News

Golden State Region — Southern California October 17, 2009 Meeting

Our October meeting was hosted by Darrell Harris in Alta Loma, CA. How does Darrell spend his time? Here is a partial list of things that keep him occupied: completing restoration of his 1947 Willys M38, which is his daily driver, rebuilding the engine for his 1929 Q Business Coupe, numerous wood working projects for the home and patio along with a few items for the Plymouth Club, taking automotive and welding classes, active in church functions, hosting several Plymouth Club meetings, being in attendance at most scheduled Plymouth Club events and being a father and husband. While the members in attendance socialized, Darrell stayed chained to his Bar-B-Que to insure we didn’t go hungry. After lunch, the meeting was called to order. The members in attendance were: Bob & Margie Amos, Roger & Donna Chrislip, Tom & Jan Reed, Nick & Char DeSimone, Tony Cipponeri, Bob Davis, Bruce Lofgren, our renowned jazz guitarist, who played several selections for us and our special guests, Greg & Sherri Ramsay. Greg & Sherri moved to Colorado Springs several years ago but have maintained their membership with our region. As it turned out, I was the only one who knew they would be at the meeting and it turned out to be a most pleasant surprise to all other members.

Bob Amos reported several more members have sent in their renewals along with, I believe, two new members. We have 75 members on our roster and approximately 65 have renewed/paid their dues. Margie Amos didn’t have the actual bank balance figures but we didn’t have any expenditure to speak of last month and we are still receiving renewals.

As a non-profit club, we try to give back to our communities. As one of the ways to accomplish this, we again are working with the Orangewood Children’s Foundation and agreed to sponsor an emancipated 19 year mother who has a 2 year daughter. Once a foster child has reached the age of 18, they are released from the County Social Services System and are on their own. They are in an apartment but lack many of the necessities required to sustain them. We hope to provide many of the items on the list provided by the Orangewood Foundation to help make this Christmas a very joyous one for them.

If you wish to participate, contact Margie Amos, (951) 719-6816 or Nick DeSimone, (909) 861-4950, prior to Thanksgiving weekend as we need to get the items to Orangewood by December 4th. Gift cards travel well by mail or bring items to our November meeting in Costa Mesa on November 21st. Any gaps in items on the list will be filled by the club as members in attendance voted to allot a budget for donations to this worthy cause. Any items outside the wish list can be donated to the regular general OCF drive.

WISH LIST
KITCHEN: towels/pot holders, dinnerware, flatware, glasses, pots/pans, trash cans/bags, measuring cups, storage container, table/chairs.
HOUSEHOLD: vacuum, lamps, ironing board/iron, alarm clocks, blankets/sheets, microwave, toilet brushes, broom/mop/dustpan, sofa/chair.
MISC: computer/laptop, CD player, DVD player, gift cards.
CHILD SPECIFIC ITEMS: stroller, diapers, toys, clothes.

Another way to give back to our communities is by offering a scholarship for students who are furthering their education or career within the automotive field. Our scholarship committee is currently evaluating submitted applications and will award the scholarship to the most deserving individual. More information will be available in the next posted news item on our web site.

As part of my campaign to become the next National Club President, I emailed many of the National members with some of my ideas and to solicit their thoughts and comments. I was pleasantly surprised to receive many responses which I shared at the meeting. It seems other regions are experiencing some of the same difficulties we are in attracting new members, primarily younger ones. Their suggestions paralleled those that we, in the Golden State Region, have been discussing. One suggestion is to be proactive with schools and other organizations within the regions to let them know the Plymouth Club is “alive and kicking”. In addition, invite guests, both young and old, to the meetings to promote the Plymouth heritage and share with them our thoughts and ideas for the future of the club. Another suggestion is to schedule monthly events throughout the region to entice more participation from those members in remote areas.

An open invitation was extended to anyone who wishes to caravan to the Oregon National Meet in June of 2010. If interested, contact Tod Fitch at (408) 749-9233 or by email at Tod at FitchDesign dot com.

After a reminder that our next meeting will be on November 21st in Costa Mesa to view Zeb Ziemer's Classic Car Collection, check our web site for details or contact Nick DeSimone, (909) 861-4950 or ndesimone@verizon.net, the meeting was then adjourned. 

Edited on 2009-10-24 by Nick Desimone

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