Minutes of the Council of Chapters Meeting November 7, 2005
The Military Officers Association of America [MOAA], California Council of Chapters [CAL-MOAA] met at the Embassy Suites Hotel, 333 Madonna Rd., San Luis Obispo, CA 93405 on Nov. 7, 2005.
Executive Committee Voting Members Present:
Cmdr Robert Burke, USN [Ret.], President
Lt. Col. Lawrence Stumpf, USAF [Ret.], Vice President
Cmdr. John Sammons, USPHS [Ret.], Director, North Counties Area One
Col. Warren Enos, USAR [Ret.], Director, Bay Area Two
Cmdr. David Faul, USN [Ret.], Director, Central Coast Area Three
Cmdr. Gene Talmadge, USN [Ret.], Director, Mission Trail Area Five
Capt. Al Ashurst, USN [Ret.], Director, Southwest Area Six
Chief Warrant Off. Herb Zimmerman, USN [Ret.], Director, Inland Empire Area Seven
Capt. James Cahill, USA [Ret.], Director, San Diego Area Eight
Executive Committee Voting Members Absent:
Capt. David Albizo, USMC [Ret.], Director, San Joaquin Valley Area Four
Non-Voting Members Present:
Col. William Gavitt, USAF [Ret.], Past President/MOAA Board of Directors
Col. Arthur Isensee, USMC [Ret.], Treasurer
Col. Robert White, USMC [Ret.] Budget and Finance Chairman/MRBF
Cmdr. Earl Gustafson, USN [Ret.], Secretary
President Burke called the meeting to order at 8:05 a.m. He introduced Col. John Mirolla, President of the Central California Coast Chapter for the purpose of making administrative remarks. A moment of silence was followed by Vice President Stumpf leading the assembly in the pledge of allegiance. Burke made opening remarks and introduced the Area Directors and Executive Committee members.
Burke reintroduced Mirolla who introduced the Honorable Dave Romero, Mayor of the City of San Luis Obispo for the purpose of making his welcoming remarks. The secretary called the roll of chapters.
Representatives of the following listed Affiliated Chapters responded as being present:
Redwood Empire
Sacramento
Valley Ridge
Solano County
Monterey Count
Silicon Valley
San Francisco
Central California Coast
Ventura County
Greater Antelope Valley
Conejo-Simi Valley
San Fernando Valley
Golden West
Orange County
Rio Hondo
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San Pedro Area
South Coast
Mount Baldy
Orange Empire
Palm Springs
Riverside-March Field
Southwest Riverside County
Heartland
Miramar
Pendleton
San Diego
Silver Strand
Sweetwater
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Twenty-nine Chapters having responded, it was determined that a quorum was present.
Other Chapters known to be present but not responding to roll call were:
Alta California and Santa Barbara.
Burke introduced the following listed attendees:
Maj. Gen. Bob Butcher USMC [Ret.], MOAA Past National Director
Maj. Gen. James Delk USA [Ret.], Sacramento Chapter
Maj. Gen. Paul Monroe USA [Ret.], ESGR National Committee
Col. William Gavitt USAF [Ret.], Past President/MOAA National Director
Col. John Loughran USAF [Ret.], MOAA National Director
Capt. Warren McDonald USCGR [Ret.], MOAA National Director
Mr. Jim Pauls, MOAA Council and Chapter Affairs
Anne Patton, MOAA Auxiliary Member Advisory Committee
Cmdr. William Manes USN [Ret.] Past President/Legislative Officer CSCVC
Cmdr. Leighton Royston USN [Ret.] President, Military Retiree Benefit Foundation
Capt. Peter Brabant USN [Ret.] Member, Military Retiree Benefit Foundation
Area Directors [See listing above]. This was followed by self-introduction of other attendees.
