June 2003, Volume 6, Issue 5

General Meeting - June 3rd, 2003
The meeting was called to order by Sgt. At Arms, Frank Brown. Ted Bechtel, President, presiding.

Guests:
Jan Strickland of Beverly's Crafts had an announcement to make. She apologized for being so late with the information but she recently had surgery on her throat and was unable to attend our meeting last month. Beverly's puts on a classic car show twice a year, however, any car club that would like to attend is more than welcome. This takes place at the Carmichael Oaks Shopping Center. Corner of Fair Oaks Blvd. and Marconi. Everyone is asked to bring a gift of a toy, stuffed animal, blanket, sweaters, what ever you choose. Jan then takes them and distributes them to charitable organizations. She visits nursing homes, UC Davis pediatric ward, and Alta Regional. She also makes donations to the Ronald McDonald House, Sacramento Food Bank, Loaves & Fishes, Weave, The Linus Project and Sacramento Sheriff's toy drive. This year the focus is on the Angel Project. At Christmas she will be at UCD and Sutter Memorial Pediatric wards.

The event is June 7th, which is this weekend. Hopefully all Club members have been notified by the phone committee and will turn out for this very special project. You receive a raffle ticket for each unwrapped item brought to the show and there will be drawings during the day for prizes.

The other guest was John Frankot from Folsom. He has a white 2002 WS6 and a Pewter 1999 Trans Am.

Kevin Doyle was also introduced as a new member from last month.

Welcome to both our guest and new member.

Frank Brown made the motion to accept the minutes as printed in the News Letter, seconded by Dennis Trimble, motion passed.

J.O. presented his treasurer's report.

Old Business: Past Events;

The Rio Linda car show:
Cancelled.

Keith spent most of his time on the kiddy rides. He claims it was because he was watching over the kids. We just don't know who had the most fun, the kids or Keith!!! Several shows were attended and with all that heat the water rides were "the thing". At the close of the day it was time to chow down but they couldn't make up their minds where to eat. So they drove all the way from Vallejo to the truck stop just west of Sacramento on Hiways 5 and 80. Couldn't have been to hungry, could they?

Drag Nights:
Those in line keeping their eyes on the lights were Terry, Dennis and Wally.

Grants Pass and Hellgate:
Gayle & Gary Vollstedt. They led the way. Per Leo, it was a "speed limit only" for most part of the trip up and back. Are you sure Leo?? Doesn't sound like Gary. Leo said they stopped at a restaurant called Black Bear, recommended by Gary & Gayle. They had a good breakfast and then departed. The boat ride down river was great. On the way back, dinner was served at the "OK Corral". All the ribs, chicken, salad, beer, wine and Ice Tea you could consume.

Kragen Car Show:
Keith attended along with three other cars. They arrived about three and left about seven. When you enter the show, you receive a raffle ticket. Keith says he never ever wins raffles so he gave his ticket to Jake and the very first number called was his. Jake also won again. This event is now held in front of the Antique Trove building. Keith and Jake went through it and Antique Trove has everything

Memorial Day Parade:
The day was bright and sunny but not too hot. We had fourteen cars to represent our Club. The Corvette Club had six, the Z Club had four, so on this day, the Trans Am Club of America, Golden State Chapter, Inc., really shined. The cars had flags, ribbons, and patriotic items on them. We also had our banner carried. Leo should have a write up on this event also.

Towe Ford Museum:
Keith reported we are still twenty five dollars short on the money for our Club's membership and annual passes to this fine museum down town. He did receive additional money. The amount was not announced.

Rosemont Car Show:
Cancelled.

Nifty 50's Cool June Classic Car Display - 6/5:
This is a great car show for "Bev's Angel Project". This is sponsored by Beverly's Fabric & Crafts store. The entry fee was an unwrapped toy. For each toy you received one ticket. Bev then distributes them to children at hospitals, unfortunate kids and plays Mrs. Santa at Christmas. Everyone won there won at least one gift and there were a lot of nice things. For some strange reason, Keith ended up with a lot of tickets and distributed them to everyone except me. (What Leo didn't know was that Keith at stopped at the $ store and spent $25 which gave him 25 tickets.) Those attending were Frank & Michelle, Allen & Julie, Terry, Keith, and me. By Leo Brown

Crawdad Festival - 6/13:
For those who went on Friday, we had a great time. Lots of crawdad, people, beer and beads. More? You should have been there. By Leo Brown

Fulton Car Fest - 6/14:
Another cause to benefit children. This is put on every year by the car dealerships on Fulton Ave. This year it was held in the parking lot of "Town & Country Village". We had ten slots reserved and filled them. This event is for the benefit of the Children's Receiving Home which our Club also supports. Showing your car also included a free lunch provided by Albertson's.

