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Your membership is valid through December 31, 2017.
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Hello
Incoming President's Message
On Saturday March 18, 2017 at the CVOA Annual Meeting, the President's Gavel was passed from outgoing President John Morey to me. I want to thank John for stepping into the President's position for 2016 and growing his leadership role over the past 12 months. Job well done, John!
For those not attending the Annual Meeting my name is Joe Loughran. I have been a CVOA'er for the past 12 years. Gail Miller and I reside full time in Gorham, Maine but we love spending as much time as possible at our camp on Flagstaff Lake.
I am the very fortunate father of 5 great adult sons and daughters and 7 very energetic grandchildren. I am the owner of a small publishing business, Streets & Places of Maine, and a long time Certified Fly Casting Instructor for FFF. My primary career was in Telecommunications Technologies and I recently took a 10 year retirement from LLBean.
I have been privileged to serve in leadership roles in many other recreational and conservation organizations over the years. These groups include Ducks Unlimited, Trout Unlimited, Maine Public Television, Founder of the Gorham Summer Leagues, President and Treasurer of the Gorham Babe Ruth and Girls Softball Leagues and more recently the Community Action Chair for the Wing Community in Eustis. I have always found serving in these volunteer positions immensely satisfying and I am looking forward to my term as your CVOA President for the next 12 months.
I was greatly honored at the Annual Meeting that my first task as President was to present the 2017 CVOA Volunteer of the Year Award to Mr. Neal Trask. Neal is a CVOA original. He was there at our beginnings and has maintained a laser like focus on helping grow CVOA to the special recreational and conservation organization it is today. Neal's vision for the growth of the CVOA Range has been the driving force behind its amazing success. In concert with other dedicated CVOA Range Volunteers they have built the finest shooting and archery facility in Western Maine. Congratulations again Neal, so very well done!
Looking ahead to the upcoming CVOA year I am excited by the variety of outdoor recreational trips and events presently planned. Weekend events include a kayaking/fly fishing/hiking trip at Sky Lodge in Jackman, a weekend camping trip to beautiful Schoodic Point, fly casting clinics, the North Branch of the Dead River paddling day, and a weekend camping and skydiving adventure in September. CVOA will also be sponsoring two or three great western ski trips in 2018.
As importantly, we will continue to look for mission-compatible opportunities to work with our local communities. CVOA Members value our role as a provider of outdoor recreational opportunities for local kids and adults. We also value participation in local program funding where appropriate.
I do hope you will find a weekend trip, a one day event or an ongoing conservation program that stirs your desire to get outdoors and become an active CVOA'er. Please do not hesitate to contact me with your thoughts and ideas that may make CVOA an even more successful organization.
My very best,
Joe Loughran
CVOA President
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2017
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| April 22 |
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Reed Falls Snowshoe/Hike |
| May 20 |
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Community Rte. 27 Clean Up |
| May 26 |
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Fly Casting Clinics |
| June 2-4 |
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Trip to Sky Lodge, Jackman |
| June 3 |
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Fly Casting Clinic at Sky Lodge |
| TBD |
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Board/Member Meeting |
| July 13-15 |
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Schoodic Point Camping |
| August 13 |
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Dead River Paddle & Picnic |
| September 8 |
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Skydiving |
| TBD |
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Board/Member Meeting |
| October 7-9 |
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Homecoming |
| October 20-22 |
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Bar Harbor Fall Weekend |
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2018
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| Jan. 21 - 28 |
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Copper Mountain Ski Trip |
| Early February |
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Banff/Lake Louise Ski Trip |
| March |
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? Schweitzer, ID Ski Trip ? |
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Future Events & Adventures
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Snowshoe or Hike Reed Brook Falls
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Saturday, April 22
We will be gathering Saturday, April 22nd for a snowshoe or hike into Reed Brook Falls in Kingfield. This is a one mile hike to a beautiful waterfall. It is rated a "one boot hike"(easy) in the CVOA hiking guide. The snow pack is deep and the rivers are running high. The waterfall should be spectacular.
Gather at Tufulio's on April 22nd at 11 a.m. to car pool to the trail head. Parking is limited at the trail head so please car pool as much as you can. Bring your lunch and we can eat at the waterfall.
This hike is weather and trail conditions dependent. Please let me know if you are coming so I can notify you if the plans change.
