October 2011 Commandant Message

Well, it’s October and all the snow birds should be home. At our last two General meetings the attendance was nothing but very poor. We had 19 in August and 14 in September. Steve Ikuta and Colin Harrison worked hard in having very outstanding speakers at those two meetings. We had Washington County Search and Rescue in August and two police officers who spoke on gangs and drugs in September. For those who did not attend, you missed two very informative programs. Steve Ikuta has an outstanding program ready for our October meeting. We have more than 65 members so we can have a better showing of respect for the speakers who give up their time to provide us with great presentations.

We have ordered ten M-1 rifles from the Army at no cost to the detachment. If everything goes through the first time, we should have them in about two months. We will order the ammo and slings once we know the rifles are on the way.

We need more members to stand up to serve on the Color Guard. Some of us are a little older and we cannot march a long distance but we can march fifteen to twenty steps and be part of the Color Guard at funerals. The families appreciate it when we attend the service for a fallen Marine. We are it unless active marines have time to come from Las Vegas.

We have a number of things happening on November 11 for Veterans Day which we need to discuss at the general meeting. The Toys For Tots program will be starting some and I have requested Rick Massey advise us at the meeting as to what assistance he would like us to provide. If we have time to prepare, things work much better.

The Marine Corps Ball will be held before our next general meeting on November 19. The committee continues to work hard so the ball on November 10 will be a great success. It is sad that they have to take time to make calls to a number of members to determine if they plan to attend the ball. At this time less than 30% have purchased tickets even when the committee lower the tickets by $10.00 each. If you miss their call, please return their call so they can determine a count.

At present time there is a small group of members who work very hard to make our detachment a success. Without them, I could get nothing done. And then there is a group that likes to snivel about everything. I remember when it was always posted “no sniveling” but I guess Marines now feel it is proper. If you see things that needs to be changed step up and help make it right. It is sad when people stay away because there is something they don’t like but they won’t step up to make things better.

Hope to see everyone at next meeting and the ball.

Carl Kulyk, Commandant

September Commandant's Message

Well, it is now September. It is time for some cooler weather and the near return of our snow birds. The turnout at last general meeting was a little low but it was also vacation time. We hope to see the regular turnout at the general meeting on September 10. We plan to have a speaker from the Saint George Police Department.

The purchase of six M-1's was approved and we are in final stage of sending in the order. We still need a few members to step up to join the color guard. We attend a couple funerals this month and our attendance is appreciated by the families. We hope to be able to provide a full funeral service in next few months. It all depends on each member doing his or her part.

The Marine Ball committee is working hard to finalize the event. The tickets will be available at the meeting for $25.00 each. It would make it much easier on the committee if you would purchase your tickets at this time so they can plan on a member certain. There will be no tickets sold at the door. If you don’t plan to attend they also would like to know. You should be getting call from a committee member soon about tickets, please be sure to return their call if they miss you.

I have been advised that our ad sales are slow at this time. The cut off date in mid October so it is now time to get out and get ads. You should report any ad sales to Tom Cover. We will have the ad sale forms at the general meeting. We all have our own doctor, dentist, barber and car repair person, and you don’t know if they will support our program unless you ask. Only a few members worked on selling ads last year and we cleared more than $1,600.

I have been advised that the Dixie Direct Books may be available the first part of October so it is time to advise your friends that we will be selling them again this year. Everyone should be able to sell a few if you just try. We are hoping to have a schedule for work this year soon for Toys for Tots so we can start getting prepared. You can see there is a lot happening at this time and that we need your help to be successful.

See you all on September 10 at the Abbey Inn.

Commandant Carl Kulyk

UPCOMING EVENTS:

9/10    8:30 Monthly Detachment Meeting; Abbey Inn
9/09    MCL Departmental meeting in Richfield Utah.

11/10  Marine Corps Birthday Ball @ Sun River

Commandant's Message - August

We had our first summer meeting and the turn out was a little light. The meal count was twenty-two and we need twenty-five to break even. The current officers were installed and one new member was sworn in. We had two new guests. One was a Marine who was not able to stay for the meeting but took an application to join. The other was a corpsman who I invited. He seemed very interested in joining. He was actually the one who sent the first mentioned guest who was not able to stay. The Detachment continues to grow in size but we are always looking for at least a few more.

Tickets for the Marine Ball are available from Ken Olsen and will be available at our next meeting. The cost is twenty-five dollars per ticket. We need everyone to attend and to bring a guest. Tom Cover is moving forward with the sale of the ads for the printed ball program. Each one of us should be able to sell a couple ads. We all have a doctor, dentist, barber or other business person to ask. There will be more information at August meeting or contact Tom Cover.

I think we have located a reasonable source to obtain M-1's for our color guard. I hope that all the information on obtaining them will be available next meeting.

As you should know from the e-mail sent out by Clyde Johnston, we were able to raise the $4.000.00 to upgrade a room at the new VA retirement home. Larry Mineer stood up to make the difference.

I have requested now twice from the membership any suggestions any member may have for a new project for the detachment this year. As of this date, I have heard from no one. It is hard for me to believe with the vast military experience of our members that there are no ideas.

