July 2012 Commandant's Message

Well, summer is here in St. George, and we are already into July.  Please remember “no general meeting in July.”  If you come by mistake, look to see if you see D’Arcy and, if so, take him to breakfast.  We are back to regular general meetings in August.  We have a speaker who will speak on sleeping - to help you sleep through the meeting.  He has been advised a few members don’t need much help.

We had a very busy June as we did our first grave-side funeral.  We had eleven members do the service.  Les Covey brought out the rifles and volunteered to clean them after the funeral.  One rifle did not fire properly so Les will have it repaired.  Larry Mineer had the color guard out twice on June 22.  Gary Boothroyd was able to make it which was the first time the event did not conflict with his work.

The Detachment will be involved in St. George, Hurricane and SunRiver on July 4th and at Tuacahn on July 7th.  In order to keep up with this demand, we need a few more members to be part of the Color Guard.  Please contact Larry Mineer to order the uniform for the Color Guard.

Dennis Cory had surgery and it went well.  He should be home very soon.

We had our Detachment golf tournament on June 23 at SunRiver.  Gene Gregory, Jim Haney, Tom Cover, Mike Ernsten, Clyde Johnston, Ric Backman and I played.  Clyde Johnston spent many hours getting sponsors and doing art work to make our sale of tee signs very successful.  He even came out early and put out all the signs before the tournament and than picked them all up.  We were able to sell more than twenty signs.  We had the cost of buying the signs this year but they can be used for many more years.

I would list all members like Clyde, Larry and Jim who went out and signed up golfers and members like Steve I., Steve H., Jim and Ken who sold tee signs and got gifts for the raffle and auction, but we all know who they are.  They continue to step up and get the jobs done.  A few members came out and worked on making the tournament a success.  Steve Handy, Ken Olsen and D’Arcy worked most of the day.  Roger Clawson, Les Covey, Steve Ikuta, Pat Lisi and Bill Toole helped in the morning.  I have seen the raw figures on how the tournament went and it was very successful.  A report will be made by our paymaster.

I do also want to thank again Bill Henessey, a retired Navy chief who supports our detachment when ever he is asked.  He and his wife played golf and spent more than $600.00 to make our auction a success.

So enjoy the summer, and I hope to see all of you at the August Detachment meeting on August 11.

Commandant Kulyk

Commandant's June Message

Well we have completed the 2011 year.  Our new officers have been installed at the June meeting.  We have a few old officers and a few new ones taking new jobs. I do appreciate everyone who served this year. I feel that we will continue to grow.

A number of members marched in the Washington City Cotton Parade in May. At least ten members participated with the American Legion Post at SunRiver in honoring all veterans at the Veterans Park at Sunriver at 0900 hrs on May 28.  We provided six riflemen, a bugler, a drummer and other members who assisted in lowering the flags to half-mast.  Our member Tom Cover was the M.C.

Larry Mineer is working to get a detail together to march in the July 4th Day parade in St. George.  We have ten M-1's so we need ten riflemen and two more to carry the colors.  To complete the detail we need two members to carry our banner and our great drummer, Doc Terry Hansen.

But with all the above, we are in the middle of our major fund raiser, the golf tournament.  This year we are attempting to sell Tee signs to make more income.  There was an expense this year in buying the signs which we will be able to reuse for a few more years.  At this time, we have more than ten sold, but we need to sell eighteen.  We hoped to have some decent raffle gifts this year but only a few members are stepping up to help.  I realize a number of members use the excuse they don’t golf so they can’t ask people to play in the tournament.  But what excuse do you have when you don’t ask people to buy a tee sign or to donate a gift ?  Be thankful that there are a few, proud Marines who we can count on to do everything to make our events a success.  We all want to vote to give funds to groups that we support but some of us have to start to realize where the funds come from.  It was less than two years ago when we were unable to file for our charitable tax status as we didn’t have funds to pay the required filing fee. We now have some money in the bank, our charitable tax status, ten M-1 rifles and we were able to upgrade a room at the new veterans retirement home in Ivins.  Just think where we would be if everyone stood up and did their part as we all were trained to do!  Hope to see you all at the meeting on June 9.

