January, 2013

Hello Everyone and Happy New Year,

    It is wonderful to have a week to catch up with MCREA news and events.  My daughter, Louise, is half way through her chemotherapy treatments, and her oncologist has given her  until Monday, Jan. 14 to recuperate and have a breather.  Then it begins again, Monday through Thursday, with two weeks off before the next Monday through Thursday, etc.  Altogether, it will be three weeks of chemo and six of recovery from it.  Last time she had to be hospitalized for a week after the second session.  We hope that does not recur.  Her courage is great and her mood is upbeat in spite of the setbacks.  Her recent MRI showed that the tumors had shrunk a lot.  I've been able to keep up by telling myself that I drove up to the campus where Moffitt Cancer Center is located once or twice each week when I was in graduate school at USF.  Of course, I was much younger then, but I think, no tougher nor as motivated.

    Members have been having a great time according to Deborah Thomas's pictures and her descriptions of the events.  November's meeting celebrating MCREA's 50th, mostly put together by Carolyn and David Brown, was instructive and entertaining.  The pictures show Ed Ethridge and Deborah cutting the anniversary cake and some of the exhibits of the "good old days" in the schools of Manatee. 

    The Christmas meeting was also very festive featuring the Manatee County Chorus under the direction of  Tommy Jomesco and accompanied by our own Carolyn Reynolds. Sandy Stevenson got everyone in a competitive mood with games and prizes.  Carolyn Brown reported that the Volunteer Services Committee put together about 50 goodie bags to distribute to the nursing home, and youth volunteers from Florida Hometown USA accompanied the committee in delivering the bags and visiting the residents.
    The FREF Fundraiser for Scholarships is in full swing.  Ticket/donations are $10 each and may be purchased from Julia Forkgen at meetings.  Door prizes include:
Grand Prize - IPad III
First Prize - Kindle Fire
Second Prize - Kindle Fire
Third Prize - $200
Fourth Prize - $100
You do not have to be present at the conference to win, nor do you have to be a member of FREA, so sell some to your friends and relatives.  You can win.  We all remember that member Trish Bissell won an HDTV in 2011.
    Of course, we are still hoping that you will donate to our own MCREA Scholarship.  I will ask Deborah and Ron Schneider to report the amount of money we have accumulated to award this spring -- so far.  College is so expensive now that our Manatee County students who plan to be educators need our help.
    The new MCREA Directories were handed out at the December meeting.  Please check yours for any changes in email, phone, or street addresses that did not get included.  If there are changes, call or see David Brown for corrections.
    At last, County Historian Kathy Slusser will speak at our meeting on Jan. 17.  In error, I announced that she would appear in November.  I guess I was as anxious as I should have been.  Kathy is a fountain of interesting information about Manatee's early days.  The meeting will be held at Reniassance on 9th at 11:30.  Try to be there by 11:15 to facilitate getting everyone seated on time.  If your caller has not gotten in touch by the Sunday preceding that date, call Mary Ann Jensen to make your reservation.  We are still hoping you will invite some of your former colleagues who have not yet joined us. 
    Don't forget to throw a donation of food for the Manatee Food Bank or for FELT into your car for that day.  Books for FELT are also appreciated as are checks made out the Food Bank and designated for FELT.  They get much more bang for their bucks when they purchase food from the Food Bank's sponsors.

I hope to see you at least by the March meeting.  In the meantime, keep on supporting MCREA and its work.  I miss you all.

Ellen