The yearly Branch 35 Histories from 2000 to 2013 were prepared by Bob Simon, branch historian.
2013 History
Our Y2013 Board of Directors members are:
| Big SIR | Joe Killian |
| Little SIRs | Ben Gikis, Dan Zemanek |
| Secretary | Vern Schmidt |
| Asst. Secretary | Don Cameron |
| Treasurer | Mike McCord |
| Asst. Treasurer | Jerry Ososkie |
| Director | Stan Barkey |
| Director | Ron Nakamoto |
| Director | Joe Varozza |
| Membership Director | Ken Jones |
As 2013 began, Big Sir Joe Killian had good reason to feel gratified to have a strong Executive Committee and sound financial underpinnings that could—and would—support a variety of Branch activities and programs throughout the year. To add to the optimism, total Branch membership was at or near its highest levels, setting the stage for a year of great meetings featuring outstanding speakers.
During 2012, some $3,000 was added to the Branch surplus, bringing our reserves up to about the $15,000 level as 2013 began. Membership Director Ken Jones took a close look at the “Active Members” number, made some typical adjustments for attrition and the like, and Trail Tips was able to report (in anticipation of the January 2013 meeting) that Active Members totaled 406. (A related analysis of luncheon participation at this stage in the life of the Branch revealed that typical luncheon attendance is around 250, with 150 or so not present.)
In February, what probably constitutes a “first” for the Branch was a report by Travel Chairman Ed Pausa that the Branch website had been hacked! Details were not provided, and a small sampling of the general membership suggested that few were aware of the incident or affected by it.
In another possible first, 2013 was the year in which branded SIR merchandise—caps, T-shirts, and jackets—were strongly promoted to the members, who were encouraged to acquire SIR-logo clothing as a way of showing Branch spirit. The Executive Committee underwrote the subsidizing of the cost of these items so that individual members could enjoy a small savings over the usual price for these goods.
In the ongoing effort to locate a suitable meeting site for monthly luncheons where the benefits would include adequate parking, those pursuing this goal reached an agreement with the Palo Alto Elks Lodge. The membership was informed that meetings would be moved to the Lodge beginning in June. The IFES Hall, where the Branch currently met, was informed, as was the luncheon caterer. Then, in an abrupt reversal on the part of the Elks (following election of new officers for the Lodge), they abandoned their handshake agreement rather than ratifying the written contract, and Branch 35 was back at Square One in terms of a meeting location change. The disappointment on the part of Branch leadership was considerably offset by its ability to reinstate existing agreements with IFES Hall and the caterer, such that meetings could continue to be held in the same venue without interruption. (Also, given the agreement with the Buddhist Temple for the use of their parking lot on meeting days, the urgency of moving had been greatly reduced and a quest for an alternate location could be put on the back burner.)
The July Picnic was held at Saratoga Springs for the first time—a location that featured good food, music, and a variety of activities that appealed to members and guests alike. A repeat visit to Saratoga Springs in 2014 was planned, given the success of the first experience there.
During the fall, the Executive Committee’s focus shifted to some basic Branch needs: the advisability of forming a Medical Emergency Response Team, and securing backup commitments to cover as needed such positions as A/V Coordinator, Trail Tips Editor, Attendance Chairman, Luncheon Host, and Membership Roster Coordinator.
Throughout the year, the luncheon speakers and their topics typically met with approval and appreciation, as usual. The year ended with a “backlog” of interesting speaker possibilities, setting the stage for yet another good year for Branch 35 in 2014.
Honorary Life Members and Their Contributions
Peter Barba……………Biking activity founder, Membership Director, Holiday Party arrangements coordinator, attendance system programmer, various Executive Committee posts
Stanley Barkey………..Big Sir 2008 (after two years as Little Sir), Assistant to Membership Director, member of Golf Committee
Richard S. Bray… …….Big Sir 1998, Roster editor, “Trail Tips” assistant editor
John W. Dyer…………Editor of the monthly “Trail Tips” for 10 years
L. Fenton Foster………Transfer from Branch 148
Buck Kendrick………..Big Sir 2003, Branch inspirational leader and trainer for many years; various state positions culminated in Sir presidency
Richard T. Knock…….Luncheon Host (five years), entailing catering oversight and venue logistics (including a major move to a new facility)
Carl Moyer……..……Multiple years as Attendance Chair, Audio/Visual Chair and Branch 35 Director, plus numerous ad hoc services
Charles R. Peacock…..Big Sir 2001, held several State offices
Dave Scott……………Multiple years as Branch 35 Director, Branch Secretary, Assistant Golf Chairman, and Assistant Lunch Revenuer (dec. 6/3/13)
Robert W. Simon…….Big Sir 2006, host for series of traditional Holiday Parties
Our series of speakers in 2013 maintained the excellent standard established in prior years, thanks to the programs organized by Co-Little Sirs Ben Gikis and Dan Zemanek.
