November – December 2009

Downeasters

Win

Northeast District Championship Northeast District Most Improved Chorus...1st Place Northeast District Plateau AA Champion.....1st Place Overall Northeast District Champions..........1st Place Director of the Most Improved Chorus….Jack Baggs

Northeast District Novice Quartet Champions..1st Place

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President’s Column

Champs at Last – The never-say-die Downeas-

ters Barbershop Chorus swept the Northeastern

District (NED) Fall Convention Chorus Contest

held at Manchester, CT on October 24th

to win

the title of “2009 NED Chorus Champion”.

Enroute to this title, the Downeasters also col-

lected awards for “Most Improved Chorus” and

the “Plateau AA Champion”. Our Director, Jack

Baggs, received the “Director of the Most Im-

proved Chorus” award. The Downeasters have

earned the right to be the NED Representative to

the International Chorus Competition in Philadel-

phia in July 2010. This is the first time in its 60

year history that the Downeasters Chorus has

made it to the International Stage.

The above accomplishment was the result of the

dedication by the members of the Competition

Chorus (CC)to the terms and conditions of the

agreement between themselves and the Music

Team Leaders. Given the competent musical di-

rection of Jack Baggs, strong support by task-

master, Bill Peterlein, excellent coaching by

Steve Tramack, and the fine tuning by Joe Baggs

with our presentation, the CC melded itself into a

competitive unit. They believed themselves to be

“Champions” before they took the stage at Man-

chester. Following their performance, the Down-

easters knew from the audience response that

they were contenders. The countdown was excit-

ing and complete with anticipation. When Provi-

dence was announced as No. 2, the entire au-

dience erupted into an uproar of cheers and loud

applause as the announcement came – “..and now

for your 2009 NED Chorus Cham-

pion…..Portland, Maine”. The end of 60 years of

waiting was over!!

Not only did the Downeasters win awards, our

youth quartet, $1800 Dollar Shoes, won the 2009

NED Novice Quartet trophy. In this issue is an

article about this unique quartet and its award

ceremony.

Elsewhere in this issue there is a listing of the

2010 Chapter Officers. The procedure for identi-

fying these future leaders was initiated very early

in the current year by the President‟s appointment

of a Nominating Committee. Through the process

of succession planning, the incumbent officers

were each charged with identifying a chapter

member whom they considered had the interest

and potential for performing the duties of their

office. In some cases, the incumbent chose to re-

main in that office. The candidate members, and

those incumbents choosing to remain in office,

were further interviewed by one or more nomi-

nating committee members. Following the proce-

dures set forth in the Standard Chapter Bylaws,

chapter elections were held in October to vote on

the names in nomination on the Committee re-

port, or on any opposing names submitted during

the election process.

The next major challenge for the Downeasters

CC is the Battle of the Blends which takes place

on Saturday, November 7th

at the Franco-

American Center in Lewiston, ME at 7:30 PM.

This is an annual event sponsored by the Maine

Music Society. It is a competition between six (6)

invited a cappella groups from within and outside

of Maine. The Downeasters is the first male bar-

bershop chorus invited to compete in the 16 years

of this event. The “Battle” is an excellent oppor-

tunity for the public, and other singing groups, to

become better acquainted with our unique style of

a cappella music. The benefit to the winner is

„bragging rights” for that competitior‟s art form.

We will be performing our NED Championship

package plus 3 other numbers.

Continued on pg3

President’s Column continued

Current plans are to hold the banquet for installa-

tion of the 2010 Officers at the Sacred Heart

Church, 326 Main Street, Yarmouth. Mark your

calendars for Saturday, January 16th

for this

event. The program will be similar to previous

years with a potluck dinner. More info will be

forthcoming.

2009 has been a very busy year, as we envisioned

it would be; but, it also has been a tremendous

year for significant growth of the Portland Chap-

ter in many categories. The membership roles

have reversed: more than twice as many active (at

least part time) as inactive (full time). Our major

fundraising events have resulted in very positive

revenue increases, leaving the chapter in a com-

fortable position of solvency at year‟s end. More

importantly, the improvements in our singing

quality have brought us to the Top amongst our

peers in NED. Already the Downeasters are sens-

ing a level of prominence in our familiar sur-

roundings, which radiates when recognized as

Champions.

