2006 RHC News
2006 International Rigger Reunion
The Red Hat Chapter hosted the 2006 International Rigger (and Air Dispatcher) Reunion in beautiful Fredericksburg , Virginia , 13-17 September. We had 108 people show up for the reunion, including 43 international visitors. Fellowship, camaraderie, and fun was had by all. I think everyone that attended would agree it was a complete success. The story goes something like this…
It started on a Wednesday. Everyone arrived at the hotel, registered, and enjoyed free drinks in the hospitality room prior to dinner. After the welcome dinner, some returned to the hospitality room for a while. Of course Jim Kennebeck started selling raffle tickets early. His raffle ended up being a huge success.
On Thursday, we loaded the buses and traveled to Washington D.C. for a guided tour of WWII, Korean War, and Vietnam Memorials. Our tour guides left a little to be desired, but the Memorials made up for it. We then visited Arlington national cemetery and were able to witness the “Changing of the Guard” at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (quite impressive). We returned to the hotel and went separate directions for dinner. Most folks linked back up in the hospitality room later to try their luck at winning some of the great prizes Jim Kennebeck was raffling off.
Friday morning started with a chance to visit downtown Fredericksburg and do a little shopping at all the neat stores available. After we all grabbed a bite to eat at one of the many local establishments, we headed off for a guided tour of several Civil war sites in and around Fredericksburg. The National Park Service provided two of the absolutely best guides we have ever seen – simply amazing! We all ate dinner downtown at “Uncle Sam’s” restaurant. The food was tasty, but the entertainment afterward was even better. We had the pleasure of watching the “Skyline Country Cloggers” Their performance was fun to watch and filled the air with excitement. Afterward, we returned to the hospitality room for drinks and Jim’s famous raffle.
We boarded the buses again Saturday and headed towards Ft Lee, Virginia. Our destination was the United States Army Quartermaster Center and School’s “ParachuteRigger School”, which is housed in a brand new facility. We were broken into groups and given a guided tour through each of the different phases of Rigger School. After our tour, we made a brief stop at the Quartermaster Museum. By now we were all quite hungry, so we ate lunch at the one of the “Chow Halls” on Ft. Lee. The food was much better than some had anticipated. After lunch, we returned to the hotel and the Red Hat Chapter members convened a meeting. The primary focus of the meeting was to fill the elected positions within the Chapter’s leadership. 1SG(R) Del Weitman was unanimously re-elected as Chapter President. SFC(R) Wagner “Buz” Baskett was elected as the Vice President. CW3(R) Gaylin “Jess” Jesmer remained as the Quartermaster (treasurer), and Elaine Whitby accepted appointment as the Chapter Secretary. Later that evening was the formal dinner with CW4 Leo Venckus as the guest speaker. His words were inspiring. The dinner ended with Jim Kennebeck raffling off 10 items. Afterwards, many retired to the hospitality room were drinks were drunk, stories were told, and Jim raffled off the rest of his prizes.
Sunday we loaded the buses and headed back to Washington D.C. for the Smithsonian Air and Space museum. After several hours of exploring the museum and a bite to eat for lunch, the buses were loaded for our return trip to the hotel. Everyone attended the farewell dinner at Brock’s Grill. After dinner, we returned to the hotel and were able to enjoy one last drink with some of our new found friends before we had to say good bye. This was a bittersweet end to a wonderful 5 days. Folks departed at their leisure the next morning.
The Red Hat Chapter hosted the 2006 International Rigger (and Air Dispatcher) Reunion in beautiful Fredericksburg , Virginia , 13-17 September. We had 108 people show up for the reunion, including 43 international visitors. Fellowship, camaraderie, and fun was had by all. I think everyone that attended would agree it was a complete success. The story goes something like this…
It started on a Wednesday. Everyone arrived at the hotel, registered, and enjoyed free drinks in the hospitality room prior to dinner. After the welcome dinner, some returned to the hospitality room for a while. Of course Jim Kennebeck started selling raffle tickets early. His raffle ended up being a huge success.
On Thursday, we loaded the buses and traveled to Washington D.C. for a guided tour of WWII, Korean War, and Vietnam Memorials. Our tour guides left a little to be desired, but the Memorials made up for it. We then visited Arlington national cemetery and were able to witness the “Changing of the Guard” at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (quite impressive). We returned to the hotel and went separate directions for dinner. Most folks linked back up in the hospitality room later to try their luck at winning some of the great prizes Jim Kennebeck was raffling off.
Friday morning started with a chance to visit downtown Fredericksburg and do a little shopping at all the neat stores available. After we all grabbed a bite to eat at one of the many local establishments, we headed off for a guided tour of several Civil war sites in and around Fredericksburg. The National Park Service provided two of the absolutely best guides we have ever seen – simply amazing! We all ate dinner downtown at “Uncle Sam’s” restaurant. The food was tasty, but the entertainment afterward was even better. We had the pleasure of watching the “Skyline Country Cloggers” Their performance was fun to watch and filled the air with excitement. Afterward, we returned to the hospitality room for drinks and Jim’s famous raffle.
We boarded the buses again Saturday and headed towards Ft Lee, Virginia. Our destination was the United States Army Quartermaster Center and School’s “ParachuteRigger School”, which is housed in a brand new facility. We were broken into groups and given a guided tour through each of the different phases of Rigger School. After our tour, we made a brief stop at the Quartermaster Museum. By now we were all quite hungry, so we ate lunch at the one of the “Chow Halls” on Ft. Lee. The food was much better than some had anticipated. After lunch, we returned to the hotel and the Red Hat Chapter members convened a meeting. The primary focus of the meeting was to fill the elected positions within the Chapter’s leadership. 1SG(R) Del Weitman was unanimously re-elected as Chapter President. SFC(R) Wagner “Buz” Baskett was elected as the Vice President. CW3(R) Gaylin “Jess” Jesmer remained as the Quartermaster (treasurer), and Elaine Whitby accepted appointment as the Chapter Secretary. Later that evening was the formal dinner with CW4 Leo Venckus as the guest speaker. His words were inspiring. The dinner ended with Jim Kennebeck raffling off 10 items. Afterwards, many retired to the hospitality room were drinks were drunk, stories were told, and Jim raffled off the rest of his prizes.
Sunday we loaded the buses and headed back to Washington D.C. for the Smithsonian Air and Space museum. After several hours of exploring the museum and a bite to eat for lunch, the buses were loaded for our return trip to the hotel. Everyone attended the farewell dinner at Brock’s Grill. After dinner, we returned to the hotel and were able to enjoy one last drink with some of our new found friends before we had to say good bye. This was a bittersweet end to a wonderful 5 days. Folks departed at their leisure the next morning.
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Veterans Day Parade - 11 November 2006
In what has become an annual tradition with members of the Red Hat Chapter, folks gathered around Gaylin "Jess" Jesmer's expertly restored Jeeps waiting for the parade to begin in downtown Fayetteville, NC. Afterwards the parade, chapter members sat down and broke bread at the Huske Hardware House. If you have never seen Jess's Jeeps, they are absolutely beautiful. The time, detail, and effort he has put into these vehicles (and trailer) is unreal. The results are amazing! Below are a couple of guys that were told to"Hurry up and wait" |
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Chapter Breakfast 16 DEC 06
The December breakfast brought together about 25 Parachute Riggers to the back room of the Golden Corral restaurant on Skibo Rd. Some chapter business discussed was the following:
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