Respectfully submitted, Bob Simon Branch 35 Historian
2012 History
Our Y2012 Board of Directors members are:
| Big SIR | Creed Morgan |
| Little SIRs | Ben Gikis, Joe Killian |
| Secretary | Wayne Dexter |
| Asst. Secretary | Vern Schmidt |
| Treasurer | Howard Nelson |
| Asst. Treasurers | Mike McCord |
| Director | Dick Wilson |
| Director | Vern Schmidt |
| Director | Joe Varozza |
| Membership Director | Ken Jones |
As 2012 began, new Big Sir Creed Morgan took the helm of Branch 35 as it faced both a very gratifying membership total and a very challenging parking problem for our monthly luncheon meetings. Our Branch had the distinction of being the largest in SIR, yet our very size represented a parking requirement that was only exacerbated when the IFES Hall entered into a facilities agreement with a large Bridge Group that also required significant parking space. (New meeting space allowed the Hall to meet the facilities needs of our Branch and the Bridge Group simultaneously, but adequate parking for this degree of building utilization was lacking.)
Prolonged efforts to identify alternative venues for our monthly meetings proved fruitless. However, extensive and thoughtful negotiations with the leadership of the Buddhist Temple just a short stroll from IFES Hall produced an agreement that allowed SIR members to use the Buddhist parking lot on meeting days, with periodic exceptions (necessitated by special Temple events). The quest for a new meeting location might not be over, but it would lack the imperative previously hanging over the Branch.
A much brighter aspect of our growing membership total was the gratifying rate at which new members were inducted into the Branch in 2012. We could report a total of 397 active members at the beginning of the year, and an impressive 36 new members who had signed on during the year. Attrition always takes it toll, however, so the largest number of active members reported during the year by our monthly newsletter, Trail Tips, was 407 (in its November 2012 edition). Crossing the 400 mark opened up the opportunity to add to Branch 35’s roster of Honorary Life Members; one Branch-nominated HLM is allowed for every 50 members. Doing the math, we were allowed to name two new HLMs, Carl Moyer and Dave Scott, and they were presented with their awards at suitable ceremonies held during the year.
One HLM, and a Senior HLM at that (he had held HLM status for a decade or more), George Fullmer, died on February 5. George was special. He had composed parodies honoring Branch guest speakers for 25 years, flying solo in that department for the great majority of those years (only sharing the responsibility for a few months before leaving us). His touch was deft, his parodies full of fun (and mischief, too).
Our Executive Committee was advised that we began 2012 with $9,364 in the bank, and our reserves remained robust throughout the year. Our relationships with our caterer and the management of IFES Hall remained strong throughout the year, and our luncheon charge held steady (at $19), as did our requested per-member annual contribution for incidental Branch operating expenses (at $25). Our Co-Little Sirs and their colleagues who identified and recruited the year’s luncheon speakers presented us with a stimulating variety of speakers and topics, in keeping with our tradition.
Honorary Life Members and Their Contributions
Peter Barba……………Biking activity founder, Membership Director, Holiday Party arrangements coordinator, attendance system programmer, various Executive Committee posts
Stanley Barkey………..Big Sir 2008 (after two years as Little Sir), Assistant to Membership Director, member of Golf Committee
Richard S. Bray… …….Big Sir 1998, Roster editor, “Trail Tips” assistant editor
John W. Dyer…………Editor of the monthly “Trail Tips” for 10 years
L. Fenton Foster………Transfer from Branch 148
George C. Fullmer……Lyricist for “Trail Birds” songs for many years (dec. 2/5/12)
Buck Kendrick………..Big Sir 2003, Branch inspirational leader and trainer for many years; various state positions culminated in Sir presidency
Richard T. Knock…….Luncheon Host (five years), entailing catering oversight and venue logistics (including a major move to a new facility)
Carl Moyer……..……Multiple years as Attendance Chair, Audio/Visual Chair and Branch 35 Director, plus numerous ad hoc services
Charles R. Peacock…..Big Sir 2001, held several State offices
Dave Scott……………Multiple years as Branch 35 Director, Branch Secretary, Assistant Golf Chairman, and Assistant Lunch Revenuer
Robert W. Simon…….Big Sir 2006, host for series of traditional Holiday Parties
Our series of speakers in 2012 maintained the excellent standard established in prior years, thanks to the programs organized by Co-Little Sirs Ben Gikis and Joe Killian.
