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Before I say anything else in this message, I want
to express, on behalf of all of our members who attended the holiday party, our special
thanks to Helene and Bill Neuroth for their wonderful hospitality and all the work
they put in hosting our annual party. They went above and beyond the call of duty
in setting up supplies and drink, preparing food, and just making it a great party.
We had over 30 members attend, a good turnout considering all of the competition
at this time of year for parties and other activities. Also thanks to Bill and Suzi
Porter of Porter's Orchids and Ron Ciesinski of Taylor Orchids for inviting our society
to their open houses in early December.
The new year marks a new beginning in some respects for our society, and a midpoint
in other respects. We begin a new fiscal year, and it's the time when you must renew
your membership. I hope you all got your 1998 dues in before midnight on December
31, so that you'll be eligible for the special drawing to be held at the January
meeting, only for those whose 1998 dues are paid by the time the big ball hits midnight
at Times Square, and we begin the antepenultimate year of the second millennium.
The new year is also the midpoint for the terms of the officers, and time for your
president to appoint a nominating committee for next year's candidates. As always,
volunteers for this committee will be gladly accepted (you can even volunteer somebody
else, or you can volunteer to run for an office). I must decide if I'll stand for
another term (will the members stand for it?). I won't say yet what my decision is,
but if anyone wants to volunteer an opinion, I'll be happy to be talked out of -
or rather, to listen to it.
The really busy time of the year for our society is coming up - we have four more
regular meetings, our BIG Orchid Festival, the Ann Arbor Flower & Garden Show,
and at least 2 other orchid shows (MOS and GLOS). We have committed to an especially
ambitious booth for the Flower Show, about 200 sq. ft. with demonstrations. See more
about it elsewhere in this newsletter [or in the next issue]. I hope all of you will
put in time, and bring forth your blooming plants, to help make all of these events
the success they have been in the past. In the meantime: Happy New Year and Go
Blue!
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~ HARRY WINTER
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