As we close out this year, I want my fellow

Downeasters and their families to know that it is

all of you who have made our successes in 2009

“our finest moments”. It has been an extremely

rewarding personal experience to work with such

fine gentlemen, from our Board down through the

organization, as your Chapter President. My sin-

cere thanks for giving me that privilege.

Ted

Nov 7- Battle of the Blends Franco

Amer. Ctr. Lewiston 7: PM

Nov 9 Guest Night Auburn (see article)

Nov 12-Board Mtg.

Nov 16 Inter Chapter Meeting 7 p.m. @ UMA

Jewett Hall Auditorium in Augusta

Dec 6 Benefit Concert for Northeast Hear-

ing & Speech 4:PM Portland

Dec 7 Concert First Parish Church Saco

7 PM

Dec 14 Concert Cancer Community Center

7 PM

Dec 21 Concert Woods @ Canco

Congratulations and Thank You

to our incoming officers.

Officers Elected for 2012 President …………………………...Bill Peterlein

VP, Music and Performance………Walt Dowling

VP, Chapter Development …………Cy Kendrick

Secretary………………………...Dave Marstaller

Treasurer……………………………..Larry Bean

Marketing & Public Relations … …Tom Liebert

Board Member At Large …………..Dave Brown

Board Member At Large ……....…....David Cole

Board Member At Large………….…..Phil Gage

A special thank you, from the Downeasaters, to

the present leadership team for all your hard

work in bringing this chapter to its full poten-

tial. Your leadership has brought us to a new

level.

Guest Night

November 9, 2009

The Downeasters are having a guest night at the

First Universalist Church 169 Pleasant St. in

Auburn, ME @ 7 PM November 9th

This venue was chosen because we feel that there

are many men in the Lewiston/Auburn area who

would love to be introduced to barbershop har-

mony. They just don't know it yet.

In light of our becoming the 2009 Northeastern

District Champion Chorus, we hope all the inac-

tive and former members as well as guests will

fill the vestry of the church with song.

A fun night is planned with chorus and quartet

performances as well as plenty of singing for all.

If you are not an active member, please come. If

you are an active member, don't miss this oppor-

tunity to make some new friends. We will need

all the "Riser Buddies" we can get. See you on

Nov. 9.

Downeasters Barbershop Chorus

Greater Portland Chapter

P.O. Box 48, Yarmouth, ME 04096 (207) 846-6841

www.downeasters.org

Downeasters Leadership for 2009

Ted Tracy………………………………………. President

Bill Peterlein….……..……...VP, Music and Performance

Cy Kendrick……..…..….………VP, Chapter Development

Dave Marstaller.……...……..…………………..Secretary

Larry Bean………………………………………Treasurer

Ted Tracy…...…..…….………..……….Delegate to NED

Carl Cappello ……………..……………....Past President

Jack Baggs……………………………………… Director

Dwight Pensiero………....……..…………....Librarian

Richard Roberge…….….…Marketing & Public Relations

Walt Dowling….……………………….Chorus Manager

Tom Liebert………………….……………….Webmaster

Dwight Pensiero………………...Board Member At Large

Dave Brown….….……….…….Board Member At Large

Al Sargent …………………….Board Member At Large

Wally Duplessie…….………Downeast Soundings Editor

4 Deer Lane, Windham, ME 04062

wduples620@aol.com

Word has gotten out that the Downeasters are

singing well and having a great time.

We have four new members since new members

were last reported.

Jim Curtis (Bari) of Bidgeton, ME and Bruce

Sturgis (tenor) of Minot, ME joined our ranks

in time to work with us and help us win the NED

Chorus Championship in Manchester, Ct.

Miles Hunt (lead) of Oxford, ME, and Arnie

Jordan (bass) of Greenwood, ME have recently

applied for membership and are great additions to

the chorus.

We have also had recent guests who we hope find

the Downeasters to their liking.

These guests include Bill Herlihy, Tere Porter,

Gerry Barnicle, and Hank Manseau. The

Downeasters extend a warm welcome to all these

gentlemen.

David Brown joins Back Bay Four

With his quiet demeanor an unassuming man-

ner, one might be surprised at the exciting new

sound of the Back Bay Four Quartet with David

Brown as tenor.

Earlier this summer, David accepted an invita-

tion to audition for the BB4. Robb Sorensen, Jay

Wiley, and Walt Dowling were excited, both at

the possibility of David joining and later, when

he became BB4‟s tenor.

