Annual Meetings Page

Annual Gathering

Year 2007 Annual Gathering

Florida Park Service Alumni Association

Year 2009 Annual Gathering

Twenty First

Annual Gathering April 24th & 25th 2009

Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park

The 2009 FPSAA Annual Gathering will be held on April 24th and 25th at Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park.

Everyone associated with the Florida Park Service is invited. We plan to have a grand ole time. Details will follow soon.

Flash from Past Reunions

1998 ANNUAL MEETING
GOLD HEAD BRANCH STATE PARK

The 1998 Annual Meeting was like old homecoming to several members and memorable to all who attended. CCC parks are very special and Gold Head Branch is no exception. Previous Gold Head staff in attendance included Joe Knoll, Sandy Cook, Frank Alogna, Dave Randall, Chuck Duckworth, and Donna Waites.

Alumni and family members began arriving at Gold Head on Thursday afternoon to enjoy what promised to be a perfect weekend for camping and reuniting with friends. After the board meeting on Friday afternoon there were enough members present to call in reservations for 23 at The Landing Restaurant on Santa Fe Lake in Earlton. After dinner there were several well visited campsites and cabins.

Saturday was a day full of important business, good food, and just plain fun. President James Burch presented the President's Award to Sandy Cook citing her dedication to her responsibilities as Director of Finance. He also expressed appreciation for the many other services she provides to the Association including production of the Old Rangers Journal and assistance in all aspects of the business of the Association. Directors elected to serve two year terms include Dick Domroski, Danny Paul and Marlene Phinney.

Several items of importance were discussed including: 1) initiatives to increase membership including raising the awareness of the Association and services it provides to current FPS employees; 2) development of an FPS cookbook to serve as an ongoing fund raiser for the James Cook Memorial Relief Fund; and 3) development of a home page on the Internet for the Association. The cookbook and the Home Page are discussed in more detail elsewhere in this newsletter.

The Annual Meeting was followed by a picnic lunch. Our silent auction began at 2:00, followed by the ever popular live auction. This is one of the major fund raisers for the James Cook Fund and has become a true Alumni tradition. Many interesting items were auctioned at prices which demonstrated both the spirit of the membership and quality of the donated items. A hand crafted tractor style planter sold for $50; a hand made quilt brought $85; a new double barreled shotgun earned $150; and a beautiful hand made leaded stained glass manatee brought $53. Our charity award goes to Judi Maxwell for contributing the most. Marlene Phinney was the runner up. Together these and many other donated items sold for a total of $1475.25.

The final event of the weekend was a cook-your-own steak dinner. Sunset at Gold Head Branch was a perfect setting for the finale of another successful Alumni event.

....

1999 ANNUAL MEETING
HIGHLANDS HAMMOCK STATE PARK

You couldn't ask for a more enjoyable venue for a gathering than Highlands Hammock State Park. The 1999 Annual meeting was a great success with a good mixture of business, fund raising and, of course, fun. A special thanks to Pete Anderson and his staff for their extra effort in making the meeting successful.

The activities were kicked off with executive board meetings on Friday. Those who were able to arrive early joined together for dinner in town. Later that evening members sat around the campground and swapped stories. Although there was a ban on campfires due to the drought, some of the members were seen sitting in a circle around a ground grill (some habits die hard and it just seemed unnatural camping with-out a campfire).

Saturday morning weather was clear and birds were singing throughout the campground. There was plenty of time for coffee and more visiting before the Annual Meeting began at 10:00 with the rap of the gavel by President James Burch. After all committee reports were made, two important actions were taken. Dick Domroski was presented the Carlos Maxwell Award for his exemplary career with the Park Service and his many contributions to the Alumni. Joe Knoll made the presentation. Next came the election of officers. The following nominations were elected by unanimous vote: Vice President/President Elect, Dick Dom-roski; Director of Finance, Bob Rundle; Secretary, Judi Maxwell, Director of Events and Education, Bill Maxwell; Director of Recognition and Awards, Danny Paul, Director at Large, Kim Crouch and Director at Large, Scott Robinson.

Other business included recognition of Joe Knoll for his hundreds of hours of work in establishing the Alumni web page; President Burch presented the President's Award to George Apthorp "for his help, aid and assistance throughout the year with all aspects of the Association". George Apthorp presented James Burch with his President's Plaque for his outstanding service for the last two years; and finally James Burch passed the gavel to the Association's new President, Doug Carter. Doug quickly took things in hand in his new role and moved that if there was no other business that the meeting be adjourned.

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