South Alabama Bridge Association-ACBL Unit 215

Semi-Annual Board Members’ Newsletter-- 7/11/2006

It seems like only yesterday when we had the December, 2005 Annual Meeting. Hopefully, this semi-annual report will share the progress made by the Board, in the first 6 months of 2006.

2007 Sectional Tournament-This is scheduled in Mobile for October, 2007. There will not be a 2006 Mobile Tourney because Birmingham was awarded the event, as a result of their aggressive planning, scheduling, & confirmation.

2008 Regional Tournament-We were successful in scheduling this tournament for March 31^st through April 5^th 2008.

Monthly Swiss Team Contest-The Pro-Am contests began in January and have been held every month. Attendance has been excellent and there have been numerous Mobile and Baldwin County Teams participating. The contests have been exciting and the teams have shared excellent “camaraderie”. The feedback from the Amateur Teams is that the Swiss team contests have been an excellent learning experience and they are very appreciative of the support and help of their Pro Team partners.

Bridge Lessons-Larry Miles taught weekly Bridge Intermediate Lessons at both the Mobile & Fairhope Bridge Clubs during the first 3 months of 2006. Attendance was good and many participants expressed their appreciation for the expertise and information provided by Professor Miles and his able assistant-Julie. We look forward to the Miles return from their annual sojourn to New York, where they annually enjoy the cooler summer months. Thanks again Larry & Julie.

Membership-Howard Deck heads up this important area of the Bridge Club. He has sent numerous letters to first time players, and is requesting ideas about how to bolster our club by developing a hearty membership. There are presently 226 members in the Bridge Club.

Hospitality-Jean White solicits your help for information about any members that it is appropriate to send “get well”, sympathy, etc. cards. Another task for Jean’s area of responsibility is to investigate a better sign for visitors to find our Mobile Clubhouse.

Mobile Press Register Publicity-Have you noticed that we are making “headlines” every Wednesday in the newspaper. There is a listing in the Wednesday Neighbors Section, of the members that have received master points in the respective sessions during the week. We hope to see your name listed in the future.

Bridge Club Building Interior Decorations & Housekeeping-We are very appreciative of the seasonal decorations provided by Nancy Hora and her Team, which includes Anna Rominger & Edith Sandifer. It is always enjoyable to see decoration themes for the tree; i.e., Valentines Day, Mardis Gras, St. Patricks, etc. etc. etc. We are also appreciative of the work by Martha Steele and Barbara Slaughter for the housekeeping improvements made inside our Club.

Facilities Management-“This old Mobile club house” continues to function in providing our needs 6 days a week (7 days when the Swiss Teams play once per month). There has been some minor preservation work performed to keep the building in good working condition. This included cleaning out the rain gutters found to prevent water in-leakage on the back wall, dirt fill & sod on the southeast corner to prevent washouts of the foundation, and installation of grass sod on the east side.

Individual Member Achievements-(1). The following Mobile (M) and Baldwin County (BC) members have achieved the following Master Point Levels during the first 6 months of 2006:

Charlotte Lam (M)-Silver Life Master

Joe Brandt (M)-Bronze Life Master

Pat Boss (BC)-Bronze Life Master

Barbara Pugh (BC) NABC Master

Linda Wright (BC) Sectional Master

Dorothy Larkin (BC) Club Master

Linda Glover (BC) Junior Master

(2) The Mobile 70% Club-start date January 1, 2006

Julie & Larry Miles, Ruth England & Phyllis Haydel, Joanne Robertson & Gloria McDonald, Nita Kassab & Colleen Regen, Bill Barton & Danny Sellers, Walter Lewis & Jay Segurra, Alma Golden & Colleen Regen, Barbara & Charles Slaughter (2 times), and Ramsey Lattof & Gloria McDonald.

Financial Status-As of May 31, 2006, the checking account had a

balance of $6,425, and the Building Fund balance was $22,029. This compares favorably to the 12/30/2005 balances of $3,242 in the checking account and $21,928 in the Building Fund.

Bill Cook’s Visit-Bill Cook, our District 10 ACBL Representative attended the June Unit 215 Board Meeting, and shared his ACBL responsibilities. Bill is currently Chair of the Audit Committee for the ACBL. He is open to requests, suggestions, and recommendations from Unit 215; and, we look forward to working with Bill in the future concerning ACBL matters.

Upcoming Schedule of Important Future Events:

Game	Date	Time	Place	$
NAOP	7/14	7:00 pm	Mobile	4.00
NAOP	8/19	12:30 pm	Mobile	4.00
NAOP	8/24	10am	Mobile	4.00
NAOP Unit	10/01	1:30 pm	Mobile	4.00
Birthday Night Game	Every 2^nd Friday	7:00 pm	Mobile	3.00
Unit Champ. Game	Every 1^st Saturday	12:30 pm	Mobile	3.00
Club Pro/Am Swiss Team	Every 2^nd Sunday	1:00 pm	Mobile	3.00

Board Directors & Feedback

The Board Directors meet every fourth Wednesday at 2:00 PM, and welcome your feedback concerning the activities of the Club. They are working diligently to implement the objectives of our Club. The objectives are listed on the front page of the By-Laws, which are posted on the bulletin board in the Club.

We welcome feedback concerning this semi-annual newsletter. Please let us hear from you via any of the 2006 Board Officers & Directors, per the respective phone number or e-mail address listed below:

Phyllis Haydel-President (607-0429) (phaydel@comcast.net)

Barbara Slaughter-Vice President (342-2493) (charles@hydraulix.com)

Margaret Miller-Secretary (344-3937) (margaret_miller@comcast.net)

Jane Mahoney-Treasurer (344-8148)

Ed Stephens-2005 President (635-1656) (turtle1204@att.net)

Martha Steele-(661-3288)

Howard Deck-At Large (344-6618) (hdeck@comcast.net)

Jean White-At Large (649-5421) (jean143244@aol.com)

Bill McGlasson-At Large (602-1490) (WGarymcg@msn.com)