FLORIDA REGIONAL GROUP, INC.
3801 Coco Grove Avenue
Miami, Florida 33133
NEWSLETTER - October, 2006
FRG
President's Message: O.K., I am
learning the meaning of fun! Whether blind,
old, or even absent of mind, the Iowa TEE Tournament is a blast. I am delighted to say that I went to play golf and
came home with a first place in the TEE Tournament's first Annual Horseshoe Tournament. I think that I've only pitched horseshoes once or
twice in my entire life, so the beginners luck theory has been hypothetically proved. That is in my case anyway. As I have been telling everyone, I was and still
am in total awe over the efforts of all of the volunteers and supporters, and what it must
have taken to make the event as successful as it is year after year. This was my first year and I am so pleased that I
decided to attend. There was a $75
registration fee and I paid for my transportation. Then,
all of the remaining costs were picked up by the event, in part, because of their
excellent fund raising efforts. Also, because
of the dedication and spirit of the Iowa volunteers.
Volunteers even flew in so that they could help the event be successful. It was absolutely awesome. This year's Florida participants, besides myself,
were Bill Geden - Hernando, Bill Burgess - Palm Coast, Rick Calissi - Ocala, and Ed Dexter
- Panama City. Geden's wife Nancy, Burgess'
wife Mickey, and Dexter's wife Elba, accompanied their husbands and took part in the
activities including tours made especially for them.
We won't discuss the 12 hour layover in Chicago for the Burgesses and me, or the 18
hour layover in Dallas for Calissi due to the fog that had settled in over Cedar Rapids. Let's just discuss the fun times had by all. Monday, we flew in and after the layover pulled
into Cedar Rapids around 3 AM and two volunteers were there to meet us and drove us to the
hotel. Simply super! We got in late so we missed the opening dinner
and festivities. I got up at 6 AM, went down
for breakfast, not just a continental breakfast but a full breakfast served by more
volunteers. I had scrambled eggs, bacon, hash
browns, a banana, and passed on the biscuits and gravy.
Orange, grapefruit, milk or coffee were there also.
After breakfast, all I had to do was to look confused and someone came to my aid. Since I did not make the opening dinner, I wasn't
sure what the plan was for the day. The
volunteer found Eric and Eric had the list containing my name. Eric let me know what the plan was, put me on the
green bus, and at 8 AM we headed off to the
golf course to play 9 practice holes. At the
course, I was introduced to Chuck Plymale, my sighted golfing buddy. We teed off, played 9 holes and spent the
afternoon at the driving range in a golf clinic. Those
who wanted to go back to the hotel were taken back when ready. There was no waiting around with little or nothing
to do. Again, simply super! That evening, we climbed aboard the busses that
were there for all of the events and were whisked off to the park to play horseshoes. Dennis Wyant, President of the US Blind Horseshoe
Pitching Association and Past BVA President and FRG member, worked with the TEE Tournament
organizers to hold the TEE Tournament's First
Annual Horseshoe competition. I'm sure glad
they did or I would have come home with only a T shirt.
But, aside from the horseshoe games, the volunteers served us the best Barbeque
pork I've ever had. That's saying a lot for a
southern boy.
After
9 holes of golf, the golfing clinic, a game of horseshoes, and dinner, and especially
after only 3 hours of sleep, I was ready for the sack.
Next morning, breakfast again, and then off to play another round of 9 holes and in
the afternoon, most went over to the bowling alley.
I stayed and played another 9 holes of golf, but should have gone over and bowled a
few games. From the others that went, it too
was nothing but absolute fun. The alley's had
programmable gutter guards. When your name
came up on the electronic scoreboard, if you had programmed it for gutter guards, the
guards came up automatically. they would then
go down automatically if programmed to stay down for the non-users. Now, this one will throw all of you. The participants were asked if they would like a
bowling ball with a handle. Yea, Sure, a
bowling ball with a handle! Not so fast, for
a fact, they had bowling balls with handles on them.
I never heard of such a thing. Apparently,
the handle retracts flush to the surface of the ball. There is a small hole that you put your finger
into in order to pull out the handle. When
the bowler lets go of the handle, it retracts back into the ball. Go figure. I've
always wanted to get a handle on the bowling ball and I missed my chance. At least until next year. That evening, we loaded on the busses and headed
off for another great meal. The volunteers
put the dinner together, they cooked it, served it, and cleaned up after we all headed
back to the hotel for casino night. Slot
machines, crap tables, blackjack, the big wheel all were manned by volunteers. when we walked in, we were handed an envelope with
$400 in play money. Iowa casino dealers (TEE
Tournament volunteers) are the worst I've ever seen.