I do hope you all are enjoying this summer and look forward to seeing you all at the August meeting on August 13 at the Abbey Inn.

Pioneer Days Parade

Marines!  Let's have a great showing of the Utah Dixie Detachment Marine Corps League - marching and leading the Pioneer Days Parade in Ivins Saturday 23 July.

All hands in your bvest uniform fall out in front of the fire station at 0830 to plan our march.  The fire station is about 100 or 200 West on the Snow Canyon Parkway.  We have a new Marine Corps League banner ready to display.  Terry Hansen will be there with his Civil War replica drums to give us a good cadence for marching.

Larry Mineer, Color Sergeant

2011 Birthday Ball

The Detachment's Marine Corps Birthday Ball Committee is work-ing tirelessly and relentlessly to put together the most memorable Birthday Celebration our Detachment has ever seen. We have things planned for this evening that you have not seen in the past. Some of these are surprises that I cannot divulge without ruining it for you. For example, we do not have a guest or keynote speaker for the party, but we definitely will have a surprise visitor! You won't want to miss him (or her?).

This does not mean that we don't have honored guests coming to the Ball, because we most certainly do. You and your guests will learn about the Marine Corps Hymn at the Birthday Ball. No, not like you learned in Boot Camp – this is a completely different approach to what you have heard in the past. Oh, the words haven't changed, not by any stretch of the imagination. What will change is how you all think about the Hymn; from that night on you will sing the words with improved vigor and enthusiasm, because we are going to give you a gift that will let you see the Hymn in a whole new light.

Along with the fun ideas and things that we have planned for you, the Ball will of course include all the usual and prescribed pomp and circumstance that you would get no matter which Marine Corps Birthday Ball you were to attend anywhere in the world - like the cutting and serving of the official cake ceremony, presided over and conducted by our Detachment's own Dave Houston and his select team of Marines - posting of the colors by our Detachment's Color Guard - and reading of the Commandant's Birthday Message.

There is a fantastic dinner planned just for you that you won't want to miss. There will be an interesting and informational way by which we determine the order the tables are excused to the buffet line, so be prepared like a good Marine should always be. Hint: It has to do with Marine Corps History.

The evening will culminate with a wonderful dance, so wear comfortable shoes and help us wear out the dance floor before departing at the end of the evening.

And, all this for just $25.00 per person! Why, that's so inexpensive it's almost a crime!

Here is what you need to do right now while you're thinking about this. Get away from your computer and find your calendar. Okay, got it? Now, go to November 10 and make a note on that square: "Marine Corps Birthday Ball, 1800 hrs." Next, sit back down in front of your computer and send an e-mail to: patlisigmac@gmail.com.

In your e-mail let me know that you have committed to coming to the Birthday Ball in November and state how many people you are bringing. Don't be shy; we have room for lots of folks! Don't send me any money, yet, we'll get to that later. For now we just want to start getting a head count which will make negotiating what we pay for your dinners easier and quicker. Yes, November is a ways off, but good Marines don't go into a mission without the full advantage of advanced training/planning. Did you sign up in the Corps and skip Boot Camp? No! That's why your Ball Committee is working hard right now, and we will be working right up through the Ball itself.

Thank You - Funeral Detail

Thank You for your expression of sympathy:

Bill and members of the Marines, thank you for honoring my beloved husband's passing.

Myrna Beardshear and Family

2011 July Message from the Commandant

Well, summer is here in St. George and the snow birds are gone for a few months. As noted at the June meeting, we will have staff and general meetings in July and August. Things come up on us too fast if we miss those months.

The color guard posted colors at the June chamber meeting. The governor was present at the meeting and he expressed his respect for the Marine Corps and your service. The Color Guard was well received. The Color Guard will post colors again this year at the Bloomington Stake House on July 3. We have not received any requests for the 4th of July at time of this writing.

This is my second month and I appreciate D‟Arcy Grisier and James Haney for stepping up and filling the two vacant positions. The minutes prepared by Jim Haney were in a great format and complete. D‟Arcy Grisier is working hard to learn his duties and he will make an outstanding Chaplin.

My focus this year will be to determine our objectives for the year and find the right people to chair the necessary committees to accomplish the objectives. If anyone has a project that fits into our detachment general goals, you should put it in writing and submit it as soon as possible. I feel there are many things out there that we can do for veterans and the community.

Larry Mineer, our Color Guard leader, would like to have seven or eight more members with uniforms to help with events. He would also like the detachment to obtain at least two M-1s so we don’t have to borrow them each event. I looked on the internet and they cost between $750.00 and $1,700.00. If you know where we may be able to obtain them at a better price, please contact Larry Mineer. We hope in time to have seven M-1s so we can provide a full formal funeral when request by a family of a fallen Marine. I feel each Marine family deserves it and active personal are not always available.

I am looking forward to the highway clean-up on June 25 and hope we have a good showing. Do your best to bring a guest to our next meeting. We still need a few good men and women.

Carl Kulyk, Commandant