Bowling/Ice Cream Social - 6/22:
We had two teams: LeoÕs team-LeoÕs boys, Nick & Chris, Paula, Natalie and Dave. Paulie and Irene and Leo. The other teamÑTheo, Keith, Dave, Paula and Natalie. Paulie kept giving Theo lessons and it must have worked because Theo was putting them right down the middle of the lane. (Oh, did I mention down the middle of the gutter?). We bowled two games and LeoÕs team won both. After bowling we went to LeatherbyÕs for ice cream. They were so busy we waited for the better part of an hour for our orders. By Leo Brown

Hellgate Excursion - 5/24-25:
There were only three cars making the trip. By the write-ups received by the Editor from Gary and Gayle and LeoÕs version, they must have had a fantastic trip. Everything sounded like fun even The Bear Restaurant.

By the time the articles were received the News Letter was pretty much finished. Hence - Not enough room for the whole picture. If you have articles to be printed in the News Letter, please E-Mail them to the Raff's by the 15th of the month. Or mail them to 7125 Spicer Drive, Citrus Heights, CA 95621. We need your input. Thank you -- The Editor.


New Business:
Drags - 6/11:
Firebird Night at Sacramento Race Way on Excelsior Drive at 5pm.

Trans A Rama Meeting - 6/8:
Meeting at 4pm. Place - Jerry's Paints on Fulton Ave. just South of Edison. This will be to send out a second mailing. The shirt pattern is coming along. We only have three registrations in as of now. We have six weeks to go so if you are planning on participating in the event please get your entries in ASAP !!!!

Fulton Car Fest - 6/14:
Arrival time should be between 8am and 8:30am. Because Fulton Avenue is under construction, the event will be held at the Town & Country Village parking lot at the corner of Fulton and Marconi. This is something we have done for the past two years. Entry fee is $15 and goes toward the support of the Children's Receiving Home.

Bowling / Ice Cream - 6/22:
Meet at Levitz parking lot at 3pm & caravan to Crestview Lanes on Manzanita, just south of Winding Way in Carmichael. Then off to Leatherbee's for lunch and/or dinner.

Roaring Camp - 6/28:
Meet at 3pm at K-Mart on Sunrise and Coloma. Leave at 3:30pm. It is about an hour drive to Pine Grove where the cars will be parked. Then onto trucks for the trip down to the river for gold panning and dinner. Also enjoy the lodge and then back up the hill around 10pm. Be sure to bring insect repellant, jacket, flash light and comfortable shoes.

Kragen Car Show - 6/28:
For those who are not going to Roaring Camp, please try and make this car show. Smitty supports our Club and we like to show our appreciation. It is on Harding, off of Douglas Blvd., in Roseville. It is now held in the "Antique Trove" parking lot, a bit further up Harding than Kragen is. It is held from 3pm to 7pm.

Drags - 7/23:
Mopar vs. Pontiac night. This event started about six years ago when Ted Klein and a Pontiac guy had a discussion on who's car was the fastest. They decided to settle it on the track and it has been an annual event ever since. Ted Klein explained the Top Gun Award. It is for the quickest E.T. displayed during the season and is presented by Dave Gershon. There is also a "perpetual cap" that is passed from the previous champ to the next champ each year. See page seven for additional events scheduled for the rest of the year. More information on these events will be announced at future meetings.

Vacaville Car Show:
Dave Gershon reported on this event. It is scheduled for September 20th. It takes place at the Pontiac dealership in Vacaville. It is located on the North side of Highway 80 on the hill. It is an all Pontiac show. A couple of years ago our Club was asked by the dealership to help start this event. It was very successful and we have been faithful in attending. There are lots of door prizes and the proceeds from the event go to a charitable organization.

Dave also talked about the "Downtown Roseville Tuesday Night" event that has started. It is a car, boat, car model show, arts and crafts, rock climbing, beer and wine gardens and Farmers Market. It sounds like there is something for every one. It starts on June 10th and goes through August 26th. Only draw back is that you need to be there by 5pm in order to park. Leo will have more information at the July meeting.

We are starting our Telephone Calling Committee again. Terry Trimble will be calling those on page one of the Roster; Theo Bechtel, page two: Keith Thorson, page three and Irene Raff, pages four and five.

