Director’s Thoughts, November 2015

Here it is, November already! Halloween is over! As I reflect on my childhood Halloweens, I do it w/ great pleasure. I can remember, when I was a kid, how my brother & I used to start in September, trying to decide what it was we wanted to dress up like for Halloween. My mom used to make our costumes. Back then, you couldn’t just go to a nearby store & buy one. The costumes were all hand made. (Boy does that make me feel old!) I remember over the years, being a cowboy, an Indian, a ghost, a vampire & a clown. I bet you all can remember those days, too. Then there was the ritual of Trick-or-Treat. Again, way back then, we used to go all over the neighborhood collecting our goodies. You never had to worry about safety. Everyone was out, just to have a good time. When we got home, my brother & I would sit @ the kitchen table & dump out our collection of goodies. That is when we would trade a Snickers (full-size, not mini size like today), for a Hershey bar! Don’t laugh, I bet you all remember doing the same thing. It was so hard not to eat it all, right there & then! Now it’s’ November, already. This is my favorite season of the year. I just love the colors, along w/ the briskness in the sir. It makes me really want to get out there & take my Buick for a spin before the weather turns & I find it is time to store her away for the winter. A leisurely ride through the countryside, what could be more beautiful! We end this month w/ Thanksgiving. There is so much to be thankful for! Everyone, take a minute out of your day, & think about all the things you have to be thankful for.
Your Director, Don Sterner

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

Director Don Sterner called the meeting to order @ 7:12pm. There were 19 members present. The evening’s guest speaker was unable to attend. Treasurer’s report was given by Clarence Getz. Motion to accept treasurer’s report for September, Thomas Sylvester, seconded by Isabel Lenny, so carried.

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

A. Historian – pictures from Star BOP show are on the web site

B. Kempton –The deadline to register is October 16th! Clarence Getz reported that if a back-up develops @ the day of show registration area, the process will be simplified by just collecting the registration fee, & asking the car owner participant to come back to get their windshield cards filled out. Isabel Lenny suggested that registration forms should be available at the base of the hill where the line builds up so they could be distributed to the car owners to also speed up the registration process. The kitchen staff in the Center will be ready with their food selections.

C. Membership – no report

D. Newsletter – Sally Getz, newsletter editor, welcomes articles: i.e. on a restoration, a trip made, or a tour you participated in, or anything you feel could interest your fellow members.

E. Programs –the 2016 schedule for guest speakers is in progress.

F. Publicity – no report

G. Ways and Means – Clarence/Sally Getz, John Moore, & David Brady will offer the chapters’ merchandise @ their flea market spaces during the AACA Eastern Fall Meet @ Hershey, Pa.

I. OLD BUSINESS
Holiday Gathering – Don Sterner reported that the date listed in the last newsletter “Calendar of Events” was incorrect. The event will be held on Tuesday, December 8th @ the Starlite Diner & Lounge, our regular meeting location.
2016 BCA 50th Anniversary Celebration, July 27-30, 2016 – Nothing new to report. Our chapter has not been contacted for any direct involvement.
Northeast Regional Meet – Sally Getz brought the membership up-to-date on such a possible event. Our NE Regional Coordinator, Mr. John Scheib, has been encouraging the NE chapters to conduct a regional meet in 2018. Sally has been investigating the idea for the “Free Spirit” Chapter. Sally said such a meet, if held, would probably be in spring or summer of 2018. This would avoid any conflict w/ the BCA’s National Meet of 2018. As a location, Sally suggested Phifer’s Ice Dams Park in Franklin Township, Lehighton, Pa. It could be on a Friday & Saturday, or a Thursday, Friday, & Saturday. A banquet would be possible @ 1 or 2 nearby hotels which would also serve as places to stay for out-of-town participants. There is a daily park fee for use of the property, & a refundable clean-up fee.
Star BOP Show – Dennis Snell, David Brady & Brent Getz were award recipients during this show.

II. NEW BUSINESS
DAF – Shirley Schaffer reported that the Ontelaunee Region AACA, the group that conducts the car & flea market portions of DAF, will do more promoting of the flea market directly to flea market vendors. She also reported that Ontelaunee isn’t doing the BBQ cook-off that will be a part of the 2016 DAF. This is the idea of the park committee. The cook-off will occupy 74 former flea market spaces near the park band shell. It is also the park committee that sets the space fees for the flea market, not Ontelaunee.
“Thank You” – As reported in last month’s newsletter, Carolyn R. Pope passed away August 30th. Our chapter made a donation, in Carolyn’s memory, to her church, United Presbyterian Church, Pottsville, Pa. We have received thank you notes from both the church & Pete Pope.
BCA Bugle – Director Don Sterner mentioned the article that appeared in the October Bugle that reported on our chapters’ presentation of Lifetime Achievement Awards to Sally/Clarence Getz this past May. The Bugle editor was @ 1st reluctant to publish this article because of space constraints. An appeal by David Brady to the BCA President made the printing of this article possible, & we are told that chapter events like this will be published in the future in the Bugle in a section called, “Chapter Happenings”.