David is an engineer, working with the Whole

Foods Company. He lives in Raymond with wife

Kathy. He has sung with the Downeaster Chorus

for approximately eight years.

Timing was perfect in terms of future commit-

ments. BB4 had qualified in the spring Granite

and Pine Division Contest to sing on the NED

District Contest in Manchester, CT in October.

There would be plenty of time for David to be-

come familiar with BB4‟s contest repertoire prior

to the District Contest.

The person who coined the phrase, “plan for the

unexpected” was wise beyond his/her years.

Shortly after joining The Four, David had a bi-

cycle accident and broke his hip. After a quick

operation to prevent further damage, David was

shelved for a few weeks.

However, David sang his inaugural concert with

BB4 October 3rd

as part of the Brunswick-

Nor‟easters Annual Show. His melodious tenor

fit right in with the quartet and caused many very

positive comments about the sound which was

created.

And finally, David has recovered sufficiently to

make the commitment to sing with the quartet on

the District stage in October. It‟s an exciting new

blend and sound.

Many congratulations, David, on your new sing-

ing position, but more importantly on your recov-

ery from a broken hip.

Welcome to the Back Bay Four.

American Harmony Wins

Best Documentary!

At the San Diego Film Festival on September 26, American Harmony, the Movie, took home the award for Best Documentary! The best part? The votes came almost entirely from regular festival attendees, as there were only approximately three barbershop-pers in attendance! The movie has also been nominated by the Independent Documentary Association for an Alan Ett Award, for "Best Musical Documen-tary of 2008," and has received the following awards: the Audience Award, Runner-up Feature Documentary, Sedona Film Festival; Winner, Golden Ace Award, Las Vegas Film Festival; and Winner, Silver Lei Award, Ho-nolulu Film Festival. Details about the movie can be found on the American Harmony website, the Facebook Fan page, and the release schedule pin map. You can also keep up with announce-ments on Twitter by following @americanharmony.

On The Go will be performing at the Waldo

Theater on Nov. 7 along with several other acca-

pella groups in what is a yearly event. The pro-

gram starts at 6:30 to benefit is for the Youth Arts

Program of Waldoboro. The quartet will attempt

to make it to Auburn in time to perform in The

Battle of the Blends, later that evening

OLD TIMERS MEET

The Over The Hill Gang met at Pat‟s Pizza in

Yarmouth on Oct. 21 for their fourth and last lun-

cheon of the year.

Attending for the first time were Bob Fow-

ler,Ed Headley, and Peter Johnson.

Also present were Dave Sweet,Marshall

Wagner,Lin Billings,Al Phillips,Al Payson, and

Dick Wheeler.

Wayne Newton,the luncheon's co-host, had to

attend an out of state funeral and was unable to

attend. He sent his regards to the troops.

Luncheons will resume in April

Submitted by "Father" Dick Wheeler

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -- Edwin Joseph 'Ed' Jud

Edwin Joseph Jud, 95 PORTLAND -- Edwin Jo-

seph 'Ed' Jud died peacefully on Oct. 12, 2009, at

the Maine Veterans' Home in Scarborough. As an

engineer, Ed worked for the Quaker Maid Food

Co. and progressed to heading up the design de-

partment at Colgate Palmolive Co. and later

worked as a manufacturer‟s rep for Colonial Iron

Works.

Ed was a member of the Harmony (SPEBSQSA)

and according to his obituary “His love for boat-

ing was matched only by his passion for singing.

From those early years in New Jersey until he

was 94 years old, he sang regularly in a Barber-

shop Quartet wherever he could find one and ap-

peared in many local productions over the years.”

He was a long time SPEBSQSA member and

with the Downeasters until about two years ago.

A memorial service will be held in Portland on

Nov. 21, 2009, location to be announced. For ad-

ditional information, please contact Jones, Rich &

Hutchins Funeral Home at (207) 775-3763, 199

Woodford St., Portland.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

INTER CHAPTER MEETING NOV 16

The Waterville Chapter is hosting an inter chapter meeting on Nov. 16 7 p.m. at the UMA Jewett Hall Auditorium in Augusta. To defray expense for rent and refreshments, we are asking $2 per member registration fee. As our music director, Dave Stevenson, will be absent that day, we have prevailed on Bangor's Russ Vanarsdale Jr. to organize and conduct the meeting. We look forward to another great singing jamboree! Chad Arms for Darrin Cates and Tim Giroux

So long and Thanks for the Ride

Writing is not my forte but I did make an effort to

motivate, inspire, and occasionally ramble, about

the virtues of Public Relations and Marketing.