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| Sky Lodge of Moose River, Maine |
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June 2-4
Luxury in the Rough
& A Place to Remember with CVOA on June 2-4, 2017 at Sky Lodge, 748 Main Street, Moose River, ME 04945. We are trying to make a few more rooms available for CVOA'ers to stay at Sky Lodge June 2-4. If you would like to get on a wait list to join the group, please contact Mary Berger.
Questions? Mary's Mobile: 781-248-0152
~ Mary Berger, Trip Leader
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| Trips and activities are fun! |
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Add an event to our calendar!
Adventures, as we call them, are at the heart of CVOA, whether half-dayhikes, or 7-day ski trips. It is a rare event where the leader and participants don't have fun. Please consider becoming a "trip leader" for an adventure to add to our calendar. We will guide you through the process, and offer support such as paper goods for meals and a participant charge to help allay overnight lodging.
Ask any of the numerous event leaders who were recognized at the Annual Dinner and they will tell you it feels good to volunteer!
~ Betsy Chapman, Adventure Coordinator
or 207-944-3264
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Range ID Tags & Raffle Winners
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Spring is here and shooting season is just around the corner! The Five Stand covered shooting stand is under way and will be completed sometime this spring. We are working to improve the berms of the Rifle and Pistol Ranges. Flowers planted last fall should make a nice show.
And your new 2017 Range ID Tags will be mailed out in May, so keep an eye out. If you have not joined the Range, please feel free to drop by and check us out. Sunday Trap Shoots will begin in mid to late May. We are always happy to give you a tour or arrange for guests to shoot with us.
The Range Raffle drawing was held at CVOA's Annual Dinner and Meeting, and the lucky winners were:
- 1st - Sugarloaf season pass : Thomas O'Hara
- 2nd - LLBean $100 Gift Certificate
- Charles Malenfant
- Bruce Hanke
- Colon Durrell
- Bev and Tony Squillante
- Jim Lord
- 3rd - 2 day passes to Sugarloaf golf course: Ruth Finegold
- 4th - Handcrafted Wooden Bench: Peter Van Alstine
It was fortunate that most of the winners were present at the dinner. Thank you everyone for contributing to our yearly fundraiser. This was our most successful year: after expenses, the Range netted $2,523.00! We have a big wish list, and these funds will help us expand Range accessibility to more people.
If you have any questions about the Range, please feel free to contact me at
cvoa.range@gmail.com
or (207) 240-4752.
~ Diane Stone, Range Secretary
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1943 - 2017
Long time CVOA Range member Ron Stagers passed away on March 7.
Jim Heichel writes:
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Ron brought and shared his extensive expertise in pistol and rifle shooting to the range. He had won many competitions in both venues before he and Bonnie moved to the Valley. He always stopped and chatted with us at the trap range, but his real love was shooting and offering help to others at the pistol and rifle ranges. We could always count on Ron to be a big part in the success of our youth shoots. We will all miss his help and friendship."
An obituary for Ron can be found HERE.
Our thoughts are with Bonnie and her family.
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Past Events and Adventures
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March 3rd
Nearly 60 CVOA folks gathered at the Begin Room on March 3rd to visit with other skiers, watch Lee Souweine's photo/video presentation, and eat dessert.
Of course, many came to hear about possible ski trips for 2018. Peter Weston spent a good deal of time putting together information about two possible trips, including stats comparing our mountain, Telluride, and two more: Banff/Lake Louise and Schweitzer Mountain in Idaho. Peter and Judy recently visited Schweitzer, had a great time, and thought it a good destination for CVOA. And Banff/Lake Louise has been on our list in the past. Ken Cutcliffe, our Great Events & Escapes travel source, had just that day sent along proposals for a trip to Banff/Lake Louise and one to Schweitzer, and Peter presented that information.
After a lackluster vote, with Banff/Lake Louise receiving more votes than Schweitzer, it was decided that we not make a final decision that night. Also, the big trips are becoming cumbersome. Taking everything into account, Peter and Cindy are pulling together two or three simpler and smaller trips; to date, we have lined up these trips:
Copper Mountain, Colorado -
January 21-28, 2018
- Trip leader: Cindy Foster
- Roundtrip Air/Transfers: non-stop air Boston to Denver, 2-hour bus to Copper.
