We decided on Branson in July of 2016 and it's amazing how fast the time has passed. In just about two months, we'll be gathering in the Ozarks for our biennial gathering. Will you be there? One of the items taken care of at our business meeting is the location of the next reunion. In this case, it will be an east coast location and as we did in Charleston, we'll be voting on time of year as well as the site. We are finalizing the list of sites so that we can research costs, things to do, etc. And yes, Boston is on the list. We need your input to keep our reunions "Wainwright Special".
The deadline to register and not incur late penalties is August 15. Please take a moment and get yours done and submitted. If you decide to print out the form and send in along with a check, please be sure to indicate if you will be attending the welcome reception. There is no cost to you but there is to the association and we need to make sure we have enough food. The reunion committee did all possible to keep the costs down this time to make it affordable. We are especially looking forward to our west coast brothers joining us. We do have registrations from some of you, including first timers!
Make the commitment, join us!
We have met the minimum numbers required for Dixie Stampede and the Branson Belle which is great news. We are still a little behind on the minimum number of folks who will be going to the Titanic Museum so they will offer their group discount.
Our memorial service will be located in what may be one of, if not the best, location ever. Take a moment to check out the venue at:
http://www.shrineoftheholyspirit.com/
Unfortunately, we lose members from time to time and the only way we know is by being alerted by a member of the association who either knew the departed shipmate or comes across an announcement of the passing. Would each of you please review the memorial list on the website at:
http://www.usswainwright.org/shipmates/memorial-page/ and if you see an omission, please let the board know right away. We want to keep that list as updated as possible so we can say that sailors name aloud during the service. As long as we keep them in our thoughts, they are still with us.
In order to vote at the business meeting, dues must be current. We are in the process of updating the membership roster on the website to include a "dues paid" column so you can determine if you are current. In a perfect world, dues notices would be sent out often and timely. However, we all know that life, family and jobs often get in the way of our best intentions. Dues as well as ships store revenue help keep the association financially sound. Please check and if you're behind or coming up on renewal, send in your payment.
In a previous newsletter, we talked about a reunion craft sale to be used as a fund raiser. We received very little response. It's not too late-please contact Trena Bennett at:
trena_6440@hotmail.com to discuss your ideas. We'll still have the regular raffle of items you bring that represent where you live. Speaking of the raffle, we have learned from experience and this year's will be efficient and quick.