General MeetingSeptember 26, 2009
| CHAIRMAN | K. HAGAN |
| VICE-CHAIRMAN | E. RENTERIA |
| SECRETARY/TREASURER | D. LEAVITT |
| OUTSIDE COORDINATOR | J. LANGNESE |
MEMBERS AT LARGE
| NORTH BLOCK | C. SCHUHMACHER |
| H-UNIT | A. PARKER |
Chairman Mr. Hagan called the meeting to order at 5:45 hrs. Roll was called, 20 of 36 members were present, a quorum. 5 members were on lock down status in H-Unit. The balance of our group, 11 members are excused, as this was an on again, off again meeting. Designated sponsor Debra Sheldon was 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 troops deployed around the world.
All members were asked if they received their minutes of the last months meeting. Mr. Faison made a motion to accept the minutes from last months meeting. Mr. Polley seconded the motion to accept the minutes from the August meeting. A votewas taken. The motion to accept the minutes was passed.
TREASURER'S REPORT: D. Leavitt:
I have no idea how much money we have in our account. There are a lot of variables working at this time. Due to the imposed delay delivering the food that we sold, a lot of prisoners are asking that they receive refunds because they are part of the mass transfers currently being done. I have a list of 16 prisoners requesting their money back so far. We will have to do another calculation of what food needs to be ordered once the refunded orders are removed. Mr. Northrop stated that the vendors need at least a weeks notice. Mr. cut off for refunds is Wednesday October 7, 2009. A list will be sent to Mr. Ward at the trust office that same week.
OUTSIDE COORDINATOR: J. Langnese:
We received the below listed correspondence during the month of September:
| ”Airborn Quarterly Mag.” Airborne Association, New Windsor, MD. We agree with you on tradition Bill. | |
| ”The Ivy Leaves”, 4th Infantry Publication, st. Peters. MO. | |
| ”Between the Lines”, VVA Chapter 20, Rochester, NY. Good VVA convention coverage from your members. | |
| ”Jesus wept ministries”, Sister Vicki, Richardson, TX. Sister Vicki works with Col. Franklin helping veterans. | |
| Col. J.R. Franklin (USA Retired), Pensacola, FL. (N.I.V.N.) . It’s good to hear that you are getting better. We will keep you in our thoughts and prayers. | |
| Tony Thompson, Veteran, Hays State Prison, 2 letters. | |
| N.I.V.N. Letter from Bill Anderson, Ephrata, Washington.< TD> | |
| N.I.V.N. Letter from Rev. Dugdale, Ridgefield, Washington. | VVA Chapter 371, Letter from Roberto D’Avanzo, Ionia, MI. |
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
BY-LAWS:
Mr. Fernando Lemus has volunteered to be chairman of this committee.
FOOD SALE:
Mr. Leavitt: Ms. Sheldon stated that she will not be able to be at the new food delivery. She will be out of town on that date. Lt. Cramer and Sgt. Schroeder will be handling the blk of the work on this one. There are roughly four distinct areas to work at during the food delivery. Each separate area will have a team leader that will be in charge and make any necessary decisions in their respective areas.
The members and the positions that they will be working at the September 27th Food Delivery is as follows:
Area 1
GATE - PARKER, and WARREN
PULLING ORDERS - PORTUNE, BUTLER, and BAER
Area 2
FILLING ORDERS - LEMUS, HAGAN, LANGNESE, NAVAERETTE, SCHUHMACHER
Area 3
DOUBLE CHECK TABLE - NORTHROP, FAISON, BOTHA, and VICK
Area 4
DELIVERY TABLE - RENTERIA, BLAIR, LOT, and POLLEY
All 36 group members are welcome to come work at this VVGSQ Food Delivery. The key word is WORK. All members that show up are expected to work, as this is a group effort that support Operation Mom’s and the Toy Program. Anyone that does not want to be put to work should stay away.
SCHOLARSHIP BANQUET:
Mr. Leavitt: I will be working with Mr. Lemus trying to figure out a date sometime in Mary 2010 for this. We might even be able to combine another Operation Mom’s packing day once again?
COLOR GUARD:
Mr. Baer: Just waiting for our next function, the Run to the Pen, on November 7, 2009.