- 2BR/2Bath Silver-grade condos in Center Village
- 5-day lift ticket
Banff/Lake Louise - early in February
- Trip Leaders: Joe Loughran and Gail Miller
- Roundtrip Air/Transfers: Boston to Calgary with one stop; 2-hour bus to Lake Louise
- 3 nights at Chateau Lake Louise, 4 nights at Banff Springs Hotel; seamless transfer from one hotel to the other.
- 5 out of 7 day 3-mountain lift tickets (Lake Louise, Banff Sunshine, Norquay)
Tentative - Schweitzer Mountain in
Idaho
- sometime in March
- Trip Leader: Peter Weston
- We have no details worked out on this trip.
When the trips are finalized, I will send more information to all members, and it will be repeated in our May newsletter. On May 15, complete trip information and reservation forms will be sent by email to all CVOA members. No reservations will be accepted nor may be postmarked before May 15.
~ Cindy Foster
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St. Patrick's Day Bowling Party
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The St. Patrick's Day Bowling Party at the SugarBowl was well attended. There were 27 CVOAers bowling and some Happy Hour spectators as well. After an appetite-rousing hour of bowling, the pizza was devoured!
Awards went to:
- Highest scoring man and woman: Jim Osterrieder and Jean
nette Parker
- Most Strikes: Jerry Lemieux and Linda Allen
- Bowling Rookies: Peter Van Alstine and Roni Emery
Most agree it should be an annual CVOA event.
~ Bonnie Farrar, Bowling
Coordinator
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Outgoing president John Morey.
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March 18
This year's dinner meeting was attended by 110 people, and it was a wonderful event. There was an hour of socializing before dinner, and from the noise I heard from outside the Avery Room at the Inn, people were taking advantage of the opportunity to visit with old friends and make new friends.
At 6pm, the buffet dinner was set in place, and table by table made orderly progress towards the food line. The Inn put on a delicious and colorful meal, with corned-beef and cabbage, wedge-cut carrots, roasted potato, green salad and rolls. Follow this up with a nice selection of desserts, and we had a complete meal.
At 7:00, John Morey got everyone's attention, and began our annual meeting. After short reports by the secretary and treasurer, we held the election of our officers and board of directors. Joe Loughran is moving up to be president, Bonnie Farrar is joining us as vice president, Cindy Foster and Gail Miller continue as secretary and treasurer. We welcome Al Sleight onto the board, with the other board members continuing.
After the gavel was turned over to Joe, he took the opportunity to recognize some of the volunteers that make CVOA such a
successful organization: The officers and board of directors; the trip and event leaders - when all were standing, it was an impressive group.
The final recognition was for this year's
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New president Joe Loughran and Volunteer of the Year Neal Trask.
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Volunteer of the Year, a long-time CVOA member and contributor, a man whose quiet dedication is not often recognized. Neal Trask was one of the founding members of CVOA, and he has dedicated countless hours over many years in developing and growing the range. Read more about Neal in the next article.
The meeting was adjourned, and the door prize tickets were drawn for items donated by Joe Loughran (photos on wood) and John Pease (CVOA fused glass piece); the lucky winners were John Morey, Jim Heichel, and Don Fletcher.
Next, the drawing for the Annual Range Raffle was held, and fortuitously, most were present. Check out the Range article for the winners and raffle results.
Joe welcomed his good friends, CVOA
members and our guest speakers,
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Alan Burnell, author
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Alan Burnell and Kenny Wing. Their program began with some history of the evolution of the power industry in Maine, with interesting information on the formation of various Maine electric companies. There were business and political influences that lead to the decision to flood the area of the Flagstaff villages, thereby forming Flagstaff Lake. Kenny talked about the history of many of the buildings that were either moved, or dismantled, or burned, or left in place as the residents moved from their villages to other areas. One of his joys is determining when photos were taken, particularly photos that became postcards. He has a collection of
photographs taken by a certain traveling photographer who typically made certain that his automobile was in each of his photographs, thereby proving that he took the photo - in a sense copyrighting it. Many of the Flagstaff buildings were photographed prior to the flooding, and sold in the form of postcards to the homeowners. Much of the program content was excerpted from Alan and Kenny's book "The Lost Villages of Flagstaff".
This format for the CVOA Annual Dinner and Meeting has proven so popular that it will likely be repeated next year.
