Director’s Thoughts-June, 2015

Here it is, June already! What does everyone think of when they think about the month of June? Sunshine! Longer Days! Swim Lessons! Car rides through the countryside! Picnics! I love picnics! The food & fellowship among friends are unbeatable @ a picnic. This month we will be holding our clubs annual picnic. What is it about our picnic that you enjoy the most? Of course, it goes without saying that the gathering is great, but, most of all, I think that picnic foods come to mind. I always think it is interesting that when a group of people are asked to bring either a cold or hot dish, or even a dessert, somehow the menu always works out w/ a large buffet of unmatched dishes. In that, I mean, it seems that each person has their 1 favorite picnic food that no one else makes as good as they do. What is your favorite picnic food? Could it be potato salad, baked beans, maybe corn on the cob or macaroni salad? For me it is the original picnic food – Fried Chicken! Years ago, a girl would pack a picnic basket, grab a blanket & head out to a meadow w/ her favorite guy. In that basket would be nothing other than fried chicken. Mmmmmmm! I can taste it now! I hope everyone will come to our Club picnic on Sunday, June 14th, & I sure hope some fried chicken shows up on the buffet table! Happy Summer everyone. Your Director, Don Sterner

“Free Spirit” Chapter Meeting Minutes, May 5, 2015

Director Don Sterner called the meeting to order @ 7:34pm. There were 23members & 1 guest present. Motion to accept April 2015 meeting minutes as printed in May newsletter, Kathleen Duckett, seconded by Dan Reiniger, so carried. Motion to accept treasurer’s report for April, Isabel Lenny, seconded by Shirley Schaffer, so carried.

COMMITTEE REPORTS:
A. Historian – no report
B. Kempton – flyers are available to be distributed by members
C. Membership – Dolores will be collecting renewal dues during the picnic
D. Newsletter –no report
E. Programs –a mystery guest will be attending the picnic @ Macungie.
F. Publicity –no report
G. Ways and Means – a blanket was sold to Tarzana, California. 100 more Buick coverlets were ordered and received in prep for the 2016 event.

I. OLD BUSINESS

May 31, 2015 – Tour to Collegeville, Pa – Sally will be taking us on a quaint country tour to Collegeville, PA to the Kriebels’ lovely home. Be sure to sign up before May 25th!

June 6, 2015 – Lakota Wolf Preserve Tour – William “King” Schaedel is taking the group to the Lakota Wolf Preserve, Columbia, NJ. Be sure to sign up before June 1st! You won’t want to miss this tour, guaranteed!!

Annual Chapter Picnic – June 14th – “Weeping Willow” Pavilion is secured.

July 11, 2015 – Crystal Cave Tour – Mark your Calendars! A tour to Crystal Cave followed by lunch @ the Virginville Hotel is being planned. Be sure to sign up before July 5th!

2016 50th BCA Anniversary Celebration – a chapter table will be set up to promote the chapter during the event in 2016. Kathleen Duckett found the registration form for the 2016 event on line. Forms were handed out to members.

II. NEW BUSINESS

Lifetime Achievement Award – a Lifetime achievement Award was presented to Sally/Clarence Getz for the outstanding dedication to our club; recognizing their many contributions. Thank you Sally/Clarence Getz!!

Motion to adjourn, Dolores Kennedy, seconded by Alice Schaffer, so carried, @ 9:15 pm. Respectfully submitted by: Stacy J. Sterner, Secretary

Lakota Wolf Preserve, Wolf Tour, Columbia, NJ, June 6, 2015

Peg & I will be taking you on a relaxing drive from Bethlehem, PA to Columbia, NJ. It takes about 45 minutes to get to Lakota, but I am sure we will need a pit stop. So I will need the extra time. I have arranged for us to take the 10:30 am tour. The Wolf Preserve wants us there before 10 am w/ the bus leaving at 10:30. This is a very unique experience and many National and local car clubs have enjoyed the experience. After your tour, I will lead you to my home at “Big Oak” for a light lunch. You can try your hand at making your own personal pizza, hot dog (in a snoopy toaster) or hoagie. The Lakota Wolf Preserve is a very unique experience so bring some children. I know they will thank you. Also bring your fishing pole if you like to fish. “Big Oak” is a remodeled barn that sits on 60 acres surrounded by Jenny Jump State Park. Pure Country! This event is rain or shine. Be sure to wear comfortable walking shoes. Pictures ARE allowed!