Fortunately, I came in to this position as a volun-

teer filling a post that hereto-with had never ex-

isted. I had a blank palette so to speak, and a

budget to experiment, with what might work (or

not) and experiment it was. Quite an experience

too, I might add. There was the never ending ex-

planation of trying to justify why articles (which

are free press releases) did not make it to the

news media (at the editor's discretion) but ironi-

cally the paid advertising did. But the joy and re-

ality of seeing the successes in membership

growth, the contacts made on behalf of the chorus

and the real fun in designing poster art, or lining

up new venues and expanding our fan base. For

this I will always be grateful to the past and

present Boards for expressing their confidence in

me, and to all of the chorus members for the sup-

port and the honor of Barbershopper of the Year.

Now it is time to pass the baton and we are very

fortunate to have found one of our own, who is

not only an accomplished writer, but very adept

at web design, indeed having already updated our

web site to the useful tool it can be. Tom Liebert

is one of our relatively new members who has

jumped in with both feet. as your new

PR/Marketing VP and as our web page contact. I

am pleased and excited about the possibilities that

exist with Tom at the helm. I think you will be

well served, and I feel that the job of

PR/Marketing is in excellent hands. Please thank

Tom personally for taking on this responsibility

and offer your support as I will. With best wishes

to Tom, Richard Roberge (Short timer) VP PR/Marketing

Singing Waiters on Hold

The Singing Waiters program that was originally

scheduled for November will not materialize due

to scheduling issues. Instead, a concerted effort

will be made to reach out to several churches as

your present PR/Marketing guy and your next

year's Chorus Director (one and the same)

switches hats. A packet of information and a

mailing list is all ready to be mailed at the end of

the year. The gist of the mailing is to get churches

or other nonprofit groups to contact us and start

to book events for the coming calendar year.

More on this as we get into the new year.

PHOTOS SCHEDULED

I have tentatively scheduled a photographer to

take photos of the competition chorus, then the

entire chorus with all of our trophies. Quartets

have changed and any quartets needing to update

their photos with new members will also have the

opportunity to do so (This will keep our new

webmaster happy).

This would take place on Dec. 7 prior to the Saco

Food Pantry concert.

More to come, but think about adjusting your

schedules to get there at 5PM to get it done be-

fore warm up and before the crowd gets there.

Yours for great PR, Richard

Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

EDITOR NEEDED

Let it be known to all men of good character,

(Any Downeaster) that an opportunity exists to

become the official Editor for our Soundings

Newsletter

As of the beginning of the year 2010, we have

no-one to keep us abreast of news items via our

official house organ. Wally has done a superb job

for 10 years and justifiably feels that he should

"pass it on".

If you have the slightest interest, and you feel that

you might like to know more about the pleasure

of communicating with your esteemed col-

leagues, you could be doing yourself and the

Downeasters a huge favor by stepping up to the

plate.

Since this comes under the purview of

PR/Marketing please respond to me at your earli-

est convenience. Wally has indicated that he will

be happy to share the nuances of "putting it to-

gether" and have you ready for the beginning of

the year.

Fortunately, Tom Liebert is doing an excellent

job of keeping things up to date on our web site,

but there still is no replacement for the pleasures

of a newsletter for all to read, digest and act upon.

To all members: Please really consider this open-

ing as your opportunity to share in the workload,

and as a special thanks to Wally and Dick Whee-

ler who have worked so diligently to keep us all

informed to date. Richard

Cy was born, raised, and lived in Massachusetts

until seeing the light and moving to Topsham,

Maine with his wife, Gail in January of 2007. He

has been a barbershopper for 19 years and wasted

no time in finding the Downeasters after coming

to Maine. Cy is thrilled to be a part of the Nor-

theastern District Championship chorus and looks

forward to many years of fun with the chorus and

his new quartet, Four Baritones, singing with Al

Sargent, tenor, Dave Cole lead, and Carl Cappel-

lo, bari.