~ Cindy Foster, Secretary
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Volunteer of the Year
In an organization where everyone involved is a volunteer, it can be difficult to single out and honor just one person as Volunteer of the Year. This is not the case with CVOA thanks to the tireless efforts of Neal Trask. When Neal was honored at the CVOA annual meeting, he said that there are many people who have contributed to make CVOA what it is today. This is true. However, it takes the quiet leadership of someone like Neal to make it all happen.
Neal Trask has been active in CVOA since it's founding in 1999. He has served on the board, was the president for 2 years, and has been the chairman of the range committee since the range was originally built 15 years ago. There would be no range without the 100s of hours put in by Neal every year.
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At this time Neal, along with the range building committee, is working on the construction of a 5-stand sport trap shooting range, including a 72 foot long building where the shooters will be protected from the weather while utilizing the range. He has secured grants to pay for this addition to the range. In addition, he has applied for a grant to make improvements to the berms around the rifle and pistol ranges. Anyone who has been involved in writing and complying with government grants can appreciate the many hours Neal has put in to make this happen.
Thank you Neal for all you have done and continue to do for CVOA. And, thank you for being the quiet voice of reason all of us admire and appreciate.
~ Peter Weston
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Adaptive Outdoor Education Center
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Charitable Donation
Earlier this year, CVOA made a donation to the Adaptive Outdoor Education Center, an organization that meets and furthermore
exceeds all of our Charitable Donation Policy criteria. With our $500 donation, they were able to purchase a dozen or more pairs of snowshoes from an organization in Portland that sells refurbished gear to non-profits.
Annemarie Albiston wrote a thank you note of appreciation:
Dear CVOA, We cannot thank you enough for your generous donation towards our snowshoe program! We have been able to provide a bi-weekly program to a local group in Farmington and are even hoping to have a Special Olympics team next winter!
As you can see by the pictures, this program has brought joy, fun, and an abundance of laughter to many!
With Sincere Thanks, Annemarie Albiston
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Thank you note
Telluride travelers were presented a delightful program by the Telluride
Avalanche Dogs, and $300 of our Telluride trip reservation fee was donated to the organization. Kim Richard, daughter of our own CVOA member Bill Chapin, sent along a nice note of thanks.
"Dear Cindy and CVOA, Thank you so much for your donation to the Telluride Avalanche Dogs! We had a wonderful time at the museum presenting to the group. I thought the evening was full of fun and it was great to see so many faces.... The donation will go into a medical bank for our avalanche dogs, and for that we are extremely grateful. Telluride is a long way from Sugarloaf but I find that our two mountains share a special existence.... perhaps due to the folks and the environment. When you return, please let us know and don't hesitate to come by.
Hope your winter continues to bring snow and smiles. All the best, Kim Richard, Telluride Avalanche Dogs"
From their website, www.tellurideavalanchedogs.org/clients, I learned that shortly after our visit, "Wiley, 9 years old, was involved in a
collision while at work, and had to be taken immediately to the Telluride Vet Clinic for multiple stitches and repair to both his paws.... Thanks again goes to all of our donors for their contributions into our medical fund ...." - making our donation even more relevant.
~ Cindy Foster, Telluride Trip Leader
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Maine Huts and Trails offers a $10 discount on the cost of an annual Maine Huts & Trails membership to all CVOA members. Use the code "CVOA" online, or contact MH&T.
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Newsletter Editor
Our newsletter is read by over 60% of our members, and it works as a valuable took in planning events, and by increasing participation. After two years of putting out the newsletter, I would like to pass the job on to another member. It is time for new input to keep the newsletter vibrant; this secretary is losing interest.
The editor should be comfortable using and have a computer, PC or Mac, and have access to the internet. We use Constant Contact; the newsletter templates are already created, and the web-based software is easy to use. The editor gathers articles from officers and trip leaders, does minimal editing, and enters the content into the newsletter template on Constant Contact.
Please consider becoming part of the CVOA leadership team, and sharing the work load with us. To find out more about it, give me a call at 237-3711 or reply to this email.
~ Cindy Foster, CVOA Secretary and Newsletter Creator
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Sugarloaf from the Northwest, January 30, 2017 - taken by Glenn Bickford from the deck of his Eustis Ridge home.
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Do you have a photo suitable for "Photo of the Month"? Are you a CVOA member? If so, send your photo to: Cindy Foster, Newsletter Editor -
cvoa.secretary@gmail.com.
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Carrabassett Valley Outdoor Association
Valley Crossing #6
Carrabassett Valley, ME 04947
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