USMA Class of 1961
“Second to None”
CLASS BUSINESS MEETING
4 June 2003
MINUTES
|
Class Committee
President Vice President Treasurer Secretary Historian Scribe |
1. Bob Glass convened the meeting at 1930 hours at his house. Members present were Bob, Dick, Marty, and Ed. Glen participated by speaker phone. 2. Old Business: a. Minutes of the 5 February 2003 meeting: The minutes of the 5 February 2003 meeting were approved. b. Distinguished Graduate Award Nomination: (1) Bob reported those selected as 2003 Distinguished Graduates were: GEN (Ret.) Walter T. (Dutch) Kirwin, Jr. ’39; LTG (Ret.) Harold G. Moore, Jr. ’45; Mr. John A. Hammack ’49; GEN (Ret.) Carl E. Vuono ’57; and GEN (Ret.) Edwin H. Burba ’59. (2) The committee agreed to resubmit the nomination of our classmate who was not selected for the 2003 award for the 2004 award. c. Reconciliation Plaza Maintenance Contract: (1) Bob reported that Al Vanderbush had taken pictures of Reconciliation Plaza which showed that the site is not being maintained to the standards desired by the class. (2) Ed sent some of the pictures to Bob Lenz asking that, with June Week and graduation approaching, special attention be paid to sprucing up the site. He responded, “All sites cannot be done at once. It was weeded and mulched yesterday afternoon. (3) The committee agreed to have Webb Kremer continue efforts to get a maintenance contract funded by the class gift account. d. AOG Board of Trustees Nomination: (1) Bob reported that the classmate nominated to serve as a Trustee-at-Large until 31 Dec 06 was not selected by the AOG nominating committee which selected only three new nominees from the pool of 39. (2) The committee discussed the lack of career military officers as trustees and agreed to send a letter to the AOG chairman expressing this concern. Ed will draft the letter for committee approval. e. Recognition of Deceased Widows on the Class Web Site: Ed stated he notified Sam Weiss and Gabe Gabriel of the committee’s determination that it is appropriate to include tributes to widows in the current news section; however, the Last Roll Call section will be limited to tributes for graduates, non-graduates, and honorary members of the class. f. 45th Reunion: Bob reported that Mike Maus agreed to be the chairman of the 45th Reunion Subcommittee. 3. New Business: a. Treasurer’s Report: Dick Buckner provided the following status of funds: (1) Class Gift Fund: The current balance is $38,660.28. Classmates continue to donate through pledges and new contributions. (2) Class Administrative Fund: The current balance is $48,843.17. This includes $19,525 from the public sale of the Stivers print. b. AOG Leaders Conference: The AOG Leaders Conference will be held 14-16 August. Ed will attend but he encouraged other class officers to attend if their schedules permit. c. Blaik Statue: The Committee discussed the recent controversy concerning placement of the names of all football players who lettered under Coach Blaik on plaques on the pedestal of the Blaik statue to be installed in the Kimsey Center later this year. Included would be some who were found during the honor scandal in the early 50’s. Class leaders of some of those classes sent messages to the Superintendent and AOG leaders strenuously objecting. At the DC area meeting, attendees were told that the Superintendent has decided to go ahead with the project based on agreements and approvals which preceded his term and promises made to the donors. However, the Superintendent and the AOG Chairman announced on 3 June that they will gather all of the facts pertaining to the project and review the issues. (Subsequent to that review, the AOG announced it has withdrawn the plaques from its proffer of the Blaik Statue, and the Chairman of the AOG is calling on a small group of Distinguished Graduates to advise him in coming to a decision on the final disposition of the plaques.) d. Personal Information on the Class Web Site: Ed briefed the committee on the e-mail message he received from Bill Ford concerning Google.com linking phone numbers to the profiles section of our class web page. The committee decided it should notify each classmate who has his profile on the class web page of this situation and make them aware that the information can be password protected. e. 2004 Class Cruise: The committee discussed planning a class cruise for 2004. It was agreed that any cruise should between July 2004 and February 2005 so it would not occur within 18 months of our 45th reunion. Bob will contact classmates specified by the committee to see if one will agree to be the chairman. f. AOG Survey: The committee agreed that the message to class leaders concerning the AOG Services Survey should be forwarded to the class in order to solicit maximum class participation. g. Other: Bob received a letter from the Assembly staff soliciting ads from classes praising those graduates who participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom. The committee declined to place such an ad. 4. The committee agreed to schedule the next meeting for 24 September. The meeting adjourned at 2130.
Respectfully submitted,
Ed Brown |