SCHOLARSHIP:
Mr. Fernando Lemus has volunteered to be chairman of this committee.
STAMPS FOR SOLDIERS:
Mr. Rooke: We mailed out over 30,000 stamps on September 24, 2009. Thank you Mr. Portune and Mr. Diggs.
(We would like to clarify that the stamps for Soldiers Program is used stamps still on envelops. These stamps are peeled off the envelops, then used as therapy for wounded Soldiers.)
CAMARADERIE NIGHT:
Mr. Portune: Our next moview will be a real tear jerker. We will be viewing We are Soldiers. A special thank you goes to Ms. Debra Sheldon on behalf of the group, for sponsoring camaraderie night.
R.E.A.L. CHOICES:
Mr. Renteria: Mr. Crittenden tried bringing in kids and was stopped at the gate and not allowed to do so. The Warden has asked the various AW’s to sign off on allowing the kids to enter their respective areas first. We hope to be active once again on October 16, 2009.
TAB'S FOR TOT'S:
Mr. Rooke: Nothing to report at this time.
TOY PROGRAM:
Mr. Renteria: The narrative has been signed off and returned. We are firing up the letters and donation requests. Mr. Lemus will make some fliers for us.
GRANTS:
Mr. Hagan has volunteered to be chairman of this committee.
PRESENTATION BOXES:
Mr. Portune: We have a lot of boxes ready to go.
OLD BUSINESS:
Run to the Pen: C/O Pennington is handling most all of this. Mr. Northrop received the design approval of this year’s pin from C/O Pennington. C/O Pennington has asked for 200 pins delivered to him the week before the run, Tuesday, November 3, 2009. The narrative for the trust withdrawals for Operation Mom’s is signed off and in hand. The Iron Pigs Motorcycle Club donates the proceeds from the Run to the Pen to Operation Mom’s. If you are interested in this event, please contact C/O Pennington for information.
Operation Mom’s packing day: we are searching for the narrative. Once again, Mr. Lemus has volunteered to make Posters for this event, requesting donations from the mainline prisoners. A suggestion was made concerning sending donated DVD’s. We will contact Lt. Cramer to see how best to go about this.
NEW BUSINESS
Lt. Cramer will be retiring at the end of this year. A discussion took place concerning his replacement. Any volunteers?
David Basile was voted in as our latest new full member. Looking forward to putting him to work at the food delivery October 18, 2009.
Tom (Mike) Northrop and Penny Northrop received their Certificates of Appreciation for the incredible amount of work and support that they have given to this group over the years. A huge thank you goes out to both of them.
Ms. Debra Sheldon discussed the fact that she will be leaving San Quentin soon for employment elsewhere. We recognize that this is due to the current budget situation and all of the cuts to education that are going on. We will need to find a sponsor willing to show up for our future Camaraderie Nights and Meetings.
Chairman Mr. Hagan gave a special thank you to our Co-Sponsor Debra Sheldon for arriving at 5:00 pm, opening the room, and making it possible to have this months meeting.
There was a motion made by Chris Schumacher at 6:20 pm to adjourn the meeting. Popeye Faison seconded the motion. A vote was taken. The motion passed. The meeting adjourned at 6:21 pm.
NEXT MEETING: NEXT CAMARADERIE NIGHT
Will be on October 25, 2009. will be on October 24, 2009.
David Leavitt M.W. Cramer
Secretary/Tresurer CORRECTIONAL LIEUTENANT
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
| October 18, 2009 | Food Sale Delivery Day @ 7:00 AM | October 24, 2009 | Camaraderie Night | October 25, 2009 | Monthly Meeting @ 0800 hr. | November 7, 2009 | 2nd Annual Run to the Pen | November 21, 2009 | 8th Operation Mom’s Packing Day | November 28, 2009 | Camaraderie Night | November 29, 2009 | Monthly Meeting @ 0800 hr | December 12, 2009 | Toys for Tots in Visiting Room | December 13, 2009 | Toys for Tots in Visiting Room | December 19, 2009 | Toys for Tots in Visiting Room | December 20, 2009 | Toys For Tots in Visiting Room | December 25, 2009 | Toys for Tots in Visiting Room | December 26, 2009 | Camaraderie Night | December 27, 2009 | Monthly Meeting @ 0800 hr |