Cy‟s other musical experience consists of 25

years of singing with church choirs and 45 years

of listening to the classics, with a special fond-

ness for the Baroque masters, although if stuck on

an island with only one composer to listen to,

he‟d be happy with the Toscanini recordings of

Beethoven‟s symphonies.

Cy is a chemical engineer who worked for Pola-

roid (remember them?) and the US Army at the

Natick Soldier Systems Center (Natick Labs) in

Natick, MA where he worked on new technolo-

gies for chemical protective clothing. Now re-

tired, he enjoys volunteering at the Maine Mari-

time Museum, playing golf, his daily Scrabble

games with Gail, occasionally “pumping iron” at

World Gym, and long walks with Gail and their

four footed companion, Calvin the tennis ball

chasing Papillon.

VISIT OUR WEB PAGE

www.downeasters.org

We have won! We have won!! We have won!!!

I still cannot believe that we have achieved a first

in a lifetime opportunity to sing at Internationals.

It does not yet seem real, but it is!

On behalf of your Music Leadership Team, I

would like to congratulate the Portland Downeas-

ters for becoming the 2009 Northeast District

Champions! You have all worked so hard to

achieve this – please milk every ounce of enjoy-

ment you can muster out of it.

Reflecting on the journey to the top the inevitable

question came up – How did we improve so

much from the 2008 District? Did we develop

better voices? Did we become more musically

adept? Well, maybe, but I truly believe that our

success resulted from a change of attitude. Atti-

tude is defined as a state of mind or feeling with

regard to some matter; disposition. Digging a

little deeper, I believe that our positive attitude

change was induced by our sense that we had

created something special. Knowing that we had

created something special made each of us feel

special in turn. In this state of mind, each of us

was motivated to continue to enhance this spe-

cialness, making us feel even more special and

creating a loop of continual motivation to contri-

bute our very best. This is the stuff of cham-

pions.

As we move forward, let us never forget this

sense of special. Let us continually work to grow

musically as a group. Let us each commit that we

will do the very best for ourselves and for our fel-

low chapter members. Let us go onto the interna-

tional stage and be the champions that we are!

Bill

Port City Sound to represent NED at

Seniors International Convention

Port City Sound-This quartet has qualified

to participate in the mid-winter Seniors

International Convention, scheduled for

Tampa, Florida from January 26-31.

At the recent NED District Convention,

they finished in eleventh place, good

enough to be the mike testers for the quar-

tet finals Saturday evening.

It was the first appearance for Walt

Dowling as Port City Sound Lead. He had

been working with the quartet for about

six weeks prior to the Convention.

The quartet currently is working on ma-

terial for their January date in Florida.

Back Bay Four Quartet

Back Bay Four formed in early 2001 and is made up of members of the Portland Downeasters chorus, Brunswick Nor’easters chorus.

Since then the quartet has performed on the Portland, Brunswick and Waterville annual shows as well as many performances around the state.

We are the Granite and Pine Division Novice quartet for 2002 as well as the Granite and Pine Division Champion quartet for 2007. We have a lot of fun singing for church groups, festivals, fairs, health care facilities and shows. “BB4” enjoys delivering singing Va-lentines in the Portland area each February.

David Brown sings Tenor. David lives in Raymond with his wife Kathy and has two children in college. David is the tenor section leader for the Portland Downeasters chorus. David is a mechanical engineer and works for an architectural firm in Auburn. He likes

cycling, hiking, chain sawing and many other pursuits including transforming into a crazy clown whenever there is a parade.

Walt Dowling sings Lead. Walt lives in Old Orchard Beach with his wife Brenda. Walt is a newcomer to barbershop having started in 1999 with the Portland chorus and singing with the popular Oarsmen Quartet. Walt works part time at the post office and volun-teers in the Emergency Room at Southern Maine Medical Center. He enjoys his child-ren and Grand children as well as kayaking and motorcycle riding with Brenda.

Robb Sorensen sings Bass. Robb lives in South Portland and is originally from Kam-loops, British Columbia. He’s been singing barbershop since 1980 and has been a member of three registered quartets and the Portland Downeasters. Robb is a Certified Registered Nurse in the Mental Health and Substance Abuse Treatment field. He en-joys volleyball, bowling and embroidery.

