October

The October 8, 2009 meeting of the GCRTA was held at the Rodney Methodist Church. The ladies of the church served a delicious meal of ham loaf, cheesy potatoes, green beans, cranberry salad and pumpkin torte. A round of "thank you" applause was given to the cooks. Barb Shelton opened the meeting with a humorous story. She welcomed guests and first timers Hank Forgey and Herman and Kathryn Stewart. We recited the Pledge of Allegiance and Bob Powell said grace.

Melvin Biars, guest speaker, called us to order after the meal. He said it has been a life long dream of his to open class like his teachers used to do. Barb Shelton president was happy to let Melvin fulfill his dream. Melvin as usual gave an informative and interesting presentation about the floral business. He has had to change his business model to accommodate the state of the economy. However his guiding principle is always to treat his customers well. A hallmark of his presentation is that he always has lots of give-aways ...candles, ornaments, purses, lotion, and more. He also gave us a very nice wreath as part of today's raffle. The winners were: Robbie Wilson, Jack Russell, Cliff Wilson, Hank Forgey, Pat Dillon, Barb Shelton, Mary Campbell, Marlene Hoffman, Dallie Forgey, Glenn Graham, Mary Withee, Betty Plymale, Jack Richards, Irene Clark, Eileen Stitt, Herman Stewart and Sally Moshier. We all feel like winners after one of Melvin's presentations. (side bar: be sure to check out the photo section of the website (galliarta.org) for a picture of Jack Richards and Bob Powell proudly wearing the purses they won.)

Lynn Pauley spoke regarding the Gallia County RSVP. There are lots of volunteer opportunities with this organization.

Bob Powell spoke on Issue 2 for the upcoming election. He gave information on this agricultural issue but encouraged us to read both sides of the issue before voting. Be sure to vote, but always be sure to be informed... not a bad idea to follow before voting on any issue or candidate. Vicki Powell asked us to cast a vote on the Farm Bureau website for Jeri Howell who has designed a "Masterpiece post card" for an 88 county art project.

Barb Shelton brought to the attention of the members a project she turned down as the deadline was before today's meeting. It involved grading thousands of essays. She did not think it prudent to take on a task of this magnitude. The group agreed.

Marlene Hoffman presented the treasurer's report in Henry's absence. We still have a cash flow problem. We did better last month on "no shows" paying for their meal. Remember: IF YOU MAKE A RESERVATION YOU OWE FOR YOUR MEAL. We have to pay for the number of reservations, not the number who eat. Christine Williams who copies, assembles and mails the newsletter suggested we might have to go to a quarterly newsletter. It costs around $100 to mail the newsletter. Please let her know if you want to "go paperless" and read chapter information at galliarta.org. The good news is that we passed the hat (actually a roll basket) and collected $200 to go toward this expense. It was suggested that at the first of the year we might ask members to contribute a nominal amount toward this expense.

The raffle netted $129. Winners were: Barb Shelton, wreath; Cindy Wilson and Patsy Schuldt, chocolate chip cookies; Sally Moshier, lemon cake; Eileen Stitt, glass plate; and Debbie Rhodes a hand-made bag made by Hazel Carico.

We signed a get well card for Judy Burdell who is having health problems. Wileen Edwards died on 9-23-09. Marlene volunteered to send a sympathy card from the organization to her family. Marlene also showed a book, God Blessed Them for the Journey by one of our former members Corrine Lund, first time author.

Meeting adjourned 1:55 p.m.

Jim and Irene Clark celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary recently with a cruise on the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers. They were married on August 28, 1959. Congratulations Jim and Irene!