Presidents Letter

The Annual Fund Raiser and Banquet is over. If you attended, I’ll bet money you had a good time. There were some great bargains this year. Especial congratulations to the Candy Bar winners.

Everyone is asking, “How did we do this year?” The final numbers are not in as we still have some outstanding expenses to deal with. However, I can report that our gross revenue was up from last year and expenses we on track with last year, keeping in mind that we had 100 more attendees this year. I expect that in the final accounting, I’ll be able to report a very successful banquet.

Again this year, the Membership Booth was a plus. We recruited several new members and processed the renewals of many existing members. Please be patient. It takes a couple of months for SCI in Tuscon to process the renewals and new memberships.

The outfitters and businessmen that made donations or sponsored some portion of the event, especially the table sponsors, are an indispensable part of the Chapter’s success. Most were listed in the program. I’m sure that in the flurry of activity, somebody was slighted and not mentioned. For this reason, and out of sincere appreciation for our many supporters and contributors, I’ll ask every Chapter member to take a minute and thank them personally.

I would be greatly remiss if I failed to thank our auctioneer. Shane Hall did a great job. Several in attendance remarked upon his focus and fairness. I wish we hadn’t had problems with the sound system during the auction but these things happen and all we can do is deal with them as best we can.

And finally, I want to personally thank the members and supporters that attended this year’s Banquet. Without the financial support of the attendees, the banquet would not have been the success it was. If you purchased a ticket, pat yourself on the back. If you bought a hunt, won a firearm or a silent auction item, or we lucky in the bucket raffles, enjoy that purchase and pat yourself twice. Know that the funds you provide are directly responsible for keeping the pressure on organizations and individuals that would deny us the privilege of our sport and the honor of conserving precious wildlife resources for future generations. Allow me to give my heartiest thank you to all who attended and contributed.

Thank you!

Sincerely,

RA “Pancho” Maples

President, SNM Chapter SCI