1. Distinguished Service Awards. Periodically,
the Board of Directors acknowledges the efforts and talents of
individuals who serve the Society above and beyond the call of
duty. This year, six outstanding individuals were honored for
their service at the NFFS Banquet in Muncie: Jim O'Reilly, long
time Vice President of the Central Region of the NFFS; Louis
Joyner, long time Vice President of the Southern Region of the
NFFS; Bob Perkins, editor of the 1998 Symposium; Dan Tracy,
editor of the 1999 Symposium; Bill Vanderbeek, originator and
sponsor of the One Design Event and the person who runs our
Symposium Patrons Project; and Walt Rozelle, who is the chairman
of the Nostalgia Committee.
2. Annual Meeting of the NFFS Board of
Directors. The annual meeting of the NFFS Board of Directors was
held this year on August 5 in Muncie following the Nats. A review
of the meeting will be carried in future issues of the Digest. To
whet your interest, the Directors have taken a number of steps to
guarantee the future of the Society.
3. USIC C.D. Named: Dave Thomson has agreed to
be the CD of the USIC again in 2001. The dates of the competition
at the Mini-Dome in Johnson City, TN are tentatively set for May
30 - June 3.
4. Assistant CD for the USOC in 2001 sought.
Randy Ryan is the CD of the 2001 USOC, but he needs an assistant
to back him up and to prepare for running the contest in 2002.
Members who are experienced Contest Directors are requested to
contact Bob Stalick for details and a description of duties and
perks. Phone: 541-928-8101, email: freefliter@aol.com or write to
Bob at 5066 NW Picadilly Circle, Albany, OR 97321.
5. Hand Launched Glider Book Reprinted: One of
the excellent publications from the 1970s was John Kaufmann's
complete book about hand launched glider. It has been out of
print for many years, but Bill Vanderbeek recently contacted
Kaufmann and received permission for the NFFS to reprint this 98
page book. It is now available in a handy spiral binder from NFFS
Publications for only $10.00 plus postage. Ask for the Flying
Hand Launch Gliders book by John Kaufmann.
6. The 2000 Symposium Publication. Although
many of our NFFS members are patrons for the Symposium, there are
about 1400 members who are not. If you are one of this group, you
will want to pick up the latest issue of the Sympo. It is chock
full of information for both the expert and neophyte and contains
not only articles about improving building and flying free
flights but also the ten models of the year and hall of Fame
selections. It is 160 pages of information, and it is only $25 +
postage of $4 per copy. Contact NFFS Publications for your issue.
7. Harry Murphy's Plans. The late Harry Murphy was one of the early forces in the Nostalgia movement and a regular correspondent to Model Aviation and other publications. Harry left a sizable number of original and reprinted vellums and mylar master plans in his collection and these, along with some plans prints, were recently given to the NFFS Plans Service. I had a chance to look over the collection, and it is significant. Hank Sperzel, the NFFS Plans Man, tells me that he will have them cataloged soon and will put together a revised and much enlarged listing of plans which include the Harry Murphy collection.
Bob Stalick, NFFS President.