They could just not win. The idea was
to win enough play money so you could go to the casino store, which was stocked with
donated items. You could buy the items with
your winnings. It was about a sure thing that
you could make enough to pay for whatever item might have caught your fancy in the casino
store. It sorta seems as if they wanted us to
win. Such a radical idea! Once again off to bed after a full day of fun -
drum roll! Thursday came with another full
breakfast and off to the courses for a full day of golfing.
There were three separate categories. They
were: beginners, non-competitive, and
competitive. Each category went to a separate
golf course, played 9 holes of golf, took a break for lunch, and went back and played the
final 9 holes. At the end, we headed back to
the hotel to get ready for the Awards Dinner. Everyone
was awarded a participation medallion, and then individual awards were presented. Bill Burgess from Palm Coast, won closest to the
pin in his category. I'm going to try and see
if somehow we can plan such events for our annual State Convention in Daytona Beach. If anyone has ideas, just give me a call at (904)
291-0576. Anyway, for those who might be interested in attending the Iowa TEE Tournament,
next year, let me know and I'll keep you abreast of the when and where. Paul Kaminsky, FRG President
FRG Auxiliary President's Message: Fellow FRG Auxiliary Members: I hope that those of you who were able to attend
the Jacksonville FRG Luncheon enjoyed yourselves. I
apologize for not being there, however, transportation was just too difficult. However, my thoughts were with you. I hope to see many of you at the FRG Luncheon in
Ft. Myers on November 11. This will be a
wonderful way of celebrating Veterans Day by meeting so many of you again. A new FRG Auxiliary Scholarship Chairman has been
appointed. Ms Peg Toomey asked to be relieved
of her obligation as Scholarship Chairman due to the unexpected death of her husband, Mike who was Vice President of the FRG. Our heartfelt prayers and support go out to our
sister who has been so active in the FRG Auxiliary and hope that she continues with us. We need her sense of humor and her wisdom. Ms Nancy Geden has consented to replace Peg as
Scholarship Chairman. Any further inquiries
about the Scholarships can be addressed to her at: Ms
Nancy Geden, 622 East Forest Hill Place, Hernando, FL 34442 or call (352) 341-6875. Nancy will be sending letters out to the BV's
after January 1. Watch for her letter in the
mail. If you need to get in touch with her
before that, you may contact her at the address above or at her telephone. Thank you Nancy for coming forward to pitch in at
a time of need. In the Ft. Myers area, I am
working on the White Cane Day Walk-A-Thon. The
FRG and FRG Auxiliary are recipients in the proceeds from this walk and hopefully it will
be a success again this year. Our theme this
year is "Pedestrian Safety". Each
walker will receive bag of prizes, chances on excellent door prizes, a T shirt depicting
our theme of "Pedestrian Safety" and a complementary lunch at Carrabas. Any veteran who is interested in walking for the
BVA-FRG may contact me for a packet and registration at (239) 939-3939 ex 6284. The date is October 14, the day before National
White Cane Day and will be at Lakes Park in Ft. Myers.
I will be looking forward to seeing you in November. Perhaps, some of you can tell me if you have been
able to connect with a lonely Blinded Veteran which is an Auxiliary project. In the meantime, stay happy. Joyce
Thornton, FRG Aux. President
FRG Meeting Notice: The next meeting of the Florida
Regional Group will be held on Saturday, November 11th,
at the Whiskey Creek Country Club, 1449
Whiskey Creek Drive in Ft. Myers. The meeting
will begin with a period of socializing at 11:30 AM, followed by lunch at noon. Southwest District Director Larry Newman has made
the arrangements for this meeting. For lunch,
you may have either Chicken Marsala or Meatloaf and Garden
Salad, Potatoes, mixed Vegetable, Rolls & Butter, Iced Tea or Coffee and Dessert. The cost of the luncheon will be $5 per person,
including tax and tip. Beer, wine, and mixed
drinks will be available for an additional charge. FRG
President Paul Kaminsky will preside at the meeting following lunch. Representatives from the Department of Veterans
Affairs will be on hand to provide information about services and benefits of interest to
BV's and their families. A National
Legislative Up-Date will be presented. Future
FRG activities will be discussed. Information
about the FRG Auxiliary will be presented.
