The President's Corner - November 2011

At our October meeting, we recognized Pete Bucki for his efforts in obtaining a Worksharp 3000 and attachments to be raffled for the benefit of the Toys for Tots project. The last time I wrote this column, I said that the Worksharp raffle would be a great help, but only a one-time thing. As usual, my prediction was wrong. Pete was not satisfied with just one Worksharp and submitted an entry into the manufacturer’s monthly contest and has won some additional products to be raffled for the benefit of Toys for Tots.

While on the subject of Toys for Tots, there is still time to help at a workshop or to make some toys on your own, be sure to sign up to help make it a great year for kids. Please give a day or ½ day to make the project a big success. It is not much work and you get to spend time with other members all for a good cause.

Special: We are accepting donations for the Toys for Tots program to continue. We informed everyone last month of the rising cost to continue this worthy program. We are very concerned with our ability to continue if funding help is not received. Please consider what you can give to help keep this worthy project afloat in the future. Donations can be kept confidential if you like. Hugh Fish or any Board member will be happy to accept your gift.

Roger Philyaw has been diligently working on making our website more inviting and informative. He has asked me to remind everyone that the old website is being shut down as soon as we can get some information transferred to the new site and that the old site is not being updated. Please be sure you are checking only the new site for things concerning TWA like our calendar and newsletters.

Amy Dowden stepped up on pretty short notice to fill in for Chris Gouchnour who needed to be rescheduled to November. She spoke on and demonstrated “Google Sketchup”, a computer-aided drafting program which is a free download at www.Sketchup.Google.com. It was a great presentation. I have tried to understand several CAD programs and failed. There was just too much of a learning curve for something I would not use every day. (I am really good at forgetting things I don’t use frequently.) After Amy’s presentation, I am ready to try again. I think I actually understand what’s going on. She did a great job and has agreed to be a mentor for those of us who try Sketchup and need a bit of guidance.
The November meeting will be on Friday the 18th, not Tuesday the 15th as previously planned. Chris Gouchnour will be speaking and there will be a workshop on the 19th and 20th at Roy Underhill’s shop in Pittsboro.

My last item for this month is that we are asking members to invite a guest you think would enjoy our club to visit and join. We aren’t suggesting a hard sell, but if you know someone who might enjoy it, please invite them to a meeting. To that end, we will have flyers available for you to give to your prospective guests.

Hope to see many faces in November!

President: Allan Campbell