Jay Wiley sings Baritone. Jay lives in Hal-lowell and has a son Nathaniel. Jay has sung baritone and tenor in a couple of quar-tets and directed the Brunswick Nor’easters Barbershop chorus for ten years. He has been barbershopping since 1991 and direct-ing since 1996. Jay is a design engineer for a company in Portland and enjoys flying ra-dio control model airplanes and he’s also a licensed private pilot.

$1800 Dollar Shoes - 2009 NED

Novice Quartet Champions

At the November 2, 2009 meeting of the Portland

Downeasters Barbershop Chorus, its youth quar-

tet, $1800 Dollar Shoes, was presented the 2009

Northeastern District (NED) Novice Quartet

Champions Trophy. This belated award resulted

from the disqualification of the quartet to whom

the trophy had been presented at the NED Fall

Competition at Manchester, CT on October 24,

2009. Shown in the above photo making the tro-

phy presentation is Curt Roberts, Associate Con-

test Administrator at the NED Fall Contest.

Receiving the trophy are (L to R) Jonas Rimku-

nas,Tenor; Mitchell “Mitch” Perrin, Lead; Ian

Hawkes, Bass; and Andrew “Andy” Ernest, Bari-

tone.

Just who are these young barbershop singers?

They are all 16 year old Juniors at Gorham

High School, who all have the distinction of be-

ing Honor Students. Their interests in singing

originated through their participation in school

musicals, and was further expanded to barbershop

when Jonas, Mitch, and Andy became involved in

private studies with Paul Stickney. Stickney was

also the Lead singer with Majority Rules, a high-

ly talented barbershop quartet in their own right.

In the Fall of 2007, the 3 students encouraged

their good friend, Ian, to join them in learning the

unique style of barbershop singing under Stick-

ney‟s tutelage. The quartet continued their re-

hearsing through 2008, and in early 2009 decided

to become members of the Downeasters in order

to enter the Granite and Pine Division Contest.

Due to a scheduling conflict, the quartet was al-

lowed to compete in the Patriot Division Contest

and scored high enough to be invited to partici-

pate in the NED Fall Contest. It was from this

experience that the quartet made an important

acquaintance with Ray Johnson, baritone singer

with Men In Black, the BHS #9 best quartet. Ray

made special trips to Gorham to coach the quar-

tet.

In preparation for the NED Fall contest, the quar-

tet attended Harmony Extreme, a 3-day seminar

sponsored by NED where they received addition-

al coaching. Next major event was their perfor-

mance in the Semi-finals Contest at the Fall

Competition mentioned above. The audience was

enthralled with their singing and gave them a

standing ovation.

The only other quartet to get a full house standing

ovation was the Championship Quartet in the fi-

nals. Some of the boy‟s family members were in

the audience for the entire contests, and we think

they‟re hooked on barbershop!!

The Downeasters are filled with pride for the

honors bestowed upon its own youth quartet,

$1800 Dollar Shoes. Their award made it a solid

“Clean Sweep” of the NED Fall Competition for

the Portland Chapter. We‟re hoping that the quar-

tet and their Coach, Paul Stickney, will decide to

join us on the risers at the International Contest

in Philadelphia in July 2010.

Downeasters Sing At

The Woods at Canco

September signifies the end of summer. It is

also the beginning of the concert series for the

Downeasters.

We kicked off this season with a concert at The

Woods at Canco on September 14th

. The chorus

performed a number of their repertoire pieces be-

fore a very appreciative audience

A number of quartets rounded out the evening‟s

activities. Port City Sound(Fred Moore, Jim

Simpson and Jack Baggs) made its inaugural

appearance with Walt Dowling as lead. The

Ancient Mariners, with Canco resident Carl

Lerman as Lead, performed two numbers along

with David Brown, Tenor, Carl Cappello, bari-

tone and Ed Headley, bass. An updated Maine

Event Quartet performed four songs with mem-

bers Dave Cole, lead, Al Sargent, tenor, Cy

Kendrick, bass and Carl Cappello, baritone.

"Placement of the following edited minutes in the Soundings is the decision of the Board of Directors as a means of keeping the total chapter membership and other interested parties informed of activities and actions happening with the Port-land Chapter."

BOD- Management Team Meeting

October 8, 2009-7:00 PM at HMS

1. Call to Order- President Ted Tracy called

the meeting to order at 7:02 PM. Also present

were Board members Carl Cappello, Cy Ken-

drick, Dave Marstaller, Dwight Pensiero, Bill

Peterlein, Richard Roberge, and non board

members Jack Baggs and Dave Cole.

