PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
FIRST QUARTER 2020
Greetings fellow Finger Lakes Section members,
Thanks to all who attended the November Annual Meeting in at Belhurst Castle in Geneva and for having the confidence once again in me to serve another year as your Section President. The 2020 Board will retain Judith Handzo as our Secretary/ Treasurer and Peggy and Oscar Raffo as webmasters. The Handzo’s are planning to sell their home and move somewhere warm. Bob Harradine has been a wonderful resource as our Vice President in 2019, however the working world missed him and he was asked to take full time employment again, thus preventing him time to continue as VP. So, we have openings at our executive level. VP duties include occasionally visiting the Rochester Mercedes Benz Dealer to display our Star Magazine and dispense club membership applications on site. The other part of the job is to be available to members in attendance at our several gatherings throughout the year to insure they are enjoying themselves. Our Secretary/Treasurer position, I am told by Judith, requires little time. Rather than burden with regular executive meetings we communicate as needed via e-mail and phone. Volunteering at the executive level is its’ own reward and a wonderful way to meet so many people enjoying the marque automobile we all love to drive.
2019 saw members share stories in our newsletters about how they came to obtain their much-loved Mercedes Benz driving machines. These stories often have an interesting fact or event tied to the ownership. Bob Harradine, Ethan Fogg and Ken Rucki all had fun stories to share in 2019. We seek to continue this new editorial opportunity. If compelled to do so, we want to include your story in a future Tri-Star. Pass those brief stories on to our webmasters Peggy and Oscar Lopez Raffo.
Some 2020 events were set at the annual meeting and they are listed elsewhere in this Tri-Star issue. I am already excited for 2020!! Doug Archer has offered to plan another road rally in early October, possibly starting in Cortland and ending in Skaneateles. Dave Tobin’s road rally in late September was an instant hit! Please remember the local auto shows in February (Syracuse), and March (Rochester). Stop by the local Mercedes Benz display and chat up the sales person. Share with them that you are a club member and how much you enjoy the brand. My guess is he or she will spend time showing you around the new cars and sharing whatever is new about them.
by Ethan Fogg is a ‘Pop-Up’ event. A ‘pop-up’ event is a get-together with minimum advance notice at some local event or establishment with brief advertising in a special edition of Tri-Star or a club membership e-mail. It most likely will be a very localized event that may be enhanced by a group of Club Mercedes Benz cars on display. It could be just a request to gather at the local summer ice cream shop on a steamy Thursday evening. Maybe, during a winter lull, a localized group may meet for a Sunday lunch in an effort to ease away winter doldrums. Do you have an idea for a pop-up event? If so, please share it.
Now, in the famous words of our past president Bob Handzo, “Enjoy the rest of winter, in the sunny south (Mercedes weather) or the blustery north (possible Mercedes Benz weather with the right vehicle and Blizzak snow tires). Remember the good times had by all when the FLMBCA will gather sooner than we all think”.
All the Best, Section President Don Klug
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