Respectfully submitted, Bob Simon Branch 35 Historian
2011History
Our Y2011 Board of Directors members are:
| Big SIR | John Richardson |
| Little SIR | Creed Morgan |
| Secretary | Wayne Dexter |
| Asst. Secretary | Jack Wylie |
| Treasurer | Howard Nelson |
| Asst. Treasurers | Mike McCord |
| Director | Dick Wilson |
| Director | Vern Schmidt |
| Director | Don Cameron |
| Membership Director | Arden Anderson |
| Asst. Membership Director | Bill Hall |
As Branch 35’s Big Sir in 2011, John Richardson can look back on a banner year on several fronts. Perhaps first in the accomplishments of the Branch—given the emphasis the state SIR organization places on increased membership—would be a surge in new members during the year, positioning the Branch to break the 400-member barrier early in 2012. In all, 44 new members were inducted in 2011, a figure that represents 11.5% of the base of 383 active members as the year began. (A corollary figure, the guest-to-member-conversion performance, was an impressive 70%.)
Exceptional recognition of key Branch members and the celebration of a gratifying Branch anniversary set a number of 2011 events apart and gave them special meaning. At our September luncheon, we marked the 40th anniversary of Branch 35, still growing and still going strong. During the year, seven of our members achieved Senior Sir status (by having birthdays on which they reached 90 to 94 years of age) and one member became a Super Senior (turning somewhere between 95 and 99 years of age).
Topping the recognition activities, at our Holiday Party in December three of our own became Honorary Life Members, the highest honor awarded in SIR. Joining our HLM ranks were Peter Barba, Stan Barkey, and Dick Knock (please see the HLM roster below for the contributions for which their tributes were awarded). The Holiday Party itself may have set a new mark in attendance for this event, 360 members and guests, which was the highest turnout in recent memory (per available records).
Gratifying indicators of the good order in which Branch affairs were maintained during the year included: financial reserve growth from approx. $7,000 at the end of 2010 to $9,300 by the close of 2011; the continued updating and refinement of the already robust Branch website with additional local and state data; and the carrying out of an online survey of members, the results of which alerted Branch management to the skills, experience, and willingness to serve of more than 90 respondents. That old standby measuring the fiscal stability of the Branch–the price of the monthly luncheon meal–held steady at $19 throughout the year (thanks to the fact that added catering costs were offset by operating reserves husbanded from prior years).
Also on the catering front, a cold-plate menu was offered to interested members for the first time, available at the same price as the regular meal. The catering service not only agreed to this change but also committed to having all of its employees covered by Workers Compensation Insurance starting in February 2012.
A new Branch activity, Theme Tables, was officially launched in February 2011. Interested members could sign up to be seated at tables where key topics were agree to in advance. The first topic was Vegetable Gardening. In succeeding months, Fishing and Hybrid & Electric Cars were “on the menu.” Early indications were positive for the ongoing popularity of this optional luncheon focus each month. As the year progressed, the Big Sir noted that the Branch Book Swap, a regular luncheon feature established in February of 2007, continued to be well-received, heavily used, and very much appreciated. Theme Tables may well enjoy the same degree of success.
During 2011, a sad saga of parking woes unfolded, as the IFES Hall accommodated a new tenant–the Palo Alto Bridge Club–that would use the facilities extensively and would require substantial parking lot privileges. Branch 35 went into a dual-track search mode, seeking additional parking in the neighborhood for our monthly meeting and exploring possible alternative sites that would meet Branch needs for both a large luncheon-seating capacity and ample parking. By year’s end, neither quest had come to a satisfactory conclusion, but promising additional parking options near IFES Hall brought a degree of optimism.
SIR state positions were held by several members of Branch 35 during the year. John Mason continued as Director of Region 5, and serving as Activities Chairmen were Art England (Bowling – Indoor), Jerry Butler (Bicycling), and Jim Dinkey (Compusir-PC). Skip Ross, Branch Webmeister, continued to oversee Mac16, the mailing-list community of a wide-ranging group of Mac users initially established as a Branch activity.
