By Charlie Adcock, F311374
FMCA National President
July 2014
My Fellow FMCA Family:
It is hard to believe, but this is my 12th “President’s Message.” I’m trying to figure out where all the time went. This month I thought I would recap my first year in office. I want to start out by thanking each and every one of you for giving me the privilege of serving you, the members. It has been an absolute joy.
As you may recall, national senior vice president Jon Walker and I ran for office as a team, the Adcock/Walker team, or better known as the A&W team. Let me say that we truly are a team. During the past 18 months, we have attended every area rally together with the exception of the Rocky Mountain Ramble and the INTO Rally in Lebanon, Tennessee, at the beginning of May 2014. Those two rallies overlapped by a couple of days. Jon and Sondra attended the Rocky Mountain Ramble, and Gloria and I attended the INTO Rally. I understand from Jon that Rocky Mountain Area vice president Harry Montgomery and his wife, Susan, along with their group of volunteers, put on a super rally. I wish I could have been there. Way to go, Harry, Susan, and the Ramble team!
I know firsthand that the INTO (International) Area had a great rally. Cracker Barrel, which maintains its headquarters in Lebanon, catered breakfast each morning. We had great seminars, excellent vendors, and four nights of superior entertainment. One of those nights, INTO Area vice president Alfred Vormittag was the entertainment. Of course, we did the “Red Solo Cup” song. If you haven’t been to one of Alfred’s “Red Solo Cup” parties, you have not lived. It was a great rally, Al and team.
While reminiscing about the past year, I could not help but think of all the FMCA family members Gloria and I have met. We started our first year in office by attending the three-chapter rally at Scussett Beach in Massachusetts during Fourth of July week. The three chapters hosting the event were the Cape Codders, Northeastern, and Yankee Travelers. There were 56 coaches in attendance, and they received Gloria and me as they would family. We have registered to return again this year. From there we went to Mechanicville, New York, and spent the night with the Bussin’ Buddies chapter.
We traveled to the FMCA national office in Cincinnati in July and spent a couple of weeks with Jon Walker, national senior vice president; Percy Bell, national treasurer; and Vicky Ferrari, national secretary, getting better acquainted with the FMCA staff and our new positions.
Gloria and I, along with Vicky and John Ferrari, met up with Midwest Area vice president Bob Nebel and Ann and visited the Midwest Good-Timers and the Spinning Wheels chapter rallies in Rockford, Illinois, on our way to the Midwest Area Rally in Manchester, Iowa, the last week of July.
The Northwest Area invited members to “Come Fly With Us,” the theme of their August rally. So, given the tight time frame after the Midwest Area Rally, Jon, Gloria, and I did just that. We hopped a plane to Albany, Oregon, so that we could join Northwest Area vice president Andy Balogh and his wife, Kathie, for their area rally. The Baloghs, assisted by Arvin and Pat Spofford, treated us like royalty and put on a fantastic rally. One unusual and fun event was a remote-control airplane demonstration.
After that, we traveled back home for a couple of weeks before we were off to the Six-State Rally in Sedalia, Missouri, in September. South Central Area vice president Jim McCabe and his wife, Connie, along with their cadre and volunteers, put on a good rally. After Six-State, we went to the GLAMARAMA (Great Lakes Area) Rally in Goshen, Indiana. Jane Roush, national vice president, Great Lakes Area, and her husband, Roger, and Jon and Sondra Walker, had a very successful rally.
Following a stopover in Cincinnati, we were off to visit the Ohio Nomads chapter in Berlin, Ohio, and then to York, Pennsylvania, for the Great Eastern Area Rally, perhaps better known as G.E.A.R., which took place in October. Hats off to Eastern Area vice president John Reynolds and his wife, Jayne; co-rally masters Gaye and Jerry Young; and a huge host of volunteers. It was another super-duper rally. As different as all these rallies are, they all have one common thread: the camaraderie, the friendships, and, of course, the great ice cream socials.