The restaurant has asked us to notify
them as to the number who will be attending and the type of meal desired by November 8. Please make your reservations prior to that date
by writing to Terry King, in Charlotte County, at: 24243
Pirate Harbor Blvd., Punta Gorda, FL 33955, or call Terry at (941) 505-7747. You may also make your reservations by calling
Joyce Thornton, Ft. Myers VIST Coordinator, at (239) 939-3939 ex. 6284, or in Ft. Myers
contact Larry Newman at (239) 277-0821, Leo Bonamy at (239) 454-5784 or In Cape Coral,
call Bing Wack at (239) 574-8592. In Venice call Frank Drab at (941) 497-7044, in Punta
Gorda call Bill Stockslager at (941) 743-8364 or in Collier County call Jim Wu at (239)
461-7422. The restaurant needs the
reservation information in order to prepare properly for our meeting.
To get to the Whiskey Creek Country Club, go north or south on I 75 to Exit 131, then
Go West on Daniels Road 5.1 miles to US 41, turn right on US 41 (Cleveland Avenue)
and go 7 miles. Turn left on College Parkway
one mile, then turn right on Whiskey Creek Drive for 1.3 miles to the Whiskey Creek Country Club at 1449 Whiskey Creek Drive. From Edison Mall, go south on US 41 approximately
4 miles. Turn right go west on College
Parkway one mile. Then turn right on Whiskey Creek Drive for 1.3
miles to the Country Club. Free Parking is
available next to the restaurant. Encourage your fellow Blinded veterans to join us on
Saturday, November 11th in Ft. Myers. Although you only pay $5 for the lunch, this year,
the FRG will pay $12.75 for each lunch we guarantee. Consequently,
if you makes a reservation and don't come or cancel, the FRG must pay the total amount. Please make your reservations and if you can't
come, please call Terry King or Joyce Thornton and cancel it by November 8.
US Legislative Up-Date: BVA Director of Government Affairs
Dr. Tom Zampiere, testified before the House Veterans Affairs Committee on September 20
regarding topics of interest to Blinded Veterans. Two
of the 3 measures introduced for the BVA in the Congress are still under consideration. SCon 71, the White Cane Education Act, is expected to pass the Senate shortly. A companion measure has already passed the House. HR 3579 our BROS bill is still under
consideration. The House Committee staff
indicated that HR 3579 would be added to a group of measures scheduled for passage after
the election. Dr. Tom Zampiere is still
working on the Appropriations Committee in an attempt to get $9 million added to the VHA
appropriation to fund the full continuum of care for visually impaired veterans. S 1182 our Bros bill has already passed the
Senate. Although things are looking
favorable, nothing is assured until passed and signed into law. Dr. Tom and an Iraqi BV and his wife met with
members of the House and Senate Veterans Affairs committee.
A number of totally disabled servicemen are still on active duty completing their
treatment. They urge Congress to amend
Chapter 35 the Dependent Education Act to permit the dependents of totally disabled
servicemen to be eligible for Chapter 35 while the serviceman is still on active duty. Senators Craig and Akaka has sponsored such an
amendment which should pass by December. Watch for further legislative information in future BVA
Bulletins and FRG Newsletters.
Grateful
Thanks! Once again, we must step
up and make known our appreciation to one of our VIST Coordinators. Several months ago, in our FRG Southwest District, one of our active Blinded Veterans
unfortunately passed away. In his will, he
remembered the BVA-FRG with a $29,500 bequest. This
was a result of his dedication to the BVA-FRG and through the never ending assistance
rendered by Joyce Thornton , a very devoted and dedicated VIST Coordinator. Once again, the close working relationship between
the BVA-FRG and VIST Coordinator, or "partnership" as I like to call it, pays
off for the benefit of all Blinded Veterans. Hopefully,
this story will not end here. I am proposing
that the FRG Board of Directors explore the setting up of an Endowment Fund for the
BVA-FRG. The interest from such a fund would
be used for the purpose of offsetting the cost of the FRG Newsletter and for subsidizing
the District Luncheon Meetings around the State and our State Convention. Last year, we were very fortunate in our fund
raising around the state. However, we cannot
expect to be as successful every year. Therefore,
as many other organizations have found out, Endowment Funds may be the most practical
approach to the raising of funds and for maintaining the viability of the organization. Don't forget that neither the FRG nor the BVA
receive any funding from the Federal Government, for their operations. In closing, we would like to request that any
veterans who have any knowledge about Endowment
Funds contact the BVA-FRG with such information. It
would be gratefully appreciated if you would contact either Larry Newman (239) 277-0821,
email lgnlcn@earthlink.net or Terry King at
(941) 505-7747 email tnking18@earthlink.net. We look forward to hearing from you. Terry King, FRG Past President.