by Scott Thompson
Chapter President
Nuts and bolts…that’s what hold things like airplanes together. Well, rivets, too, and other stuff. But in this case, I’m referring to the nuts and bolts that hold our EAA chapter together. It’s the volunteers that I am referring to, actually, because these are the guys and gals that make the chapter work.

Some volunteers are more obvious than others, like the chapter board members who get together monthly to try and set a course for the chapter. We have eight board members, listed dutifully each month in this newsletter. We also have three chapter officers, a president, vice-president,
and secretary treasurer. These eleven people are the ones that create the schedule for the year, figure how out the money will work, find interesting programs to be presented, and generally set the direction for our chapter. The chapter could and would not happen except for the efforts of the chapter board of directors.

All of board members are elected by the membership to two year terms. We are right in the middle of the two-year cycle right now. This time next year we will be electing new board officers, so the present board has another year to serve.

Some of our board members have been on the board in a leadership position for many years, others have only recently come on the board. But my point here is that these guys and gals work selflessly though the year providing leadership to the chapter.

Our chapter also has a cadre of volunteers who are there for every event, cooking or making coffee or setting up chairs or cleaning up or providing eyes and ears to the chapter about what is going on around us, things we might otherwise miss. We don’t always see the work going on, but it is happening week in and week out.

It would be a good thing for us to individually recognize those volunteers and their efforts, because without those workers we would not have a chapter. We will take a bit of time at the Holiday Party in December to do just that. It is a time of celebration, fun, fellowship, but also recognition.

And to all our chapter members, I would ask that we remember that a successful and vital chapter is a corporate effort, and there is always room for all to participate in that effort..

But, enough for 2018…on to 2019.