With no further business, Frank Brown made the motion to adjourn, seconded by Dennis Trimble. Carried.

Respectfully Submitted, Irene Raff, Secretary.




The Starting Line.
Hello All. Well here we are more than six months into the year. Let me start off by saying how proud I am of all of you! We had another good turn out for the Memorial Day Parade around the Capital in Sacramento! There were a total of fourteen cars that showed up for the event and this gave us one of the largest car displays! The big hit from our club was Wally Jeffery and his Yellow convertible carrying his Big Bird. All the kids at the parade loved this and would come out to Wally's car to touch Big Bird. It was good to see all of you out there and it was a pleasure talking to you all! And I would like to give a special thank you to Irene Raff and Paula Gershon for carrying the club's banner around the course.

Now on to new topics, lets start with TRANS A RAMA! This event is less than a month away and so far turn out appears to be lacking! If you are planning on attending, now is the time to turn in the registrations so that we get an idea of how many people to plan for. Also, I would like every Club member to either solicit a raffle prize or if you are not comfortable with that, donate one yourself. It can be anything. We need raffle prizes, because this is what the Club makes money on at Trans A Rama and allows us to discount events such as the Annual Christmas Party!

Now lets go to the next topic, next year. The reason I want to talk about next year is before long it will be time for Autorama again. If you are planning on attending this event start thinking of ideas for what you would like to see as the Clubs display. It is not too early to be thinking about this, as before you know it, we will all be at the Christmas party wondering where the time went! There will be a lot going on next year, not only with our own Club, but in the support of other clubs including the local chapter of the Pontiac Oakland Club International and the Silver State Chapter of POCI with their shows! Lets start getting things rolling now with next years events to get dates locked down! If we start the planning early enough we can give everyone plenty of time to plan for them.

I would like to close this article by once again saying THANK YOU to all of those of you that selflessly volunteer your time to this Club to make it fun for everyone! We have a great group of Officers this year, most of whom have always been active in the Club! You are all wonderful and I am happy to be your President!

Until next time, Theo.

Our Flag.
Do you know that at military funerals, the 21 - gun salute actually stands for the sum of the numbers in the year 1776? I hope you have noticed the honor guard pays meticulous attention to correctly folding the American Flag 13 times? You probably thought it was to symbolize the original 13 colonies, but we learn something new every day! Be surprised at the following only because "they" quit teaching this around 1955 in public schools...some of you out there might remember.

The 1st fold of our flag is a symbol of life.

The 2nd fold is a symbol of our belief in eternal life.

The 3rd fold is made in honor and remembrance of the veterans departing our ranks who gave a portion of their lives for the defense of our country to attain peace throughout the world.

The 4th fold represents our weaker nature, for as American citizens trusting in God, it is to Him we turn in times of peace as well as in time of war for His divine guidance.

The 5th fold is a tribute to our country, for in the words of Stephen Decatur, "Our Country, in dealing with other countries, may she always be right; but it is still our country, right or wrong".

The 6th fold is for where our hearts lie. It is with our hearts that, "We pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all".

The 7th fold is a tribute to our Armed Forces, for it is through the Armed Forces that we protect our country and our flag against all enemies, whether they be found within or without the boundaries of our republic.

The 8th fold is a tribute to womanhood, and Mothers. For it has been through their faith, their love, loyalty and devotion that the character of the men and women who have made this country great has been molded.

The 10th fold is a tribute to the fathers, for they too, have given their sons and daughters for the defense of our country since they were first born.

The 11th fold represents the lower portion of the seal of King David and King Solomon and glorifies in the Hebrews' eyes, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

The 12th fold represents an emblem of eternity and glorifies, in the Christian's eyes, God the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit.

The 13th fold, or when the flag is completely folded, the stars are uppermost remind us of our nation's motto, "In God We Trust".

After the flag is completely folded and tucked in, it takes on the appearance of a cocked hat, ever reminding us of the soldiers who served under General George Washington, and the sailors and marines who served under Captain John Paul Jones, who were followed by their comrades and shipmates in the Armed Forces of the United States, preserving for us the rights, privileges and freedoms we enjoy today.

There are some traditions and ways of doing things that have deep meaning. In the future, you'll see flags folded and now you will know why.

Printing this out and handing a copy to those who would distribute it to school children and/or congregations is appropriate at a time such as we face today. Please share this with the children you love and all others who love what this symbol stands for...by God's grace it will continue to stand thusly...for and by "Liberty and Freedom".

GOD BLESS AMERICA. SUPPORT OUR TROOPS.