interest or questions about any position of interest to you. We are always looking for energetic “new and younger blood” in the organization. 2011 Reunion: Planning is already underway for the 2011 Reunion to be held in District 6. The reunion chairman is William “Bill” H. Wing of Ooltewah, TN. It will be held during the weekend of June 23 – 26, 2011. The head quarters motel/hotel will be the Chattanooga Choo Choo. There are many activities being planned and the area offer a large variety of activities for everyone. So, start making vacations plans now for this event in 2011. Anyone with suggestions or ideas may contact Bill Wing at sarahwing@att.net I am looking forward to it being in Tennessee. Please remember to pay your annual dues notice, if an annual member, which accompanied this newsletter or has been sent previously. Cousin Prez, Halford Wing |