Honorary Life Members and Their Contributions
Ned S. Banton Region 5 Director, Big Sir 1999, Member of the State Office of the Growth and Management Committee
Peter Barba……………Biking activity founder, Membership Director, Holiday Party arrangements coordinator, attendance system programmer, various Executive Committee posts
Stanley Barkey………..Big Sir 2008 (after two years as Little Sir), Assistant to Membership Director, member of Golf Committee
Richard S. Bray… …….Big Sir 1998, Roster editor, “Trail Tips” assistant editor
John W. Dyer…………Editor of the monthly “Trail Tips” for 10 years
L. Fenton Foster………Transfer from Branch 148
George C. Fullmer……Lyricist for “Trail Birds” songs for many years
Buck Kendrick………..Big Sir 2003, Branch inspirational leader and trainer for many years; various state positions culminated in Sir presidency
Richard T. Knock…….Luncheon Host (five years), entailing catering oversight and venue logistics (including a major move to a new facility)
Charles R. Peacock…..Big Sir 2001, held several State offices
Robert W. Simon…….Big Sir 2006, host for series of traditional Holiday Parties
Our series of speakers in 2011 maintained the excellent standard established in prior years, thanks to the programs organized by Little Sir Creed Morgan.
Respectfully submitted, Bob Simon Branch 35 Historian
2010 History
Our Y2010 Board of Directors members are:
| Big SIR | Ken Newton |
| Little SIR | John Richardson |
| Secretary | Wayne Dexter |
| Asst. Secretary | Jack Wylie |
| Treasurer | Howard Nelson |
| Asst. Treasurers | Don Cameron, Jim Avedesian |
| Director | Bill Young |
| Director | Dick Wilson |
| Director | Jim Dunaway |
| Membership Director | Arden Anderson |
| Asst. Membership Director | Peter Barba |
As Ken Newton took the helm as Big Sir for 2010, the atmosphere in Branch 35 was one of promise. And the optimism was justified. Favorable trends begun in the months leading up to the New Year had positioned the Branch to advance on multiple fronts while maintaining quality in areas all but taken for granted by most members.
A positive status quo was reflected in the price of the monthly luncheon, which had been holding steady for some time and remained at $19 for the full year. New Luncheon Host Terry Barnhart, who took over in January, had reason to be pleased. Upward cost pressures were offset by savings realized in other areas.
Meanwhile, Trail Tips editor Jim Schlatter, who had signed on for a two-year hitch that was to end with the November issue, was implementing Ken’s keen interest in converting the monthly newsletter to an “eTT,” to be sent to most members via the internet at a significant savings over its traditional printing on iconic gray stock and delivered via US Mail. Gray became green as a significant majority of the members converted to the eTT. This change facilitated the expansion of the publication to six pages by the end of the year, to allow for more coverage of Branch activities and added news about our growing membership. Jim’s light touch brought pleasing (as well as informative) filler items to Trail Tips, including pointers to relevant items on the Branch 35 website as well as one-liners suitable for home consumption.
Further strides were made in building an on-line Photo Roster of the members on the Brach website, as procedures were refined and routines established that would “capture” new members and round out the portraits of the camera-shy in the rank and file. Also, the membership was getting in the habit of checking the Roster as a follow-up to luncheon conversations and the like. All in all, a welcome tool for integrating all members into the Branch more cordially.
Brand new in 2010 was the concept of “topic tables,” where men could be seated who wanted to engage in focused discussions about selected subjects of special interest to small groups of members. By year’s end, it was too soon to tell how this experiment would play out, but enthusiasm for the concept was evident.
As 2009 drew to a close, Branch 35 had 345 active members, and by the end of 2010 that number had swelled to 383. Ken Newton reminded the membership that back in 1991 there had been a peak of 391 members in the Branch, and he expressed the hope that our roster would top 400 before long.
Branch 35 was proud of the fact that several members of Branch 35 were found in the ranks of SIR state posts during the year. Moving up to a higher positions was Buck Kendrick, who became President; John Mason, continued as Director of Region 5; and Stan Barkey maintained his service as Governor of Area 16. Area 16 Activities Chairmen from the Branch were Art England (Bowling); Jerry Butler (Bicycling); Jim Dinkey (CompuSIR-PC); and Ron Grace (Golf
Our series of speakers in 2010 maintained the excellent standard established in prior years, thanks to the programs organized by Little Sir John Richardson.
Respectfully submitted, Bob Simon Branch 35 Historian