Meet = Perkins Restaurant, Rts. 22/ 191, Bethlehem, PA by 8:30am.
Adult member = $7.00 per person
Adult NON-member guest = $16.00 per person Child(ren) of member (up to 11) = $3.00 per child
Child(ren) NON-member guest (up to 11) = $7.50 per child
Check = “Free Spirit” Chapter, mail to William Schaedel, PO Box 20, Hope, NJ 07844-0020 by June 1, 2015. 908-459-4669, bigoak@embarqmail.com

June 14, 2015, “Free Spirit” Chapter Annual Picnic

Where: Weeping Willow Pavilion, Macungie Park, Macungie, Pa
When: Sunday, June 14th, lunch 12:30pm
Who: Last names beginning w/ A-I=dessert
J-R=cold dish
S-Z=hot dish
The meats, plates, utensils, beverages, napkins, cups, and hot plates are supplied. A friend of David Brady will be providing us w/ HOMEMADE VANILLA & PEACH ICE CREAM, YUM, YUM!!! There will be a surprise guest speaker attending this year’s picnic! Come out & attend this event & to show support for fellow members and guest. Bring your lawn chairs and funny stories! Clarence Getz, 610-377-6130, csgetz@ptd.net

Crystal Cave – Saturday, July 11, 2015

The 55 minute tour includes a 13 minute movie in the Crystal Cave Theater presenting the history of Pennsylvania’s first show cave and the geology of caves. Trained and courteous guides will lead you through an array of spectacular milky white stalactites, stalagmites, and pillar & dropstone formation enhanced by indirect lighting. Marvels of stone sculptury include the Cathedral Chamber, The Prairie Dogs, The Giant’s Tooth, the Ear of Corn and Tobacco Leaves, the Natural Bridge, The Indian Head, The Totem Pole, and The crystal Ballroom. Concrete walks and steal railing ensure your safety through your decent 125 feet underground. The temperature is a constant and comfortable 54 degrees, however, a light sweater or jacket and comfortable walking shoes are recommended. Our tour will conclude with lunch at the Virginville Hotel. Meeting place: Starlite Diner & Lounge, Rts. 100/78.
Adult member = $4.50 per person
Adult NON-MEMBER/GUEST = $13.50 per person
Member Child(ren) (4-12) = $3.00 per child
NON-MEMBER Child(ren) (4-12) = $9.50 per child
Make check=“Free Spirit” Chapter, send to Stacy Sterner, 121 Pheasant Drive, Kutztown, PA 19530 by July 5, 2015. Questions: 610-285-2346, dwsterner724@aol.com, or staze1016@aol.com. Don/Stacy Sterner

BCA 50th Anniversary Celebration, July 27-30, 2016, Allentown, PA

National Buick Club of America will be celebrating its’ 50th Anniversary on July 27-30, 2016 on the grounds of Mr. Nikola Bulgari, Fenwick & Ellsworth Streets, Allentown, PA. Close to 1000 BUICKS are anticipated to be on display. See insert registration form. Although this is an “Anniversary Celebration” w/ NO judging, do not let that discourage you from participating. If you ARE NOT a National BCA member, please consider on joining ASAP so you can register & participate, otherwise you may only attend as a SPECTATOR. Questions, Sally Getz, csgetz@ptd.net, 610-377-6130

