Rooster Picnic Weekend 2004 Wrap-Up July 8th through 10th After weeks of preparation, the Annual Rooster weekend arrived and this year the weather was tremendous, no rain. The Rooster Picnic Weekend, from all accounts was a very successful endeavor. We had representation from as far away as Florida while Delaware and Maryland and New York were in attendance. And as always from the east our New Jersey group came out in-force, the remainder of the party people was our local members. We missed our large contingency from the Washington and Virginia area this year; hopefully they will be with us next year. Most of our out-of-towners stayed with local Rooster friends or at the McIntosh Inn. We began the weekend with the annual welcoming cocktail party held on Valley Forge Mountain at the home of Bobbie, WB3EAO and Fred, W3PHL. A group of regulars from our Rooster family attended the evening festivities; we had our locals and a few of the out-of- towners. A lot of old acquaintances were there and we could hear lots of great conversations about the days gone by. Bobbie and Fred did their usual outstanding job of entertaining, fantastic food and fun. It was an exceptional evening for all and we wish to extend our sincere appreciation to Bobbie and Fred for opening their home to the Roosters. The golf tournament was a rousing success; we had 11 golfers tee off for the Rooster Open. Jim, K3CHJ will supply the details at the end of the letter. Friday afternoon the Chief, Walt, WA3PPW and his XYL, Donna held their annual gathering at their King of Prussia home for the Rooster Family. With the sunshine this year the guests were able to enjoy the outdoors and Donna’s beautiful gardens; everyone had a great time. Donna had an outstanding menu with quite an array of food choices to please everyone’s palate. This year the formal dinner was held at the Sheraton Park Ridge Hotel & Convention Center, Valley Forge, 31 Roosters and guests were in attendance. A private room was provided and we were able to mingle and enjoy golf and shopping stories from the group. The evening began with cocktails, and when it was time for the highlight of the night the meal was served with a Chef Signature salad, the choice of entrée, chicken or beef, veggies and cheesecake topped off the meal. The service was superb and the food was hot and delicious. A special thanks to Donna and Bobbie for making the table centerpieces that were given to one of the lucky couples at each table. Everyone had a gala time. Once again the Annual Rooster Picnic was held at the Valley Forge Firehouse pavilion. Ken, W3IPK was the chairman of the event but was called away on a family emergency. Dick K3ITH, graciously accepted the duties for the day and did an outstanding job. The past three years the picnic morning dawned gray with sprinkles, but this year the sun was shining on the Roosters. Myrtle, N2AKC and Glen, K2EHM with the help of some strong backs, got the table’s setup in the pavilion and we were ready for the Rooster final event of the weekend. We had 63 attending, even though the horseshoes pits were dry no one wanted to exercise so no tournament was held. Pastino Caterers provided the food, they has been our caterer for 21 years. We had ribs, chicken, beef, corn on the cob, assorted salads and dessert. The food was good as usual. Paul N3CYO and Carolyn handled the prize table and presented prizes to all attending. Paul, WD4EBA and Connie, KG4KBO ran the “free table” setup in the back of the Pavilion. The Rooster Net supplied some of this year gifts and we had many generous donations from our Rooster family to complete the prize table. The annual group photo shoot by Dick, K3ITH was completed in the afternoon. The results are available on Bob’s KD2UJ website. As in years past Fred, W3PHL took individual rooster photos with the official Rooster. Thanks Fred and Dick for another great job! Our Rooster chaplain, Myrtle called the Memorial Net from the list of Roosters that have passed in 2004. This is our way of honoring our fellow Roosters that are now “silent keys” and they will be greatly missed by all. Myrtle and Glen setup the Rooster Sale table; it looked as though the sales were very brisk. If anyone is interested in purchasing Rooster articles please contact Myrtle or Glen. Jay, W3JAH led the initiation of the new Roosters with the Annual New Rooster Chorus. To help the new Roosters feel a little more comfortable, he called on the older Roosters to give them a “crow”. Teresa, KB2PIB, John, N3WEY, Rick, KC4RIC, and Guy, N3MXB made up the 2004 Rooster Chorus. Of course they didn’t pass on the first few try as expected but on the second try the Old Roosters decided they were good enough. This year four of our fellow Roosters were recognized for their contributions to the Rooster Net. Donna, XYL of WA3PPW, received a “Certificate of Appreciation, Dick, N3JOS and Carolyn, N3NGF, received a “Certificate of Appreciation”, Joe, K3UYK, received