Lincoln Highway Association - California Chapter: Minutes for October 6, 2012

Quarterly Chapter Meeting Minutes — Saturday, October 6, 2012

Bud’s Pub & Grill
100 S 1st St
Dixon, California

Minutes

Fourth Quarterly Meeting was called to order by President Paul Gilger at 1:05 pm.
Introductions by all present: 19 members and guests attended)
Current agenda reviewed and approved by all members present.
Third Quarter Minutes for July 7, 2012 were generally approved by board and accepted.
Officers’ Reports
1. State Director Bob Dieterich:
  1. The National Organization is beginning a new site for publicity, notices and releases, with Carolyn’s assistance, for the 2013 Conference.
  2. At the 2012 Conference Awards Banquet, awards for outstanding performance were announced. The unanimous choice for the Meritorious Achievement Award was Paul Gilger, The Exemplary Friend Award was given to Jimmy Lin. The City of Livermore, California was also presented with an award at their monthly board meeting; the City of Clarksville received an award as well.
  3. Bob also mentioned that some California and Nevada Lincoln Highway books are still available at a price of $40 (California) and $50 (Nevada). Gregory Franzwa, Lincoln Highway Asssociation Historian, created the books’ text, maps, dates and photos. The books were described as “bibles” for Lincoln Highway friends and members.
2. President Paul Gilger:
  1. Paul announced the need to distribute future meeting minutes and agendas electronically to avoid the expense of hard copy mailing. Future copies will be put online to be read prior to attending meetings. He asked for approval of this change; motion in agreement was made by Gary Kinst and seconded by Joel Windmiller. Motion was approved.
  2. Paul lead a cruise to Lake Tahoe with three cars on the trip, described as a fun event.
  3. Paul presented a PowerPoint presentation to the Kiwanis Club of Santa Rosa.
3. Vice-President and Membership Chairman Joel Windmiller
  1. Joel and Gary Kinst visited the Caltrans Historical Library to research several alignments where questions have arisen. They were allowed to scan numerous photos that will appear in future Travelers. They were able to gain access to photos previously unobtainable, which shed light on early alignments.
  2. An announcement was made of the upcoming Road Map Meeting to be held Saturday, October 27, 2012, at the University of the Pacific in Stockton. H.M. Gousha maps will be presented.
  3. 220 postcards were mailed which included 173 members. 131 members received the Traveler by e-mail.
4. Kell Brigan
  1. Kell wasn’t able to attend the meeting, but sent an e-mail message about letterboxing. At the McKinney property people have found signing from several states.
5. Treasurer Grant Gassman
  1. Grant presented the bank balance, available upon request.
6. Traveler Editor and Chapter Historian Gary Kinst
  1. Gary has been researching several alignments that have been drawn into question. One in particular is the alignment through Livermore. Michael Kaelin would like to have this section of highway signed prior to the 2013 100th Anniversary tour to Kearney, Nebraska from June 30 to July 5.
  2. A member from Heath, Texas has approached Gary in search of someone to publish a book and possibly film a documentary about a trip their grandparents took from New York to Oakland in 1919. The book would be titled “Hells Gate to the Golden Gate in a modern Prairie Schooner”. The husband has begun restoring a 1920 Model T to replicate the 1916 original used to make the trip.
  3. Gary addressed his impression of the joint trip to the Caltrans History Center where he obtained a “veritable gold mine” of vintage photos. All photos were backed-up to insure future availability.
  4. Gary relayed to the group a letter he received from a Meadow Vista Eagle Scout candidate, who volunteered to restore Lincoln Highway markers and needs guidance in seeking the proper paint for his project. The young man needs information as to the location of markers needing repair. Comments were made about the possible need for concrete work to restore the markers, beyond paint.
7. Secretary Mike Kaelin
  1. In Mike’s absence, the meeting minutes were taken by Silver Williams, who graciously volunteered.
8. Webmaster Jimmy Lin
  1. Jimmy was unable to attend the meeting.
Committee Reports
1. Coach Tour director Mark Hoffman: Unable to attend, as he was guiding a tour. Mark’s bus tour company, Sports Leisure Vacations, promotes the concept that rather than keeping tour costs low, customers are willing to pay $100 each for more comfort. His experience is invaluable for running the chapter&rsquos first Coach Tour. Mark chose Sacramento to Donner Pass for the first Coach Tour. Mark will repeat the Donner Pass Tour and add a tour to San Francisco in the spring of 2013; he needs us to promote these tours. Another tour will be done after Mark decides its route. Our Chapter netted $400 from Mark’s tour. Another tour stopped at Donner coming from the East.
2. Promo Chair Carolyn Harkonnen: Reports that the August 25 Car Cruise can be found on the California Chapter Event Calendar link. We need more copy on the Coach Tour.
