Opening Ceremony: Acting Sgt/Arms Chuck Houston opened the meeting at 1850 and opening prayer was given by Chaplain Mike Harnish. 15 Detachment Members and one guest were present.
Roll Call of Officers: All officers were present.
Applications for Membership: Vietnam era Marine, Dan Fedor, sponsored by Harnish was duly voted in and DD 214 verified. Dan was sworn in as a regular Member and welcomed by the Detachment.
Installation of Officers: Dave Winters was sworn in as Jr. Vice Cmdt by Cmdt Dumont. Winter was then presented his Detachment Marine of the Year medal, which was on back order.
Minutes from Previous Meeting – 12/6/18 Minutes: Minutes were distributed and reviewed by the membership. Motion made to accept the minutes as presented by Judge Advocate LaClair, seconded by Liz Shaw; there was no discussion; motion passed unanimously.
Correspondence:
-VA Health Application Update press release was read.
-Thank you letter from the Dept of Florida for the donation we gave for hurricane relief efforts.
-First Battalion, 25th Marines Assoc plea for membership was read.
Paymaster Report: Report was distributed and reviewed. Motion made to accept the report as presented by LaClair, duly seconded by Sunny Ashburn. There was no discussion; motion passed unanimously.
The required annual audit of the Detachment’s bank account was completed prior to the meeting by LaClair and Sr Vice Cmdt Lindley. No discrepancies were noted.
There was one reimbursement request: Motion made to reimburse Cmdt Dumont $151.03 for his 11/16/18 purchase of food items for the Poolee BBQ/Concord Recruiter Farewell by LaClair, seconded by Winters; there was no discussion; motion passed unanimously.
Sick and In Distress: Sgt at Arms Kiernan is present for the meeting, but still recovering. Charlie Frey (“Pending Member”) was unable to attend tonight due to his health.
Report of Officers:
– Commandant’s (AKA President’s) Appointment of other
Officers
Adjutant/Paymaster (AKA
Secretary/Treasurer): Bryan Westover
Chaplain: Michael Harnish
Sgt at Arms: Bill Kiernan
Bob Selig agreed to stay on as the Past Cmdt member on the Board of Trustees.
– Toys for Tots: Westover reported that as a Detachment – 838 toys collected, 8 volunteer, 42 hours, and a thank you ad was in the Concord Monitor showing the Det’s involvement.
– Flowers for Gary Dillon’s mother’s funeral: Cmdt Dumont authorized Chaplain Harnish to purchase flowers. $72.97 was approved for reimbursement. Cmdt Dumont gave the history of Capt Gary S. Dillon.
– Marine in Need $500 donation/loan: Cmdt Dumont briefed how former Member Steve Opett fell behind in payments on his truck while financially and physically supporting his parents. His truck, which he needs for his job, was repossessed. Cmdt sent out an email looking for support. $2,500 of the $3,000 needed was received within 4 days. Cmdt, as is authorized by our bylaws, expended $500 of the Det funds to fill in the remaining money needed. Cmdt Dumont named and thanked all those that donated, and has the receipts. Steve Opett thanked all for the support and has vowed to pay us back. This is a great example of Marines helping Marines!
Report of Committees
Activity Committee:
Pending Activities:
- Recruiting Dinner at locations outside Concord area: Cmdt asked for suggestions.
Upcoming Events:
Jan 20 (Sun) 10:30 AM Breakfast Social, Appleseed restaurant, Bradford.– All are encouraged to attend this strictly social event. 6 plan to attend, so far. Selig will reserve a table.
Recent Events – after action reports:
– Dec 9 – Dept NH Joint Installation Dinner at Puritan, Manchester: Good turnout for Dillon Members, and a good time was had by all in attendance. Past Dept of NH Cmdt Frank Diekman was well enough to attend and was in good spirits.
– Dec 16 – Breakfast Social, Appleseed restaurant, Bradford.
– Dec 28 – Funeral Detail: Lindsley and Winters were in the firing detail – thank you both.
b) New Rifle Raffle Fundraiser Committee – Proceed with new raffle or not? Cmdt Dumont presented the idea and informed the Det that he purchased the Remington M-7 308 bolt action rifle from Marshall Firearms in Boscawen at wholesale cost of $792. It has a retail value of $1,000 and a lifetime warranty. Cmdt Dumont stated that if the Det decides not to do the raffle, that’s fine with him and he’ll keep the rifle for himself. After much discussion on costs, ticket prices, sales and potential profit, a motion was made by LaClair go forward with the raffle with the following budget: $795 for the rifle, $100 for tickets, and $405 for gun shows and other costs, for a total of $1,300, seconded by Liz Shaw; there was no further discussion; motion passed unanimously. The consensus is to sell the tickets for $10 at Marshall’s and $10 a piece or 3 for $20 at gun shows. The number of tickets was undecided. Motion made to get a table at the April gun show in Concord by Ashburn, seconded by Liz Shaw; there was no discussion; motion passed unanimously.
Unfinished Business
-Trailer / Float modifications: Tabled until March/April.
-Marines Fighting Hunger food drive: Cmdt to contact with grocery stores.
-M-1 Rifle Repairs: Lindsley reported that he is trying to repair them at a lower cost.
New Business:
– Reserve Bow Old Town Hall for next year’s meetings; Cost of $10 is more than fair, and can be done without the need for a vote.
-Marine for Life (M4L) Business Cards: After some discussion on costs and needs, Motion made to purchase 5,000 business cards that can be used by all Members, at a cost of $115 by LaClair, seconded by Chuck Houston; there was no further discussion; motion passed unanimously.
Good of the League:
-Awards: Bill Kiernan was presented with a Meritorious Commendation for his service as the Sgt at Arms and the Quartermaster.
Also, the Dept of NH awarded the Dillon Det the Meritorious Unit Commendation for all who were Members in 2018.
-Next Month’s Meal-2/7/19: Kiernan will provide the meal and Winters the dessert.
Announcements:
– Mar 31 (Sun) 11 AM Dept NH Quarterly Meeting & Growls of the Pack & Pound, [includes election of officers], American Legion, 7 Perley St, Concord
– Quad State Convention in Manchester, April 26-28
-Pancake Breakfast to raise funds for service dogs this Saturday in Boscawen
-Wreath pick up will also be this Saturday at the Boscawen Veteran Cemetery
Closing Ceremony conducted; next meeting February 7, 2019. The meeting closed at 1957.
R/S
PDD Bryan Westover
Adjutant/Paymaster
(Adjutant’s note: Thank you to Mark for the great meal (and the $45 collected), and Reggie, Bill, Dave, and others that brought dessert; Chuck for being the acting Sgt at Arms and for donating his winnings from the 50/50 ($38) to the Det. And a special thank you to the anonymous donor that gave $100 to the Poolee Fund!)