G.E.A.R. ended the 2014 area rally season. We were back in Cincinnati for 10 days of committee and Executive Board meetings starting in late October. We took care of business and headed home for a while. We enjoyed Thanksgiving with family and friends.
In December we went to the Cruisin’ Cajuns Christmas rally in Rayne, Louisiana, where I had the privilege of installing the chapter’s 2014 officers. We spent Christmas at home and left home on December 26 to celebrate New Year’s with friends in Texas.
January found us in Indio, California, for the Western Area Rally. Special thanks to Western Area vice president Rick Ricordati and his wife, Jan, and rally masters Dick and Charlotte Gibbs. Do they ever know how to put on a parade! They certainly go all out. It was another wonderful rally.
We left Indio and headed back east with a destination of Brooksville, Florida. But first we made a stop at Bella Terra RV Resort near Foley, Alabama, to attend a small party hosted by Tom and Lorna Eller and Roland and Grace Talbot. It was a nice evening. They allowed me to speak to the group about FMCA.
Our next stop was Brooksville, Florida, and the Southeast Area Rally, hosted by Southeast Area vice president Jim Duncan and his wife, Betty, along with rally masters Carol and Russell Buck. These folks really know how to make you feel special. They also had a great rally, great ice cream, and a wonderful parade. Did I mention all the wonderful people we met at all these rallies?
After the Southeast Area Rally we went down to River Bend in LaBelle, Florida, for a few days of R&R. My cousins Danny and Sandi Jones decided to throw a party for us, and they also allowed me to speak about FMCA.
Next, we went to Kissimmee, Florida, to the Roadtrek International chapter’s Region 5 rally. They had 115 rigs in attendance. You may not know this, but Roadtrek International is the third-largest chapter in FMCA.
While we were in Florida, Vicky and John Ferrari invited us to The Great Outdoors in Titusville in order to attend a social hosted by their chapter, The Great Outdoor’s Ambassadors. You guessed it; they allowed me to speak about FMCA.
By now it was time to get home for a couple of weeks before we had to head to Perry, Georgia, for FMCA’s big “Passport to Perry” Reunion in March.
Before going to the Georgia National Fairgrounds for the Reunion, Jon, Sondra, Gloria, and I drove to Albany, Georgia, to the Monaco International chapter pre-rally. Those folks know how to host a pre-rally. We also attended the Newmar International chapter’s pre-rally one evening. We ate, played games, and had a good time with all the Newmar members.
All I can say is, if you weren’t in Perry, you missed a wonderful Reunion. We had a few showers, but our volunteers’ attitudes outshined even the weather. Those volunteers worked through it all: rain, wind, and some sunshine. I cannot say THANK YOU enough. Thanks as well to all members who joined us in Perry.
Well, that just about covers the first year. As you can tell, Jon and I have been very busy. We have met and talked with thousands of our members. I wish that I could visit every FMCA chapter, but with more than 425 of them, that’s just not physically possible. I want to let you know, though, that I appreciate what each chapter does for FMCA in terms of promoting the organization to motorhome owners and sharing the best of the motorhome lifestyle with each other.
I’m sure you have heard by now that during the Governing Board meeting in Redmond, Oregon, on August 13, we are going to ask the board to reinstate FMCAssist, the emergency medical evacuation and travel assistance program, as a member benefit that is included in the membership dues as it once was. As the premier motorhome association, I think that this is one benefit that is a must if we plan on growing back to the days gone by.
I would be remiss if I did not mention the significant national holidays that take place this month in Canada and in the United States. Members in Canada will commemorate Canada Day on Tuesday, July 1, with parades, fireworks, cookouts, and concerts. This holiday marks the anniversary of the signing of the Constitution Act of 1867, which brought the provinces together as a single country. In the United States, similar celebrations will take place on Friday, July 4, to commemorate the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Hope you all are able to spend this time with friends and family as we celebrate the freedoms that residents of both nations enjoy.
Until I see you in Redmond, safe travels. Remember, “It’s all about having fun!”