It was moved and seconded that the minutes of the last meeting be approved. Motion carried. Isensee presented the treasurer's interim report [See Attachment C to ExCom Minutes of Nov.6, 2005]. It was moved and seconded that the report be approved. Motion carried.br />
Butcher introduced panel consisting of Gavitt, Pauls, Loughran and McDonald to discuss national MOAA perspectives: Gavitt - Membership is primary topic. Seven lobbyist on staff. 104,000 of membership are over 80 years of age. Florida has an excellent database. Advocates Global Information System [GIS]. Leader in field is ESRI Technology of Riverside. Goal is a Chapter in each congressional district. Zip code will be an x-y coordinate on a map which will present a large amount of information. Cost will be about $1,300. Senate will vote on Authorization Bill this week. Warner amendment deletes fixes advocated by MOAA. Opposing amendment is Sen. Nelson's of Florida. Call today to Boxer and Feinstein regarding this amendment. Pauls - Board of Directors has only four members who do not have Chapter experience. Need to recruit 1,500 new members every month to stay even. 28-30,000 new members this year. New marketing director, Col. Jordan wanted Chapters to get involved. "Give me 10" project evolved. Only four Chapters in California have responded. Chapter will get $10 for each new member and $1,000 for winning category. Health of Chapters is second concern of MOAA. Expect to loose more Chapters. Average age of MOAA members is 65; average age of Chapter members is 75. 10 to 15 Chapters in California are in trouble. Need Chapters to respond to legislation.
McDonald - New Board member on Finance and Magazine Committee. Experience limited to Silicon Valley. Chapter meetings and reading the magazine. Need to publicize CAL-MOAA to Chapter members.
Loughran - Reiterated need to make CAL-MOAA more public. Is on the Council and Chapter Affairs Committee. Clout of 370,000 members is doubled because of spouses leading to nearly a quarter of a million to advocate legislation. Emphasized need for spouses to call in on legislation in addition to the member.
Attendee Comments:
Manes - District and Chapters do not match. California's 48th District has 3 Chapters. Need coordination between these Chapters; Orange County, Golden West and South Coast. CAL-MOAA needs to coordinate Chapters and Districts.
Mitchell - San Pedro/South Bay Chapter. Has Los Angeles AFB in area. No active duty officers in his Chapter. Hard to convince members to use cards supplied with magazine.
Cahill - Discussed youth of congressional staff and need to educate them.
Butcher - Stated all four San Diego Chapters visit their Congresswoman Davis together.
Snyder - Two congressmen in Solano County area have organized a veterans advisory board on which he sits. Check with your representative to see if there is an advisory board.
Kalinyak - Membership chairman and treasurer requests membership list, recruiting brochures and mailing labels. Noted lack of response from MOAA.
Mirolla - Chapters need to know the position of Congressmen on issues. "Give me 10" drive with the $24 fee on top of chapter dues was a disincentive. Pauls pointed out that "free" members renew at a 47 percent rate while dues paying members renew at 92 percent rate. One chapter is paying the $24 for new members and then recovering $10 from MOAA for a net cost of $14 to gain a new member.
Monroe - Discussed his experience in obtaining support for Guard programs including GI Bill legislation and money for improvements at the Los Alamitos installation.
Loughran - Stated that when contacting congressional staff members, points to be made should be linked to fairness and women's issues.
Van Pelt - Discussed methods of attracting active duty members and spouses recently widowed.
Pauls - Asked if chapters had seen the symposium report and expressed disappointment with the response. Stressed need to cultivate contacts with active duty activities.
Sammons - Complimented the Alta California Chapter on being one of the best chapters in Northern California.
Burke - Noted presence of author Cmdr. George Wallace who was selling book "Final Bearing."
Patton - Stated Senator Feinstein listens when she gets 10,000 letters on a particular issue.
Recess was declared for the purpose of holding Area meetings.
Reconvened for Area reports.
Area 6, Ashurst: Chapters doing reasonably well. Some participating in "Give Me 10."
Area 3, Faul: Chapter problems are similar to what has already been discussed. Trying to determine what situation would be for satellite chapters, i.e., incentives, benefits etc.
Area 5, Talmadge: Need to reestablish Area meetings, share newsletters, hold joint chapter meetings, meetings with MOWW, share speakers, etc.
Area 7, Zimmerman: Discussed need to ensure chapter membership committee performs. Stressed need to contact base commanders and get permission to post signs.
Area 8, Cahill: Same problems of recruiting, retention and leadership. Stressed need to make contact with the public to discover who is eligible for membership. Joint chapters meeting at Miramar. Three national board members in Silver Strand Chapter. Contemplating employing a bookkeeper. Also held joint meetings with Navy League. Used non-military speaker. Active in "Letters to the Troops" program.
Area 1, Sammons: Distances are great in Area 1. Chapters are doing pretty good but trend is down. Lost JROTC program in Santa Rosa. Need to reach out to former officers.
Area 2, Enos: All seven chapters doing well, having meetings, good speakers. All Chapters are making an effort to increase membership. All military installation gone from Bay Area except Coast Guard Island. Area is antimilitary by objecting to berthing battleship IOWA. Will go to Port Stockton. Most chapters have succession plan. Effort to revitalize the East Bay Chapter is not making progress because it is blocked by Coast Guard legal counsel.