Nomination of Officers & BOD

For Director (2 year term) = Sally Getz
For Assistant Director (2 year term) = Kathleen Duckett
For Treasurer (1 year term) = Clarence Getz
For Secretary (1 year term) = Thomas Duckett
For BOD positions (2 year term) = Shirley Schaffer, Don Atwood
John Moore & Thomas Sylvester are still serving their 2 year term on the BOD.
Nominations were closed on a motion made by Isabel Lenny, seconded by Don Atwood.

A motion made to adjourn the meeting by Shirley Schaffer, seconded by Kathleen Duckett, so carried, 8:14 pm.

Respectfully submitted: Ed Lenny –Fill-in Secretary

2015 Star BOP Show, Sunday, September 20, 2015

T’was a BEAUTIFUL day for attending the 2015 Star BOP show held @ the Star Buick/GMC dealership, Easton, Pa. 10 of our “Free Spirit” members attended this show. Despite this show being hosted by the “GTO” club, there were at least 17 Buicks in attendance. During the awards program, much to the members’ surprise, some members took home an award!

Dennis Snell = 3rd place w/ his 1929 Buick Series 121 5p 4-door Sedan.
David Brady = 1st place, & BEST OF SHOW w/ his 1932 Buick Series 60 5p Convertible Phaeton.
Brent Getz = 1st place w/ his 2006 Pontiac GTO.
Don/Rita Atwood = a very nice door prize: a scrub pale w/ many goodies inside.
Congratulations to these members! Nice job! Way to go! PRICELESS!

Hershey Region AACA, Eastern Fall Meet, Hershey, PA

Well another Fall Hershey Meet is under the belts of many! The weather was absolutely gorgeous!! Actually, not your ordinary Hershey weather, I’d say!! As many started their flea market trek to the Hershey fields on Tuesday, they got to greet-n-meet many many other car enthusiasts!! Many persons come to Hershey from around the US & the world. I met persons from Oregon, Wisconsin, Arizona, Texas, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, Mass., NY, NJ, MD, Delaware, SC, & FL. Also, Canada, Nova Scotia, Sweden, Germany, & Netherlands. Some “Free Spirit” members were seen walking in the Green field, Gary Hiller & Ed Lenny.

For Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, & part of Friday, the weather, again, was SUPER! However, come Friday afternoon around 3:15pm, a very short-lived, yet dangerously high wind/hard rain storm happened upon the Hershey fields. It was whispered down the lane that a camper, who thought they had gotten out in time before the storm, in fact, did not. It got caught up in the high gusty winds & was overturned on Interstate 81. No one was seriously injured.
Later that evening, as you drove through the fields, mounds of broken-up/mangled small canopies were observed leaning up against the garbage barrels in the isles.

Saturday weather turned out wonderful for the participants to drive their cars onto the nearly dry show field! What a parade it was seeing many many beautiful cars come driving into the show.
Besides the many flea market fields & the show car field, another, whisper down the lane, is that Robert Miles sold a Rambler in the car corral! Hats off to you Robert!!

Chapter items sold during this event: 1 yardstick, 8 rulers, 2 necklaces, 4 fans, & the kicker of them all, 5 Buick Coverlets! While 2 of them were bought by a woman from S.C. for 2 of her woman friends who own Buicks, 1 was bought by a gentleman who just plain liked it! He used to own a Buick @ one time.

