Volume 37, No. 5, November 2016
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Greetings Gentlemen of the Society:
Voting results:
The results of the vote to change the constitution passed by a majority vote of 16 for and 1 against. The vote defined the number of members needed for a quorum. The old number for a quorum was 15. The new definition of a quorum is 20% of the resident members. With a resident member number of fifty, this 20% requires us to have ten members voting for approval of a motion. This change should allow us to conduct our business with enough votes to decide Society issues in a timely manner.
Items on the agenda for the November meeting include Election of Officers, appointment of Peter Ford to the Library Committee with Joseph Shook as a consult to this committee.
Election of officers for 2016-2017
In accordance with Article 22 of the Constitution, the Past Presidents met as the Nominating Committee and are placing the following 2016-2017 slate in nomination for election:
Bruce Newell, President
Richard MacDowell, 1st Vice President
William Burke, 2nd Vice President
Charles Brown, Treasurer
Frank Alguire, Secretary
Norman Rice, Librarian, Historian
Richard MacDowell, Physician
Nixon McMillan, Chaplain
Board of Managers
Willard Bruce
Jack Fenimore
Brian McCandless
Andrew Patterson
Gordon Peters
Gordon Peters, Piper to the Society
James Burns, Armorer
Committee business:
We are very much in need of members willing to participate on our understaffed committees.
Joseph Shook, Kenneth Kuck and Peter McCletchie have agreed to serve on the Cemetery Committee assisting Chairman James Burns. Thank you to Joe, Ken and Peter for stepping up.
We also need people to work on the Stewards Committee. There are only four meetings a year that have food after the meeting. Food expenditures are reimbursed by the Society to the Stewards. This is not a complicated job. Anyone willing to help with this committee please contact Dan Graves or Bruce Newell.
We also need members willing and able to serve on the Entertainment Committee. An important part of our meetings is the guest speaker who entertains and educates us after the Society business has been completed for the evening. We have had speakers from the realm of politics, history, travel and other areas of interest, and we need to continue and expand this feature of our evenings.
Recent activities:
The Society participated in the Scottish Games in Altamont, New York on Saturday September 3, 2016. The site was manned by numerous members who answered inquiries from interested attendees. The weather was perfect for this event. Thank you to the people who did more than their share to make this event a success. Our site was set up by Frank Alquire, Richard Hixon, William Burke, and Lucas Newell. I would also like to thank Jay Alexander Higle for all his efforts despite being in a wheel chair with a broken leg.
The Society welcomed 18 soldiers of the Royal Regiment of Scotland to the Rooms prior to their overnight stay in the Albany area. They were canoeists on their way to Manhattan as a part of their military activity. They left from Montreal and joined us for a wee bite and a beverage at The Rooms. More info is available on the website.
Future events
Stated meeting November 10, 2016
Stated meeting January 12, 2017
Stated meeting March 9, 2017 Ladies Night
Saint Andrew’s Nicht, will be held on Wednesday November 30, 2016. The event will start with hors d’oeuvres and cocktails at the rooms at 6 P.M. Parade to the Fort Orange Club will start at 7 P.M. Please respond to Richard McDowell as soon as you receive the reservation form for this event.
Burn’s night. Tentative date is January 28, 2017.
St. Patrick’s Day parade. Tentative date March 13, 2017.
Tartan Day Parade, NYC tentative date April 8, 2017
Past Presidents’ Dinner. Tentative date is May 19, 2017.
Ticonderoga Day Tentative date June 17, 2017
We need cleanup in the basement. Members with pickup trucks are needed to dispose of trash and other junk currently in the basement. The date for this activity to be determined. It is best done prior to winter weather.
We could also use a cleanup day in the backyard. We need work done on the ivy which is taking over the gardens and is starting to cause damage to the windows and screens. Other trimming and cleanup is also needed. Date to be determined.
Aye yours,
Bruce Newell, President