3. Old Business
  1. LH 100th Anniversary Tour, June 2013
    1. Official brochures of the 100th Anniversary Tour were distributed. Members were encouraged to make reservations early. The Centennial Tour will limit the cars traveling to 100 cars from each coast. There are already 25 cars registered from the West Coast. Hotel procedures were outlined. Holiday Inn Express will usually be used for stops. Other InterContinental hotels may be used if a Holiday Inn reaches maximum capacity.
    2. FAQs will appear on the website about tours. Tag-alongs will not be permitted. Each name tag will be an admission ticket. Details of admission were discussed. A la carte activities may be permitted. The 100-car limit applies to vehicles, not to passengers. 1913 alignment will mostly be used for the tour, with some exceptions. Five caravans of 20 cars will travel in the Utah Desert. Alternate route of Ely to Wendover will be available for those wanting to avoid the gravel road day-trip. A special feature on that optional trip will be the use of the 12-mile straightaway on the Bonneville Salt Flats.
    3. All state chapters are asked to help with costs of the tours. The San Francisco departure will be the weekend of June 22 and 23, from the Crowne Plaza. The group will depart at 8:00 am for the Duarte Garage in Livermore. The California Automobile Museum, 2200 Front Street, Sacramento will (probably) be the site of the evening dinner at 6:00 pm. (This is the former Towe Museum.) Dinners for the tour will be simple, casual food.
    4. Sally Hoeprich volunteered to head up plans for the dinner. E-mail:
    5. There will be an Elk Grove stop. Lunch on Monday, June 24 will be at the Donner Ski Ranch. Neil Rodriques will get in touch with a contact at Donner Ski Ranch. Possible bag lunch will be offered.
    6. Scheduling will offer windows for daily events and meals due to varying travel times, with a fixed time for all daily dinners, at 6:00 PM. A two-hour window will be open for lunches.
    7. A German magazine has contacted Bob Lichty to do a story on the 100th Anniversary Tour. For the tour coverage, Bob will drive a 1968 Lincoln. He plans to have the vehicle transported to the West Coast in November 2012 and needs a place to store it until the June 2013 departure. Discussion of storage sites ensued. Tauck perhaps will be available to both show and store the Lincoln, which needs to be driven to maintain its condition. Neil Rodriques will contact Tauck about storing and displaying the vehicle. Information will be updated online by the end of the weekend (October 7). Another suggestion was the California Automobile Museum.
    8. Tour maps, routes and stops will be included on the website.
4. New Business
  1. Plaques
    1. Donner Summit Bridge Plaque. In 1926 a bronze plaque was placed. The plaque was taken and later recovered. The bronze plaques are valuable and were not protected. Replacement plaque made from high resolution facsimile photo has been made with a coating resistant to vandalism and removal. The original plaque has been placed on the museum door. A work party is needed to help put the facsimile in place. Lee Schegg asked for names of those interested in helping with the project, which will probably take place in Spring 2013. An announcement will be placed in the next Traveler so helpers can consider volunteering for this fun event.
    2. The Victory Highway Monument at Truckee is currently in storage awaiting plans from the city as to its new location. This also involves the placement of the Historic Lincoln Highway sign, for which funding has been approved.
  2. Gary Kinst asked about new discoveries and routing changes and how to document them. The procedure is to e-mail Paul of updates. He will oversee adding them to existing maps. Paul asked that the new routes be illustrated graphically, in lieu of written descriptions. Also let him know of any points of interest and new data.
  3. The next meeting will be held Saturday, January 5, 2013 Three possible locations were suggested:
    1. Lorenzo's on US 40, outside Loomis
    2. Skates at the Berkeley Pier in Berkeley
    3. Neil Rodriques has a friend who owns a vintage Packard that was driven across the Lincoln Highway. He owns a car collection located near Highway 101 in the San Jose area, along with car memorabilia. He will investigate as possible meeting site.
  4. A reminder: Meetings are held the first Saturday of January, April, July and October.
  5. A motion to adjourn was made by Joel Windmiller and seconded by Myron Gershenson.
  6. Meeting adjourned at 2:45 pm.
  7. Following the meeting, an excellent video on the history of the Lincoln Highway produced by the Harrison County Historical Center of Missouri Valley, Iowa was shown. Gary Kinst followed with a PowerPoint presentation of vintage photos taken on the 1928 Sacramento to San Francisco alignment, which passed through Dixon. Many members identified and remembered places along the route.
  8. A big trove of information of original maps dating to the 1920s has been found in Canton, Ohio.
Respectfully submitted on October 28, 2012
Silver Williams, Acting Recording Secretary