OLD GLORY: Celebrate the Stars & Stripes on Flag Day

There’s just something about the sight of the stars & stripes. Whether it’s being carried into battle, draped over the casket of a fallen soldier or waved w/ passion during a hometown parade, the American flag rarely fails to stir emotions & inspire national pride. Over the years, several illustrious US flags not only performed their duty but ultimately came to symbolize pivotal moments in American History. Before unfurling your own flag this Flag Day, June 14th, take a moment to remember some of our nation’s most celebrated emblems.
~ The Star-Spangled Banner, Washington, D.C. – The 200-year-old flag that inspired the song dates back to the War of 1812, when the massive flag flew triumphantly atop Baltimore’s Fort McHenry after US soldiers w/ stood a 25-hour bombardment by British warships. The sight inspired lawyer/author/poet Francis Scott Key to pen the poem that eventually became our national anthem. Today the weathered flag, larger than half a tennis court & viewed by millions each year, rests in climate-controlled chamber in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. “The flag is bigger than visitor’s expect,” says Jeff Brodie, 44, co-author of The Star Spangled Banner: The Making of an American Icon. “It’s very dramatic.”
~ Fort Sumter Flag, Charleston, S.C. – on April 12, 1861, a US flag w/ 33 stars arranged in a diamond shape flew above Charleston Harbor’s Fort Sumter while Confederate troops shelled the Union-held fort. The battle ignited the Civil War, & the surviving flag, now displayed @ Fort Sumter National Monument, remains a powerful relic of America’s bloodiest conflict.
~ The Lincoln Flag, Milford, Pa – This flag served a grisly, practical task on April 14, 1865, when President Abraham Lincoln lay dying in Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C., after being shot in the head by assassin John Wilkes Booth. “Someone decided it wasn’t appropriate for him to be lying on the bare floor so they crumpled up the large flag that had decorated the front of his box & stuck it under his head,” says Lori Strelecki, 49, the curator of the Columns Museum for the Pike County Historical Society. Each year, some 3,000 visitors view the flag, which was donated to the PCHS in 1954 by the grandson of Ford Theater’s stage manager.
~ Iwo Jima Flag, Triangle, Va. – Featured in the 1945 Pulitzer Prize-winning photo, the iconic US flag raised by American soldiers during the Battle of Iwo Jima in WW II, currently displayed @ the National Museum of the Marine Corps, inspired the nation in the midst of global conflict & endures as a symbol of national resolve. “That photograph took off like wildfire in the psyche of the American people,” says Jennifer Jones, head of armed forces division of the National Museum of American History. “They needed to see we were turning the ride in the Pacific.”
~ 9/11, Washington, D.C. – The US flag raised by 3 NYC firemen over ground Zero became a poignant symbol of America’s unwavering spirit after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001-& contributed to a season of flag-waving in communities & neighborhoods across the nation. While the whereabouts of the Ground zero flag now is unknown, numerous other 9/11-related flags remain, such as the 2X3 foot flag that workers found among the mountain of rubble from the collapsed World Trade Center. Torn & badly burned, that flag was obtained by the national Museum of American History for its collection on the 9/11 attacks & has been included in several exhibits, “We did not clean it,” Jones says. “We wanted the debris to be part of the story.”
Flag Lore
~ According to usflag.org, few historians really believe that Philadelphia seamstress Betsy Ross made the 1st US flag.
~ America’s current 50-star flag was designed in Lancaster, Ohio, in 1958 by 17-year-old Robert Heft for a high school class project.
~ Prior to a 1912 Executive Order, flag makers were free to shake up the arrangement of the stars & vary the proportions of the stripes.
Let It Fly
~ June 14th is Flag Day. No gifts are exchanged. The post office stays open. And few if any of us get the day off work. So what’s the big deal about this holiday w/ little or no hoopla?
~ Inspired by patriotic grassroots celebrations that had been going in for years, most organized by teachers & school children, Flag Day, the anniversary of the Flag Resolution of 1777 (when the Continental Congress sanctioned a flag for the brand-new US of America), was officially established by President Woodrow Wilson in 1916. The holiday was observed sporadically until 1949 when President Harry Truman signed an Act of Congress designation June 14 of each year as National Flag Day, when everyone is encouraged to proudly display our nation’s colors. Now you know!

Flag-Folding 101

~ Straighten out the flag to full length.
~ Fold the lower striped section of the flag over the blue field.
~ Folded edge is then folded over to meet the open edge.
~ A triangular fold is then started by bringing the striped corner of the folded edge to the open edge.
~ Outer point is then turned inward, parallel w/ the open edge to form a 2nd triangle.
~ Triangular folding is continued until the entire length of the flag is folded in the triangular shape w/ only the blue field visible.
~ Tuck the loose edge of the flag into the pocket formed by the folds so that only the blue field & white stars are visible.

Flag Dos & Don’ts

~ It is important to use an actual flag or flag design as jewelry or clothing. BUT flag patches or pins worn on the left side (near the heart) of a shirt or uniform are OK.
~ It is customary to display the flag only from sunrise to sunset, but flags may be displayed 24 hours a day if properly illuminated.
~ Although burning flags as a form of protest is hugely controversial, burning-in a “dignified manner”-is the recommended method of disposing of soiled or worn flags.

