January General MeetingHeld January 31, 2010
| CHAIRMAN | E. RENTERIA |
| VICE-CHAIRMAN | |
| SECRETARY/TREASURER | D. LEAVITT |
| OUTSIDE COORDINATOR | J. LANGNESE |
MEMBERS AT LARGE
| NORTH BLOCK | C. SCHUHMACHER |
| H-UNIT | A. PARKER |
Chairman Renteria called the meeting to order at 8:10 hrs. Roll was called, 15 members were present, a quorum. 11 Close B members and 5 H Unit members were excused due to the fog line. Designated sponsor Sgt. D. Moore, and two of our outside sponsors, Dottie and Gloria from Operation:Mom were present
Members were asked to remove their hats for a moment of silence for the American Prisoners of War, those Missing in Action, those Killed in Action, and for our Marines and other service people deployed around the world.
Members were asked if they received their minutes of the last month’s meeting. Mr. Lemus mentioned two errors that secretary Leavitt made. A copy and paste error on the V.V.G.S.Q. Roster – the Vice nomination went to Mr. Lemus and not Mr. Morris. The second error was a senior moment error putting Mr. Lemus down as the Chairmain of the Grants Committee. Mr. Langnese made a motion to accept the minutes. Mr. Barton seconded. The motion to accept the December minutes, with the noted changes, passed.
TREASURER'S REPORT:
D. Leavitt: We have $1,581.47 in our account. We repaid Lt. Evans $34.25 for the cost of dry cleaning the Santa Clara suit. A unanimous vote gave an $800.00 donation to Operation:Mom and the following amounts are to be earmarked as noted, $200.00 for hats, $250.00 for the scholarship banquet, and $250.00 towards the cost of pins for our next Run to the Pen.
OUTSIDE COORDINATOR:
J. Langnese: received the below listed correspondences during the month of January 2010.
| VVA The California Zepher Fall and Winter issue, a VVA publication. |
| Between the Lines, VVA Chapter 20 publication, Rochester, New York. |
| Ron Travato, author of the ”Incarcerated” section of Between the Lines. Ron sais that Veteran Court is doing really well. |
| N.I.V.N. Jesus Wept Ministries, Sister Vicki, Richardson, Texas. Thank you for your wonderful letter. |
| N.I.V.N. Reverand Dugdale, from Ridgefield, Washington. Thank you for your most welcome letter. |
| Tony Thompson, a fellow veteran and advocate, from Hays State Prison, in Trion, GA. |
| Greg Sanders, a USMC veteran located now in Blyth, CA. |
| Mike Shaw of VVA Chapter 201, in San Jose, CA. Thank you for your great letter. |
| Jack Anderson, Sgt. USA, 4th Infantry Div., Baxter, KY. Thank you for your super letter. We always appreciate your letters. |
| Jimmy Smith, Sgt. USA, 4th Infantry Div., Hickory valley, TN. Our heartfelt appreciation goes out to you for your wonderful letters. |
| Vincent Milo, USA 4th Artillary, of Hillsboro Beach, FL. Thank you so much for your wonderful letter. |
| N.I.V.N. Bill Anderson, Ephrata, WA. Thank you for your most interesting letter. |
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
BY-LAWS:
Mr. Fernando Lemus: Mr. David Leavitt made a request concerning the wearing of our V.V.G.S.Q. hats when we are expecting a visit. After a short discussion, Leavitt’s idea was shot down. A further discussion was held concerning the wearing of our VVGSQ hats. The consensus is we should wear them more often, and it is mandatory that we wear them for camaraderie night.
FOOD SALE:
Mr. David Leavitt: We will be selling food once again in April 2010, for delivery to our fellow inmates on Sunday May 23, 2010. The paperwork must be signed off 45 days before we begin selling in April. The list of items we will be selling must be included in the packet of paperwork. Our May 23rd delivery will allow us to have our scholarship funds available for a June 2010 date. A list of the items we wish to sell is attached.
SCHOLARSHIP BANQUET:
Mr. David Leavitt: Dottie and Gloria have given us June 12, 2010 as the date that works best for our Operation:Mom sponsors and supporters. A narrative will be done for that date. As out next meeting we must discuss a menu for the banquet, and how we will pay for it.
COLOR GUARD:
Mr. Stanley Baer: We need a couple few more volunteers for the V.V.G.S.Q. Color Guard. Mr. Faison and his trumpet have been transferred, and Mr. Kie has been paroled. Please talk to Stan Baer to volunteer. It also helps, but is not necessary, if you are over 5’2” tall.
SCHOLARSHIP:
Mr. Fernando Lemus: The Scholarship committee members are Chris Schuhmacher, Joe Diggs, David Basile, J.B. Wells, and Chairman Fernando Lemus. Now that we have a date for the banquet, we can proceed with the mass mailing to local high schools. A discussion of how best to pay for the postage was held. Sgt. Moore will check on the legality of the prison doing it. Our fall back will be the first class stamps we procure ourselves. Mr. J.B. Wells, Mr. Jeff Langnese, and Mr. Fernando Lemus have been collecting them just in case. Any stamp donations you may want to gift should go to the Scholarship Chairman, Mr. Fernando Lemus.