2. Secretary’s Report- Dave M. reported that

Arnie Jordan and Miles Hunt, now members

of inactive Hillsmen Chorus, have both sub-

mitted applications for Dual Membership

with the Downeasters. Dave contacted Cy

Ludwig, who has stopped attending rehear-

sals, primarily because he lives at such a dis-

tance, and invited him to join us whenever

possible. B) Dave and Ted will be transport-

ing the risers to the District Competition in

Manchester, Conn. on Oct. 23. The risers will

also be rented to St. John‟s Church in Bruns-

wick on December 6 for an ecumenical sing.

C.) 27 competitors and 11 non- competitors

(wives) have been registered for the Manches-

ter Competition at $35 each ($1330). The

non-competitors fees (385) will be reim-

bursed to the Chorus for a net payout to the

District by the chorus of $945. D) Motion to

approve report (Bill/ Cy). Passed.

3. Treasurer’s Report- Larry (not present)

emailed report. A) The Finance Policies

Rainy Day Fund requires an $8000 balance.

This fund stands at $6300. Should we in-

crease it to $10,000? No decision reached. B).

No members have asked for financial aid for

the Manchester competition. Motion to ap-

prove report (Carl/ Bill) Passed.

4. Music Team Manager’s Report- A). Bill

reported that at the October 12 rehearsal, vid-

eo recordings of the competition numbers will

be made and shown so we can be our own au-

dience and adjust our choreography for max-

imum effect. B). The competition songs for

next year will be Sunny Side of the Street and

Broadway Rose. Auditions will begin as soon

as anyone is ready and end sometime in Janu-

ary. C). Planned performances: 11/7- Battle

of the Blends, 12/6 NE Hearing & Speech,

12/7- Saco Food Pantry, 12/14- Cancer

Community Center, 12/21- Woods at Canco.

D) The Christmas Song List was distributed

on 9/28. E) Motion was made to hold our

2010 Annual Show at Scarborough HS on

May 22, at an approximate facilities cost of

$1840. (Bill/ Carl). Passed. The town/ school

need proof of non-profit status and a copy of

our liability insurance certificate. Larry/ Dave

M. will provide. Motion to approve report

(Carl/ Cy). Passed.

5. Chapter Development Team Manager’s

Report- Cy is in the final editing stage of the

Chapter Handbook. He will email a final ver-

sion to Board members soon. B) The polecat

singing /star program has been refined so that

members know via email who the other quar-

tet members are and what polecat they will be

singing, at least a week ahead. C) A Guest

Night is still planned for 11/9 at the Auburn

Universalist Church. Al is working with Cy

on arrangements .D) Motion to approve report

(Bill/ Carl). Passed.

6. Marketing & PR Team Manager’s Report- Member bios needed for Nov./ Dec. Sound-

ings-Cy, Al, Dwight, Jack. B) Tom Liebert,

our new Webmaster, has already updated and

greatly improved our website. C) Richard has

already made up posters, prominently featur-

ing Acoustix, for our 2010 Show. We plan to

distribute them at any barbershop event we at-

tend, including the Manchester, CT Competi-

tion. D) Dave M. has the “Most Improved

Chorus” trophy. He will get it engraved with

“Portland Downeasters”.E) Motion to ap-

prove report (Carl/ Cy). Passed.

7. Unfinished Business-Video documentary-

Eliza Cole is being paid $46 for a bill submit-

ted for footage of the 2009 Show. The Board

has suggested that the chapter end its in-

volvement with an obligation to Cole Produc-

tions.

8. New Business- A) Waterville will host the

Fall Interchapter Sing at UMA on 11/2. Ted

to inform the host chapter that the Downeas-

ters are unable to participate – need to pre-

pare for the Battle of the Blends Competition

which takes place on Nov.7th. B) We need a

replacement for Wally Duplessie, Soundings

Editor, who is retiring after the Nov/ Dec is-

sue. Downeaster members will be encouraged

by announcements at rehearsals and email no-

tices to consider a

replacement. C) Bill will inquire about having

the installation banquet at the

Sacred Heart Church in Yarmouth again this

year. Ted will serve as MC.