Grandfathers Are Fathers Who Are Grand

Grandfathers are fathers who are grand,
Restoring the sense that our most precious things
Are those that do not change much over time.
No love of childhood is more sublime,
Demanding little, giving on demand,
Far more inclined than most to grant the wings
Allowing us to reach enchanted lands.
Though grandfathers must serve as second fathers,
Helping out with young and restless hearts,
Each has all the patience wisdom brings,
Remembering our passions more than others,
Soothing us with old and well-honed arts.
Author Unknown

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

It was a very special evening for the “Free Spirit” Chapter of PA and for the Buick Club of America. With the approval of the Director, Don Sterner, the Secretary, Board of Directors and the remaining Founding members, two of our members were honored with Lifetime Achievement Awards. As with all members contributing in one way or another to the well-being of the Chapter, these two persons have gone above and beyond any expectations:
A Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Sally Getz in recognition to her exemplar leadership and selfless acts of time and dedication, her attention to detail and her outstanding enthusiasm that has taken the “Free Spirit” Chapter of PA, Buick Club of America to a level that has allowed it to prosper with new ideas and events, grasping the electronic media and putting the “Free Spirit” Chapter of PA on the worldwide internet and plans for the future.
A second Lifetime Achievement Award was also presented to Clarence Getz in recognition for his position he has held for years as treasurer, his willingness to do so much for the Chapter such as keeping the Chapter property, making sure all items are available when needed, transporting of all said items and willing to do whatever is asked of him. His enthusiasm is recognized by many in the Buick Club of America as a true representative of the “Free Spirit” Chapter of PA, Buick Club of America.
These two Lifetime Achievement Awards were presented to Sally/Clarence, on behalf of the “Free Spirit” Chapter of PA, Buick Club of America, by our clubs founding father, Dave Brady on May 5, 2015.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

JUNE 2015
6 – Lakota Wolf Preserve Tour, Columbia, NJ, tour master, the Schaedel’s
10-13 -National BCA Meet, Springfield, Missouri
12-14 – Elegance @ Hershey. 717-534-1910
14 – “Free Spirit” Picnic, Weeping Willow Pavilion, Macungie Park.
20 – Palmerton Car Show, Palmerton, PA. 610-826-3393
26-28 – GM Nationals, Carlisle, Pa

JULY 2015
5 – Anthracite Region AACA show, McAdoo, PA. 570-929-2017
11 – Crystal Cave Tour, Kutztown, PA, Stacy/Don Sterner , 610-285-2346
12 – Cystic Fibrosis Show, Doylestown, PA. altursi@gmail.com
18 – Classic Show, Nazareth, PA. 610-434-2777
25 – Indian Trail Park Show, Pennsville, PA. spohnster1@aol.com
31-August 2 – 52nd DAF, Macungie Memorial Park, Macungie, Pa

AUGUST 2015
7-9 – 45th Annual Swigart Museum Show, Huntingdon, Pa. 814-643-2024
8 – 22nd Annual Great Pottsville Show, Pottsville, Pa. 570-628-4561
16 – 16th Annual Sticks Reunion Show, Wind Gap, Pa. 610-588-0521
22 – 40th Annual Show, Souderton, Pa. 215-368-4438, ext. 44110
29 – Duryea Days, Boyertown, Pa. 610-367-2090

CARS/PARTS “FOR SALE”

1939 Buick Special (41) 4-DR Trunk back Sedan, unrestored original car, Straight 8, manual transmission. Runs Well! Rebuilt engine & components, brake system, drive train, transmission. Upgraded carb, electronic ignition, oil filter, NEW exhaust system. WW tires. Pics available. $16,500/negotiable. Ken Davis, 610-489-1649, kwmcdavis@verizon.net

1962 Buick Skylark Conv. – Overall Good condition. Various NOS chrome installed. Runs/drives nice! Transmission, rear; top, & rear window good. Dave’s Interior Restorations, 525 Chestnut St, Emmaus, Pa 18049

1969 Skylark Convertible – kimberly.pavlick@scranton.edu

1981 Buick Regal – 4 dr dark green. Garage kept. 75,000 mi. 717-576-7588

1937 MINT Buick Owner’s Manual, $35.00. kriebel12@verizon.net

1972-’87 pr. of NOS brake rotors for FS Buick, $45.00. 610-489-1253

1983-’86 Buick Regal NOS headlight frame LF in original GM box, $25.00. kriebel12@verizon.net, 610-489-1253

In Search Of

1951-52 Buick Roadmaster RH grille bar extension. C. Wenger @ 443-710-6624, crewzn@broadstripe.net

Late 1980’-early 1990’s Buick LeSabre/Electra – In good running condition for daily driver use in local town driving, reasonably priced. Does not have to be in perfect condition. Harold, 610-826-2639.

1967 Buick Electra Convertible, 610-730-4599, dwebster80@gmail.com