Pauls introduced Brig. Gen. Paul Monroe to make a presentation of the Employer Support for Guard and Reserve [ESGR] program with which MOAA has a Memorandum of Understanding. Monroe said main purpose is the educate employers. Go to www.esgr.mil for complete information. In response to question from Sammons, he stated ESGR was present at demobilization and they work with family support offices.
Burke introduced Isensee for financial report [See Attachment B to ExCom Minutes of Nov.6, 2005]. Manes commented that Yountville had $4M in their MWR fund of which $2M was moved to a reserve account, therefore the $500 CAL-MOAA contribution is insignificant and would be more effective at Barstow and Chula Vista. Also contributions should be given to the local community support groups rather than the Home.
Motion was made and seconded to adopt the budget for 2006. Motion carried.
Motion was made by Mirolla and seconded by Ramirez to set the dues at $0.75 per regular member for 2006. Motion carried.
Isensee discussed investment strategy and declining membership of about 6 percent per year. Motion was made by Ramirez and seconded by Kwan to affirm the action of the ExCom to permit the treasurer to investigate other avenues of investment as outlined in the financial report.
Isensee brought up the topic in regard to support of the legislative advocate through the CSCVC. Conaty requested that the subject discussed later. The chair tabled the item. Mission statement item was postponed.
Burke introduced Manes as chairman of the nominating committee.
Committee recommends the election Lt.Col. Lawrence Stumpf for president and Cmdr. John Sammons as vice president. There were no additional nominations. Manes moved that Sammons be elected as vice president. Motion carried. Manes moved that Stumpf be elected as president. Motion carried.
Mission Statement - Burke made presentation of current mission statement and compared it to national MOAA statement and that of the Florida council. Attachment D contains two iterations of a proposed mission statement and vision for CAL-MOAA that can be adopted when bylaws are changed. Sammons stated a new mission statement is needed before strategic planning on a four-year cycle can be addressed. Sammons said statement must be focused on California. A member commented that it did not contain anything on education, communication and outreach. White said the mission statement must answer the question from the Chapters: "What does CAL-MOAA do for me?"
The assembly recessed for lunch at 12:06 p.m.
Reconvened at 1:15 p.m.
Burke introduced MOAA Auxiliary Advisory Committee Anne Patton for a presentation. Purpose of committee is to advise on auxiliary issues and conduct an outreach program. Tries to locate and track all post 9/11 widows and forward to information to cognizant chapters. Chapter to provide letter of condolence and offer assistance. "Turning the Corner" is a new booklet to assist survivors. Chapters should send letters to spouses of new members. Has requested each chapter appoint an auxiliary liaison and provide suggestions. Auxiliary members and spouses can have a large impact on legislation. Need feedback on auxiliary liaison.
Ashurst stated Area Directors have not been included on communications. Clary has no auxiliaries in his Chapter and wanted to know what they could do to retain widows when military member dies. Pauls suggested that auxiliaries should be used as leaders since there are about 72,000. Phyllis Stumpf suggested that life membership be encouraged so that widows will be life members. Manes stated that his Chapter treats spouses as equals with the military member.
Burke introduced CSCVC legislative advocate Pete Conaty who distributed a list of state legislation of interest to military members. It contained 55 items, 26 that became law. Conaty stated there are fewer legislators with military experience and term limits results in 24 to 28 new legislators every two years. There are no entitlements at state level, only benefits. Bill for state universities to observe Veterans Day was passed. Also legislation to make it more difficult for spouses to go to court to change child support payments. He asked that CAL-MOAA contribute to the CSCVC for his retainer. In response to a question, he stated that CAL-MOAA can use 20 percent of the first $500,000 for lobbyists. The federal government will not build any more cemeteries but will give the states money to build them and require the state to maintain them. Therefore, any new ones will be hard to come by. American Legion wrote letter critical of the California Secretary of Veterans Affairs that was rebutted by other organizations.
Burke introduced Enos for a presentation "Making a Difference." The main thrust of his message was that individuals should use their talents to make a difference by their action on specific projects that benefit our community.