5th Annual Golf Benefit Tournament

The fundraiser golf tournament for this year will be held on June 23rd at Sun River Golf Club. All members have received by e-mail blast the Tee Sponsorship Order Form which shows a picture of the tee sponsor sign with art work inserted for one of the first sponsors sold, Salon Khroma. Please just read the form and hand it to your prospective sponsor as you are asking for their commitment to purchase a tee sponsorship — the form already includes an explanation of community programs the Detachment supports, as well as the details of what the sponsor will get.

In addition to customized art work on a tee sign, sponsors will also have their art work attached to a “Thank You Sponsors” banner to be displayed centrally at the event. Just use the words on the order form, along with one of our tri-fold brochures, to ask for the order. Although the form instructs sponsors to send electronic format art work to Brio Design, we’ll make it even easier for you and your prospect by having the art work in whatever form sent to clydejhnstn@gmail.com and I’ll do the legwork for you with Brio. Progress reports from Carl Kulyk, Larry Mineer, Jim Haney, Steve Handy, D’Arcy Grisier, and Clyde Johnston indicate likely closings of at least ten tee sponsorships. If we can get commitments from eight other members to sell just one tee sponsorship each we can make this program a huge financial success.

2012 May Commandant's Message

May Commandant’s Message

The New Year for the Detachment is now upon us.  The officers for the next year will be formally elected at the May meeting.

During April, we have attended one funeral and our color guard raised and lowered colors for the Relay for Life at Dixie College field.  The group is part of the American Cancer Society. This is the second year that we participated in their event.

We are now ready to take  over the grave side services for Marines.  It is time that we do our part to help the American Legion that has been providing the service for all military personal for years.  Our chaplain will be notifying all the local funeral homes of this service.  Our M-1 rifles are looking more and more like Marine rifles thanks to Ken Olsen's hard work in refinishing all the stocks.

May will be a busy month with the Cotton Parade in the City of Washington and a memorial service at the Veterans Park at SunRiver on May 28.  Our color guard continues to serve the community.

On April 28, Tim Toumey, who is a former active recon Marine stopped by in St. George.  He is riding a bike from the Cold Weather Training Center in Bridgeport, California to his former unit with the 2nd Mar Div at Camp Lejeune, N.C.  The trip is 3,164 miles.  He is part of Operation Awakening which is trying to raise $50,000 for the Semper Fi Fund.  Our detachment was the only unit in Utah that made a contribution.  You can get more information and track his trip on the “Operation Awakening” website.

The committee working to raise funds for the Devil Pups is having a garage sale on June 2.  If you have any saleable items, you are willing to donate, please contact Jim Haney.

The Ball committee has been meeting.  The ballroom at SunRiver has been reserved for Saturday, November 10.  A budget has been reviewed by the staff.  A report and motion will be made at the May meeting.

The golf tournament, our major fund raiser, is less than sixty days away.  A few members are working hard to sell tee signs and find gifts that we can raffle off at the tournament.  Regretfully, it's only a few so far.  We all have an insurance agent, a doctor or other professional whom we can ask to buy a tee sign or to donate a gift.  You just have to get out and ask!;  You should send all art work for tee signs through Clyde Johnston.  We also need golfers to make it a successful event.  Even if you don't play golf, we all know people who do.  Show them our brochure, tell them how we serve the community and ask them to get a group or sign up as a single.  It is a fun tournament.  We use a handicap system which is fair to all types of players.  You don't have to be a “Tiger” to come out and have a fun time.  The fee includes a nice lunch.  The course at SunRiver has been improved greatly and any golfer will enjoy the course.  It is our chance to raise funds to meet our goals and commitments.  Please take the point and let's make this event a huge success.