STAMPS FOR SOLDIERS:
Mr. Pete Rooke: Nothing new to report as all of the close custody veterans were turned back to the cell block due to the parole dust, (fog line).
(We would like to clarify that the stamps for Soldiers Program is used stamps still on the ripped off corners of the envelops. These stamps are peeled off the envelops, then used as therapy for wounded Marines, Sailors, and Soldiers.)
CAMARADERIE NIGHT:
Mr. Fernando Lemus: Our next Camaraderie night will be Saturday February 27, 2010. We now have a complete listing of all movies available. In addition, from now on, one copy of OUR list will also always be kept in our archives for future use, rather than being controlled by one individual.
REAL CHOICES:
Mr. Renteria: Harry and I are the only V.V.G.S.Q. members left on Team 3 now. We will be having kids on February 5th, 12th, and 26th. Next month, we will have kids on March 5th, 12th, and 19th.
TAB'S FOR TOT'S:
Mr. Pete Rooke: Nothing new to report as all of the close custody veterans were turned back to the cell block due to the parole dust, (fog line).
TOY PROGRAM:
Mr. Ed Renteria: The Toy Program this year was a huge success. We will be honoring people and groups that donated to us. We are putting together something special for them at this time. The Holiday Toy Program is hereby stood down until next winter.
GRANTS:
Mr. Pete Rooke: Nothing new to report as all of the close custody veterans were turned back to the cell block due to the parole dust, (fog line). As there has been no activity on this committee for quite some time, this committee is hearby stood down until further notice.
PRESENTATION BOXES:
Mr. Chris Schuhmacher: Chris was not allowed to attend the meeting as he is close custody. He relayed the following information: boxes are continuing to be made, and we will have approximately one dozen to present at the Scholarship Banquet.
OLD BUSINESS:
Chairman Ed Renteria opened the floor for any old business. No one spoke up with any.
NEW BUSINESS
Mr. Treacy’s 90 day probationary period was up. A vote was taken to accept or reject him as a V.V.G.S.Q. member. Mr. Treacy, a Viet Nam combat veteran who served in the Army, was voted in as a full member by a unanimous vote. Welcome to the V.V.G.S.Q. Mr. Treacy.
Slips were handed out for voting on the vacant position of Vice Chairman. The selection was a follows: Mr. Fernando Lemus, Mr. Harry Barton, Mr. Bob Lott, and Mr. John Blair. Our Sponsor, Sgt. D. Moore, counted the votes and affirmed Mr. John Blair as the new Vice-Chariman. Congratulations John.
Lt. Evans was not able to attend the meeting. He will be transferring to the San Francisco area parole department very soon. Lt. Evans is currently back East on a family matter. Keep him and his family in your thoughts and prayers. Sgt. D. Moore, our Co-Sponsor will continue working with us and donating his time, energy, and talents.
A motion was made by Mr. Stan Baer to adjourn the meeting at 0903 hr. The motion was seconded by Mr. Lemus. A vote was taken and the motion passed. The meeting adjourned at 0904 hrs.
NEXT MEETING: NEXT CAMARADERIE NIGHT Will be on Sunday, February 28, 2010. will be on Saturday, February 27, 2010.
David Leavitt D. Moore
Secretary/Tresurer CORRECTIONAL SERGEANT
V.V.G.S.Q. CHIEF-SPONSOR
VIETNAM VETERANS GROUP OF SAN QUENTIN
WEB SITE http://vvgsq.tripod.com
Telephone (415) 454-1460, EXT. 5309 or 5757
FAX Telephone (415) 455-5049 ATTN: D. Sheldon SIA
Brothers Helping Brothers
| February 4, 2010 | Scholarship Forms must be mailed | February 27, 2010 | Camaraderie Night @ 1730 hr. | February 28, 2010 | Monthly Meeting @ 0800 hr. | March 27, 2010 | Camaraderie Night @ 1730 hr. | March 28, 2010 | Monthly Meeting @ 0800 hr | April 1, 2010 | Food Sale Forms Go Out | April 24, 2010 | Camaraderie Night @ 1730 hr | April 25, 2010 | Monthlly Meeting @ 0800 hr. | April 30, 2010 | Last Call for Picking up Food Sale Forms | May 22, 2010 | Non-perishable Foods delivered and stored | May 23, 2010 | Food Delivery to Mainline Population And Monthly Meeting with all supporters present. | May 29, 2010 | Camaraderie Night @ 1730 hr. | June 12, 2010 | Scholarship Banquet and Presentations | June 26, 2010 | Camaraderie Night @ 1730 hr. | June 27, 2010 | Monthly Meeting @ 0800 hr. and Annual Nominations for Executive Body members. |