the “Chiefs Award”, and Dick, K3ITH was presented the “Rooster of the Year” award. The certificates read as follows: Donna Sharrar Certificate of Appreciation For her selfless support of The Rooster Net and for her warm hospitality in opening her home and gardens to net members during the annual Rooster Weekend, providing a congenial atmosphere for attending Roosters, this certificate is presented to Donna Sharrar Dick and Carolyn Bair Certificate of Appreciation For their efforts in organizing the annual Rooster Luncheon at Shady Maple, thus providing net members with an opportunity to enjoy an afternoon of good food and fellowship, this certificate is presented to Dick and Carolyn Bair, N3JOS/N3NGF Joe McGrath, K3UYK Chief’s Award I would like to recognize Joe McGrath, K3UYK, for showing his spirit and love of ham radio to the Roosters. Even though he is one of our new Roosters, he has jumped in to ensure that the daily net runs smoothly by accepting the position of net control coordinator. Joe also shares the responsibility of Monday morning net duties. We are proud to have Joe as a member of the Rooster Family. Dick Stewart, K3ITH Rooster Number 465 Rooster of the Year For his contributions as the Official Rooster Photographer, always ready to preserve our activities for posterity, making those photographs available to all by posting them on his web page; for establishing and maintaining the Rooster Net on the Internet and for his Additional contributions to Amateur Radio as a Volunteer Examiner, it is with pleasure that Dick Stewart is named the “Rooster of the Year 2004”. One of our fellow Roosters, Rocco, K3ROC was married on Friday evening. Rocco and Natasha, his new Bride came to the picnic on Saturday. Rocco introduced Natasha to the Roosters. A wedding cake was provided to help celebrate the grand occasion. They both behaved and no cake was smeared on each other’s face. To Rocco and Natasha, the best of luck from the Roosters and many years of happiness! Thank you for sharing Natasha with the Roosters at the picnic. The 50/50 winner this year was Hal, K3ATO. With the monies collected from the Roosters for the banquet, picnic, 50/50, and generous donations (thanks to all the Roosters who made donations) our financial obligations were met without utilizing a portion of the Rooster funds. For the breakdown of cost vs. amount received see the Financial Statement page for addition information. It was a great weekend, and once again The Rooster Picnic events were an outstanding success. For all that couldn’t attend this year we missed you and hope to see you next year. Since we outsmarted Mother Nature this year (she was good to us.) by changing our weekend activities to July, the picnic for 2005 will also be in July. The date will be announced later. 73’s & 88’s Dick, K3ITH Walt, WA3PPW Picnic Chairman Chief Rooster Picnic Attendees N2EMG WA3RSU K2AOV K3ATO Sharen W3QC Mary WA2OAO Marion KF2ZA/KF2ZB Ester KB2PIB K2EHM/N2AKC WU3I K3ITH Cathy K2LK K3JJC WD4EBA/KG4KBO K3BKT W3PHL N3JOS K3TNH Denise K3UYK Connie WA5MQM KA3QBF KC4RIC Margaret N3WEY Gloria N3CYO Carolyn K3CHJ Dotty KW3JF Linda W3JAH Susan N2NEI Lynda, Dot, Alice N3MXB Marcelina K3BM AF3R Terrell WB3EQW Carolyn KB3EGL WB2YTA WA3PPW Donna, Emily K3ROC Natasha N3JRW ROOSTER GOLF OPEN 2004 ROOSTER OPEN After being rained on two years in a row, this year we were treated to spectacular weather. Golfers and well wishers were treated to a tailgate on the Chief Rooster’s truck. After some grinning for our official photographer, seven roosters and four guests headed for the first tee at around 9 AM. There was uncharted territory ahead, since no one had been past hole # 12 due to the previous rainouts. Jim, AF3R, is our 2004 Rooster Open Golf Champion having scored a 79. Transpose those digits and you are close to the next best scores. Congratulations to Jim for a great effort. Hal K3ATO was second with a 96. Closest to the pin on #4 and longest drive on # 12 were won by yours truly. Other roosters participating were Terryl KA3LNK (XYL of AF3R), Bill K2LK, Mike KA3EIP, and Paul N3CYO. Guests were son of Bill, son of Paul, and two more from the Candelori clan. Jim K3CHJ Golf Chairman Rooster Picnic Financial Statement 2004 Weekend Event Expense Received Deficit Rooster % Recurring Expenses Yearly Copy Picnic Letter $ 7.16 Insurance for Weekend $ 356.00 Total $ 363.16 $ 363.16 100% Golf Prizes $ 42.75 $ 42.75 100% Banquet Bartender $ 100.00 Chicken 9 @ $19.00 $ 171.00 Beef 22 @ $19.00 $ 418.00 Service Charge $ 111.91 Tax $ 42.05 Centerpieces $ 35.00 Total $ 877.96 Banquet 31 @ $27.00 $837.00 $ 40.96 5% Picnic Hot Buffet 61 @ $13.50 $ 823.50 Serving Staff (3) $ 300.00 VF Picnic Grove Rental $ 200.00 Beer $ 60.00 Birch Beer $ 40.00 Awards/Prizes $ 185.96 Total $1,609.46 Picnic 63 @ $22.00 $1,386.00 $ 223.46 14% Total Picnic Cost $2,893.33 $2,223.00 $ 670.33 23% Donations for 2004 $ 696.00 50/50 $ 95.00 Total $2,893.33 $3,014.00 $ 120.67 4%