D) A “Thank You” card and note was re-

ceived from Theresa Headley, Ed‟s

Mother, for the enjoyment of seeing a video

of our 2009 Show, and the benefits

she sees Ed receiving as a member of the

Downeasters.

9. Adjournment- Motion (Richard/Cy). Passed.

9:09 PM

10. Next Board Meeting- November 12, 2009 @

7:00 PM at HMS

Respectfully submitted,

Dave Marstaller, Secretary

BOD- Team Management Meeting

September 10, 2009-7:00 PM at HMS

1. Call to Order- President Ted Tracy called the

meeting to order at 7:06 PM. Also present were

Board members Larry Bean, Carl Cappello, Cy

Kendrick, Dave Marstaller, Dwight Pensiero, Bill

Peterlein, Richard Roberge, Al Sargent, and non

Board members Jack Baggs and Dave Burns,

2. Secretary’s Report- a) John Gross has applied

for membership. b) Bay Chamber Concerts of

Camden has rented several of our shells for sev-

eral concerts for a total fee of $1149.60. c) The

Fall District Convention registrations and Contest

Entry forms will be submitted prior to the Sept.

23 early bird deadline. Motion to approve re-

port- Dwight/ Cy. Passed.

3. Treasurer’s Report (Larry)- a) Bill/ Carl

moved to amend the M+P budget to use $1500

from the CF that now resides in a contingency

fund to be used at the Board‟s discretion, for six

coaching sessions. Passed. b) The previously

tabled request for a donation to the Boy Singers

of Maine will be considered along with other

charity requests at a later date. c) Rather than give

each member a certain amount of money for Con-

test, financial aid will be considered on a case by

case basis. Motion to approve report- Al/ Dwight.

Passed.

4. Music Team Managers Report (Bill)- a) New

choreography will be introduced for “Alexan-

der‟s” on Sept. 14. b) Three possible new compe-

tition songs- Broadway Rose, Sunny Side of the

Street, c) Proposed performances- 9/14 Woods at

Canco, 11/7-Battle of the Blends, 12/6 NE Hear-

ing and Speech, 12/7 Cancer Community Center,

12/14 Saco Food Pantry, 12/21 Woods at Canco.

Motion to approve report- Al/ Cy. Passed.

5. Chapter Development Team Manager’s Re-

port (Cy)- a) Final comments are solicited for

revised draft of Chapter Handbook. b) A Guest

Night is being planned for the L/A area soon after

“Battle of the Blends”. Motion to approve report-

Al/ Bill. Passed.

6. Marketing & PR Team Manager’s Report

(Richard)- a) Cy, Al, Dwight, and Jack will pro-

vide bios for Soundings Nov/ Dec issue. b) Tom

Liebert will be asked to head a task force on web-

site development, including a new webmaster.

Motion to approve report- Bill/ Al. Passed.

7. Unfinished Business- a) Shaw‟s Receipt Re-

wards will be a Secretary line item in the budget.

B) Yarmouth CF needs new chapter leadership

for 2010. c) Due to an accident, much of the Cole

digitalized video documentary was lost. We will

let Eliza know we appreciated her efforts even if

we don‟t receive the finished version, or the raw

footage we had been anticipating. d) American

Harmony is posted on Netflix. See Soundings for

details. e) Per our By-laws, the slate of officers

and other board members will be read by the

Nominating Comm. chair on 9/21 and 9/28 and

will be voted on at the annual meeting on 10/5.

Still need one At-Large member.

8. New Business- a) The Hillsmen‟s Director, Pat

Fleck, has resigned.. Future of chapter uncertain.

Some of the Hillsmen may apply for dual mem-

bership with Portland. b) Jack‟s offer to continue

as our Chorus Director in 2010 was enthusiasti-

cally accepted. c) Some of us will be attending

the Seacoast Vocal Union‟s “Opening Night” on

9/26 in Portsmouth. Al Sargent will extend best

wishes from The Downeasters. d) Richard, Dave

C., and Bill will produce posters promoting our

2010 Show for distribution at Fall Convention. e)

The entire 10/12 rehearsal will be for the CC.

9. Adjournment- Motion- Bill/ Al. Passed at 10

PM.

10. Next Board Meeting- October 8, 2009 @ 7

PM at HMS.

Respectfully submitted,

David Marstaller, Secretary