Till Hershey of 2016……………
Sally Getz

“Holiday Gathering” December 8, 2015
What = 2015 “Free Spirit Holiday Gathering”
When = Tuesday, December 8th
Where = Starlite Diner & Lounge, Allentown, Pa
Time = Cash Bar/Happy Hour = 5:00pm
Dinner @ 6:00pm
Menu =Entrees = (Choose One) Black Diamond Steak
Broiled Salmon
Roasted Young Turkey
Dinner includes: Soup/Salad/Bread Bar, Entrée, Baked Potato, Soda, Coffee/Tea,
Iced Tea, 3 types upgraded Dessert.
MEMBER: ___________________________________________(FREE)
MEMBER SPOUSE:__________________________________ _(FREE)
NON-MEMBER GUEST: ______________________________ ($25.00)
MEMBER CHILD(REN) 12 & under: ____________________ _(FREE)
CHILD(REN) 12 & under ; _____________________(Child Menu Price)
Reservations: Stacy Sterner by Sunday, November 29th.
**Remember, EACH PERSON to bring a $10.00 wrapped gift for Crazy Bingo!**

LUCY: Oldest Female Veteran Did Her Part In The War!

Although Norman Rockwell’s classic painting of Rosie the Riveter fetched $4.9 million at auction in 2002, it’s hard to place a monetary value on something so iconic in American history. After the image appeared on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post in 1943, the government used it to encourage women to volunteer for wartime service in factories – working jobs previously done by men – & to raise money for the war bond drives. It was later used as a symbol of feminism & women’s economic power.

Rockwell’s Rosie was modeled by a real person, 19-year-old Mary Doyle Keefe from Arlington, Vermont. The painting shows a brawny, muscular woman in blue coveralls w/ a rivet gun across her lap & her feet resting on a copy of Adolf Hitler’s “Mein Kampf”. Mary was in fact a petite, 110- pound phone operator.
While being interviewed on the “The Tonight Show” in 2004, she told Jay Leno that Rockwell had called her & apologized for making her so large. She added that she was proud of the painting since it became a symbol of how women gave “up their nail polish” & did their part.

Many other women like Mary worked on the homefront, doing nearly every type of job that the men had been doing before they went off to war.

Another Rosie the Riveter named Muriel worked on the P-47 Thunderbolt for Republic Aviation in Kentucky during the war. She shared a number of her personal experiences/stories, including how another male riveter on her assembly line eventually became her husband. Now 92, she’s still s 90-pound bundle of energy who can light up a room.

We also can’t forget the 400,000 American women who served in WW II, working as nurses, the Army’s Women Air Corps, Navy Waves & other auxiliary service branches. There are > 26,000 female veterans age 85 & older in the US today. Lucy Coffey, the nation’s oldest female veteran, died March 21, 2015, in San Antonio @ the age of 108. The small-town Indiana girl as working @ an A&P supermarket in Dallas when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Originally rejected for being too short or too slim, she finally enlisted in the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps in 1943, becoming 1 of 150,000 women who served as WAC’s during the war.
A highlight of her long life came last summer when she was given an Honor Flight to Washington & visited the National WW II Memorial & Women’s Memorial @ Arlington National Cemetery. Lucy Coffey was very shy about her time in the service & didn’t talk about it much to anyone. Like all of the people of her remarkable generation, Lucy “just did what she had to do.”

History of Veterans Day, November 11th

World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” – officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”

Soldiers of the 353rd Infantry near a church at Stenay, Meuse in France wait for the end of hostilities. Armistice ending World War I went into effect in November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words:

“To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…”

The original concept for the celebration was for a day observed with parades and public meetings and a brief suspension of business beginning at 11:00 a.m. The United States Congress officially recognized the end of World War I when it passed a concurrent resolution on June 4, 1926, with these words:

• Whereas the 11th of November 1918, marked the cessation of the most destructive, sanguinary, and far reaching war in human annals and the resumption by the people of the United States of peaceful relations with other nations, which we hope may never again be severed, and Whereas it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations; and Whereas the legislatures of twenty-seven of our States have already declared November 11 to be a legal holiday: Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), that the President of the United States is requested to issue a proclamation calling upon the officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on November 11 and inviting the people of the United States to observe the day in schools and churches, or other suitable places, with appropriate ceremonies of friendly relations with all other peoples.

Go For a Ride Day

November 22nd is classified as “Go for a ride Day! And, what a splendid time you will have!” As the holidays approach, life becomes chaotic, and perhaps a bit stressful. Take a breather, and go for a relaxing ride in your BUICK!. You don’t need a destination to enjoy this day. But, you certainly can bring family or friends along for company.

The means of transportation can be anything. Sure, a car, bus, or motorcycle ride may immediately come to mind. Here are some other ways of riding that may prove more fun than the family vehicle:
• Take a sleigh ride.
• Ride a horse.
• Ride a horse-drawn carriage.
• Snowmobile rides are always “cool”.
• A bicycle is a great, way to ride and exercise.
• A boat ride.
• Doesn’t a plane ride to a sunny vacation spot sound like fun!?
• You can’t ride in my little red wagon. Okay, you can ride in it.