The following listed chapter awards were presented:
Alta California - 4-Star
Golden West - 5-Star
Riverside March Field - 4-Star
Miramar - 5-Star
San Pedro/South Bay - 4-Star
Orange County - 4-Star
Sweetwater - 5-Star
Orange Empire - 4-Star
Ventura County - 4-Star
The following listed chapter certificates were presented:
San Pedro/South Bay - 35-Year
Santa Maria/Lompoc - 35-Year
Solano County - 40-Year
Mount Baldy - 35-Year
Silicon Valley - 40-Year
Riverside March Field - 35-Year
Orange County - 45-Year
Indian Wells - 35-Year
San Fernando Valley - 45-Year
Burke presented a resolution of appreciation to MOAA for conducting the 2004 Symposium at Lake Tahoe. The resolution was accepted by Pauls on behalf of MOAA.
The chair declared a 10-minute recess.
Mission Statement and Strategic Planning - These items were referred to a committee consisting of Royston, Sammons, Ashurst, Loughran and Enos with instructions to report back at the ExCom meeting in February 2006. Motion by Sammons and seconded by Snyder. Motion carried.
A resolution concerning the Defense Finance Accounting Service [DFAS] introduced by Ramirez [Palm Springs Chapter] was considered. He stated the problem came to the Chapter's attention when he formed a committee headed by Capt. Jerry Loeb to develop a survivor's benefit check list for their members. When it was explained to the membership, widows related that they were having problems with DFAS. In one case, a Medal of Honor winner's widow stood to lose her home because DFAS maintained she owed $17,000. Unlike other agencies, there is no appeal process with DFAS. They now have 7 others cases where widows are having difficulties. Motion was made by Ramirez and seconded by Tom Johnson to adopt the resolution. Discussion ensued. The particulars of the 7 other cases cannot be divulged because of privacy considerations. Manes moved and Sammons seconded a motion to table. Motion to table carried 26 to 11.
Clary made and Manes seconded a motion to conduct a survey of Chapters to determine if others are having problems with DFAS. Extended discussion followed. Kalinak [Monterey County Chapter] related her experience with DFAS. Motion carried. Ramirez stated Palm Springs Chapter will prepare questions for a survey and have it available the following week.
A member volunteering at the Seal Beach Retiree Activities Office stated the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act [HIPAA] causes problems in the effort to help survivors. Reinking [Redwood Empire Chapter] explained that his Chapter physically takes the widow to the Casualty Affairs Office at Travis AFB.
Reinking made a presentation on satellite chapters. Redwood Empire Chapter was founded in 1964 and covered Mendocino, Humboldt, Del Norte, Lake and Sonoma Counties with activity concentrated in Sonoma County and the city of Santa Rosa.
Subchapters have been organized and identified as in Mendocino, Humboldt/Del Norte, Lake and Sonoma Valley Subchapters. The remaining area was designated Sonoma County Main. Reinking introduced Held, president of the Lake County Subchapter. He said his Chapter was formed in 1990 and has 35 members. He explained the activities of the SubChapter. Dues are paid to the host Chapter that allows them all the benefits of other members including financial support for projects.
Discussion on the Military Coalition ensued. Manes stated that the CSCVC performs a similar function in legislative matters in California. Butcher noted that the MOAA Scholarship loan program had a default rate of less that one percent.
Stumpf introduced a resolution commending the Mayor of San Luis Obispo, the Embassy Suites and the Central California Coast Chapter for hosting the meeting.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:50 p.m. Respectfully submitted,
Earl F. Gustafson Commander, U.S. Navy [Ret.] Secretary
Attachments:
A, B, C - See ExCom Minutes of Nov. 6, 2005
D - Two Iterations of Mission and Vision Statement
Two Iterations of Mission and Vision Statement for your information.
"The mission of CAL-MOAA is to make direct operations support available to individual chapters, preserve California state earned entitlements for members/families/survivors of the uniformed services, and support national MOAA initiatives as appropriate."
A vision statement perhaps might include intent; that is, some sense about what we'd like to see happen:
"As we go into the future, we will help insure chapter success and growth, influence state legislation designed to meet specific basic needs, and respond to MOAA requests for action."
"The primary mission of CAL-MOAA is to support its membership through real practical support to chapters and direct assistance to failing and "'challenged"' chapters. The secondary mission is support of National MOAA and its goals and missions and to preserve, at the state level, the earned entitlements of the members of the uniform services and their family and survivors."
If we can get agreement on a/this mission statement during the morning session then we are in a position to identify the major objectives critical to mission attainment during the afternoon Strategic Planning Session.
Our tasks during that session will be to:
Identify and support major MOAA objectives. Identify and support relevant state level legislation. Increase CAL-MOAA membership.
These then can be further defined by sub objectives.
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