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Wanted to update everyone in a short newsletter on your Coordinating Council’s activities since the first of the year and to give you a heads-up for our annual meeting next month.
At a recent Council Board meeting, the officers nominated new Board members to replace outgoing Board members Bob Lukeman and Mike Davis. We spent a great deal of time considering possible nominees and deeply appreciate all of the very helpful input we received from the membership. The final nominees considered and elected to the Board for three years terms were Pam Bloustine (Sgt Maj USMCR (Ret) and very active in the Women Marines organization) and Kenny Prewett (Charter member of the Council and former Commandant of the Sooner Detachment of the Marine Corps League) with me being
re-nominated. We have a very large number of highly qualified Council members who have the potential and desire to excel in service to our objectives and we hope to spread the opportunities for service as widely as we can. I’m certain that Pam and Kenny will provide valuable insight to the Council Board and we look forward to working with them. We plan on recognizing Bob and Mike for their service to the Coordinating Council at the upcoming annual meeting.
Many of you are aware of the President’s Advisory Committee that was created a couple of years ago to help ensure that we were focusing on the right types of support for our Marines. I recently invited Council member Tom Goldsworthy to become a member of this group and he graciously accepted. At present the Committee is assisting the Board in screening and nominating a deserving Marine to the Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame this summer.
The Coordinating Council continues to support Marine activities across the state in a variety of ways. We continue to fund family days for both the Anti-Tank Training Company and Battery F, 2/14 as they prepare their Marines and families for deployment. We were also able to assist the Recruiting Station in rewarding one of their recruiter’s who had won a trip from Recruiting Command to Disney World in Orlando. The trip for the recruiter and his wife was paid for by the Marine Corps; however, no funds were available for their son to accompany them. Working with the Recruiting Station the Council was able to provide funding for the son to join in their trip. Turned out to be a great vacation for the family. The Hornets tickets that were provided to a number of Marines across the state were very favorably received and as a result we will continue to provide an increased number of tickets to similar events. We are currently planning on providing a number of tickets to Frontier City and White Water Bay as well as the water park in Tulsa. Plans also include providing tickets to RedHawk ball games this summer.
The Albert Schwab Detachment of the Marine Corps League held their annual Medal of Honor activities in Tulsa this past weekend (March 25th) and was once again a tremendous event. The Schwab Detachment does a great job with the project and deserves kudos for their hard work in recognizing our nation’s heroes.
On the 28th of March the Gunnery Sergeant Dan Daly scholarship award selection committee interviewed three outstanding young Marines at OU’s Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps and selected Sergeant Jeremy D. Adams USMC as this year’s recipient of the $1000 award and a large eagle trophy. This award is sponsored by a Council member each year and we have several Council members who sit on the selection committee. The award will be presented at OU’s ROTC Awards Ceremony that will be held at 10:00am on 22 April 2006 at Meachum Auditorium on campus. If you want to see something that will make you feel good about the young Marines we have in our Corps, plan on attending this year’s ceremonies.
In the past I have mentioned the Council’s efforts to support the presentation of the Commandant’s Award each year to the Marine Honor Graduate at the Awards Ceremony. As you may remember, the "Commandant’s Award" (9mm Beretta pistol) was created and funded by Major General Hugh Hardy USMCR. The award includes not only the pistol, but a personal letter from the Commandant congratulating the recipient. Since MGen Hardy passed away three years ago the pistol purchase has been supported by individual Council members. Recently we learned that Council members Bill and Homer Paul have volunteered to fund this award each year and to ensure that it is adequately funded for future years. This is a major undertaking and we are grateful to Bill and Homer for stepping up to the plate.
The Coordinating Council’s annual meeting is scheduled for April 27, 2006. Invitations are being sent out now, but it will be held the same place we held last year’s meeting -- Petroleum Club North in Edmond. Please set aside that evening to join with your fellow Council members for some refreshments and fellowship. Start time will be around 6:00pm and we hope to be through no later than 9:00pm. If you know a Marine you would like to see join the Council bring them with you and let them learn who and what we are. Hope to see you there.
Another reminder that our Marine Corps Birthday luncheon is set for 3 November 2006. Tentatively, we are planning on having it at the same location as last year - the Quail Creek Golf & Country Club. We don’t have a speaker yet, but we are working on it. Be sure to put this date down on your calendar and
invite your friends to join us at this great annual event.
Consider this newsletter as the start of our annual membership renewal drive and I’d like to remind everyone that while donations are not required to participate in the Council, we cannot exist without your generous support. Please contribute at whatever level you feel comfortable with so that the Council will be able to continue supporting our Oklahoma Marine community.
I’d like each of you to know that while your Council Board works very hard to accomplish the Council’s objectives, we never forget that whatever success we have is absolutely due to your generous and continued support. Once a Marine, always a Marine.
Semper Fidelis,
Phil
E. Hughes
President
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