Whatever your means of transportation, have a happy “Go For a Ride Day”.

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. Although this is an “Anniversary Celebration” w/ NO judging, do not let that discourage you from participating. To register, please go to www.buickclub.org. Here you can navigate & get to where you need to be. 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

Waxing 101: What To Know Before Waxing Your Car

Waxing a car is a great way to maintain its exterior. Including waxing as part of your routine vehicle maintenance can protect the car or truck from some natural hazards, including sun damage, pollen & the dirt & grime that can accumulate on a car over time. Motorists unfamiliar w/ waxing may be intimidated by the sheer volume of waxes on the shelves @ their local automotive supply stores, which will no doubt offer an array of both liquid & paste waxes as well as many spray waxes. When testing waxes in 2913, Consumer Reports found that liquid & paste waxes were relatively equal w/ regard to their effectiveness, while spray waxes were very convenient though not very durable. Waxing a vehicle is no small task, & drivers should learn as much as they can about car wax & the different types of waxes, before attempting the job themselves.

The Differences Between Waxes: In a study of liquid & spray waxes, Consumer Reports found that paste waxes were easier to apply than liquid waxes, but that the overall performance of paste waxes fell short of liquid waxes. Liquid waxes were very durable & provided the gloss many motorists look for when waxing their vehicles. But liquid waxes were difficult to apply evenly, something first timers should consider when choosing a wax. Spray waxes were convenient & easy to use, & many can be wiped off without drying. But Consumer Reports found spray waxes were not as durable as liquid or paste waxes, so they may need to be applied more frequently.

Because waxing is done to protect a car & improve its appearance, it’s important that drivers waxing their vehicles for the first time test the wax on an area of their vehicles that is not easily seen to the naked eye. This affords some room for error as you learn the waxing ropes while also allowing you I test out different waxes until you find the right fit. There are some additional tricks drivers can employ when waxing their vehicles that can make the job easier & the wax much more effective.

+ Wash 1st, then wax. Make sure you give your car or truck a good wash before you apply any wax. Allow the car to dry completely before applying any wax.
+ Avoid sunlight. Consumer Reports notes that sunlight can soften paint & make it susceptible to scratching, so avoid washing & waxing your car in direct sunlight.
+ Use microfiber towels. Microfiber towels were found to be more effective than cloth rags @ removing residue. In addition, cloth rags can trap dirt & scratch finishes, so opt for lamb’s wool mitts instead.
+ Go from top to bottom. The bottom of a vehicle is more susceptible to grime, so work your way down when waxing so you are not contaminating your towels. A contaminated towel increases the risk of scratching your vehicle’s exterior.

When waxing your vehicle, the right wax & technique can make all the difference.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

NOVEMBER 2015 (HAPPY THANKSGIVING!)
1 – Riegelsville Fall Roll-Out Car Show
3 – Monthly chapter meeting, Starlite Diner & Lounge, Rts. 100 & 78. Dinner @ 6:00 pm, business meeting @ 7:30 pm. ELECTION DAY, vote before you attend the meeting! Nominations for elections will go to vote.

DECEMBER 2015 (HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO EVERYONE!)
8 – “Free Spirit” Annual Holiday Gathering, Starlite Diner & Lounge, Rts. 100/78.

JANUARY 2016 (HAPPY NEW YEAR!!)
3 – Monthly chapter meeting, Starlite Diner & Lounge, Rts. 100/78, Allentown, Pa. Supper @ 6 pm, business meeting @ 7:30 pm.
28-31 – PA Auto Show, PA Farm Show Complex & Expo Center, Harrisburg, Pa
31- February 7 – Auto Show, Philadelphia, Pa

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
1981 Buick Regal – 4 door dark green. Garage kept. 75,000 mi. 717-576-7588
1987 Buick Grand National, T-Top – black w/ grey/black int., orig parts, EXCELLENT condition, 3254 ORIGINAL miles, stored in heat controlled garage, $28,500 (or reasonable offer). gbrentano@verizon.net
1989 Buick Riviera 122,000 miles. Good condition, Garage kept. $3,500 OBO. 2000 miles on tires. New battery. Tom Kenn at 610-633-5285

In Search Of

1951-52 Buick Road master RH grille bar extension. C. Wenger @ 443-710-6624, crewzn@broadstripe.net
1967 Buick Electra Convertible, 610-730-4599, dwebster80@gmail.com