The date of the golf tournament has been moved from June 2 to June 23 because of a conflict.  Clyde Johnston has sent out an email requesting help with obtaining raffle prizes and selling tee sign sponsorships to locale businesses.  You should advise Clyde Johnston of the persons you will contact to buy a tee sign or to obtain a raffle prize so a number of members don't ask the same people.  It is time everyone gets involved as this is our major fund raiser.  We need golfers to make the tournament successful.  Everyone knows someone who plays golf. You just have to take them a flyer and ask them to help by playing.  You should show them our brochure as it shows the service we provide to the community.  If everyone works on finding nice raffle gift and finding golfers all will have a great time.  Some of us know how to make a fun tournament but we need the people to play.  We all feel good about voting to give funds to a needy person or group so we should all be responsible for raising the funds to give.  If you are willing to work on the golf tournament contact Larry Mineer and become a member of the committee.

We now have about ten members working with Bill Toole and the Devil Pups and nearly the same number working on the next Marine Corps Ball committee.  We now only have three working on the golf committee which is responsible for raising the majority of our funds.  Of the $28.00 you pay in yearly dues, the detachment gets $3.00.  You can see your $3.00 doesn't go very far in supporting our projects.

Steve Ikuta has scheduled Commander Jason Whipple of the St. George Fire Department Bomb Squad as the speaker this month.  If you have not been attending the meetings, you have missed some outstanding informative speakers.

Bryan Butas will handle the May meeting as I have a court hearing in California.  So get to the meeting to support him and the speaker.

Steve Ikuta has scheduled Commander Jason Whipple of the St. George Fire Department Bomb Squad as the speaker this month.  If you have not been attending the meetings, you have missed some outstanding informative speakers.

Well, we have a lot to do so let's get it done!  You should not have to ask a Marine more than once to get something done right.

Be sure to ask a member who has not been attending the meetings to join us at the April meeting.  I hope to see you all there so we can show the State officers how dedicated we are as a detachment.

Carl Kulyk, Commandant

2012 MCL Golf Tournament

MARINE CORPS LEAGUE DIXIE DETACHMENT #1270
5TH ANNUAL BENEFIT
GOLF TOURNAMENT
Saturday, June 23, 2012, Sunriver Golf Course
Format: 4 Person Scramble (Team Low Net)
Cost: $85 per player including carts, range balls, and lunch. Cost is $64 per player for SunRiver residents who choose to pay green fees directly to SunRiver on the day of play based upon whatever pass they hold.
Time: 8:30 a.m., tee time (shot gun start)
Show Up Time: 7:30 a.m., if not pre-registered
Contact Larry or Carl for sign-up:
Larry Mineer: (435) 627-8182 (H); 668-5755 (C);
(e-mail) Larry@constructionmonitor.com
Carl Kulyk: (435) 773-6760 (H);
(e-mail) kulyk@earthlink.net

Prizes to be awarded for the following:
3 Closest to the pin on designated par 3's
3 Longest drive for men and for women (different age brackets)
3 Team low net (1st, 2nd, 3rd place)
3 Hole-in-one or double eagle - $500

Rules:
• Men play from white tees, women from red.
• Must use a minimum of 3 drives for each player (includes par 3's).
• Team score keeper must attest scores and verify handicaps of his group.

Let’s make it a fun and exciting day!
Utah Dixie Detachment #1270 serves the community in a range
of programs focused primarily on youth and veterans.
Programs we support include:
Toys for Tots, Marines/Families in Distress, Devil Pups Youth Program, Sheriff's Office Explorers, Shop-With-a-Cop,
and Memorial Services/Funerals for Deceased Veterans.

The IRS has determined that Utah Dixie Detachment #1270 is exempt from Federal income tax under Section 501(c)(3) as a public charity.

2012-04 Commandant's Message

It's already April and time to nominate officers for next year. The election is in May. The April meeting is one everyone should attend as the slate of candidates is determined. Steve Ikuta has lined up another interesting speaker for April.

The State officers' meeting was postponed in March because there were no rooms available in St. George. They plan to attend this month, and I advised them that the Abbey Inn is full the weekend of April 14th. The staff at the Abbey Inn will try to locate rooms for them if they get me a number in next few days. Since, they are planning to attend; our officers should wear white uniform shirts to the April meeting.

The M-1 rifle that was defective has been repaired. We now have ten rifles that we can now use. Ken Olson has taken on the job of refinishing the stocks. He is doing two at a time. We plan to have one more practice where we actually fire the rifles. Les Covey will set this up at a range. Anyone who can attend should come and get familiar with the rifles and the funeral service. All members of the color guard must attend. Larry Mineer will get the date out as soon as it is available. Once we complete this live practice, the funeral homes in the area will be notified that we will be available to handle grave side services for Marines and Corpsmen. It is time that we do our part to help the American Legion that has been providing the service for all military personnel for years.

The date of the golf tournament has been moved from June 2 to June 23 because of a conflict. Clyde Johnston has sent out an email requesting help with obtaining raffle prizes and selling tee sign sponsorships to local businesses. You should advise Clyde Johnston of the persons you will contact to buy a tee sign or to obtain a raffle prize so a number of members don't ask the same people. It is time everyone gets involved as this is our major fund raiser. We need golfers to make the tournament successful. Everyone knows someone who plays golf. You just have to take them a flyer and ask them to help by playing. You should show them our brochure as it shows the service we provide to the community. If everyone works on finding nice raffle gift and finding golfers all will have a great time. Some of us know how to make a fun tournament but we need the people to play. We all feel good about voting to give funds to a needy person or group so we should all be responsible for raising the funds to give. If you are willing to work on the golf tournament contact Larry Mineer and become a number of the committee.

We now have about ten members working with Bill Toole and the Devil Pups and nearly the same number working on the next Marine Corps Ball committee. We now only have three working on the golf committee which is responsible for raising the majority of our funds. Of the $28.00 you pay in yearly dues, the detachment gets $3.00. You can see your $3.00 doesn't go very far in supporting our projects.

Well we have a lot to do, so let's get it done ! You should not have to ask a Marine more than once to get something done right. Be sure to ask a member who has not been attending the meetings to join us at the April meeting. I hope to see you all there so we can show the State officers how dedicated we are as a detachment.

Carl Kulyk, Commandant

2012-02 Commandant's Message

Here we are in February. I for one am glad we are through the holidays. As a detachment, we have a busy time in front of us. We need to elect new officers and form committees for the golf tournament and the Marine Corps Ball.

Larry Mineer has been working hard to form our color guard. He has had a number of meetings for members to practice flag folding.

We have received 2400 rounds of blank ammo and 100 clips from the Army at no cost to the detachment. We are still waiting for ten M-1's, but we are now sure our request has been approved. I will continue to follow up with the Army and we should have the rifles in next two months. Twelve members attended the funeral service for a Marine last month. But, the American Legion still had to handle the grave site service. We want and should provide this service at the request of families of Marines.

We are completing the sale of 2012 Dixie Direct Book which again has been a good fund raiser for the detachment. A number of members continue to step up to make it happen. The sales this year will be more than double the sales last year.

Our detachment brochure for recruitment of new members will be available at the February meeting thanks to the hard work of Clyde Johnston.

The big problem which continues to exist is our low attendance at monthly meetings and retention of members. We have at least five members who have not been sworn into the detachment. We need everyone to help in contacting these absent members to encourage them to attend meetings. We have had a number of outstanding speakers and we will continue to have interesting speakers. If you have ideas how we can improve attendance or if you have a service project we could work on, please come to the monthly meeting and speak up. I, myself am very proud to be a member of this detachment and I try to do what I can to make it grow.

I hope to see you all at the monthly meeting.

Carl Kulyk, Commandant