Big Sir Sez,
May 2025
Recently the SIR Branch 8 BEC, reviewed and approved the updated Distinguished Service Award (DSA). This award has been revised to honor the memory and spirit of the late State SIR President and Big SIR of Branch 8, Ed Benson.
The updated DSA award information will be updated on our website and presented in an upcoming the luncheon meeting. Criteria for selection has been modified to reflect on a branch member, who has contributed to the success of the branch, through a single or multiple contributions.
A nomination committee will be formed to monitor the sponsor selection process, applications and approval procedures. The Big SIR and BEC committee will assist in overseeing the process and vote on the DSA nominees approval or rejection.
In the past, the SIR Branch 8 membership has not taken the time to recognize a member that have gone “above and beyond “.
Give it some thought🤨
Please read and familiarize yourself with the DSA or other branch awards.
Let’s start recognizing our members and their efforts.
Contact me with any questions.
Thanks for your ongoing support and participation.
Tom
April 2025
Since the later part of 2024 until now, SIR Branch 8 has had a need for a Chairman and committee to guide the Public Relations / Image / Marketing Activities. I want to say a “Special Thank You” to Greg Konsavage, Dan Crowley, George Vogt and Steve Schramm for “stepping up “ to assist in forming and guiding this extremely important committee. Mike Frey, Dan Smith and I attended their first meeting, we will assist, as much as they need us, because the Activity is “off and running”!
There has always been a lot of discussion on how to increase the membership numbers. It is now time to recognize that as a SIR Branch, we need to do a better job of promoting and marketing SIR. That is why we have added Marketing to the Committee name.
You will start to see more marketing from the state, thru advertising, promoting SIR.
As Big SIR, I am taking the direction of “Let’s give it a try”! There is no idea, thought or activity, that should not be discussed for possible “moving on it”. A couple more members to serve on the committee would certainly help in organizing and coordination of the activities.
We will need SIR Branch 8 members to volunteer for the upcoming events / activities. The committee is working on participating in festivals, such as the Walnut Creek Art & Wine @ Civic Park, Pleasant Hill Art & Wine @ Crescent Drive and Concord Spring Fest @ Todos Santos Plaza, plus Farmers Markets.
Let’s support the Public Relations / Image / Marketing Committee and their Activities.
Be ready! Information will be coming out soon on times, schedules to be filled & locations.
What’s the best way to increase the membership?
“Meet and Greet” – Tell them about SIR and Branch 8!
Thx
Tom
March 2025
By now all of the SIR Branch 8 members should have received, and hopefully opened, an Email regarding the results from the recent LDL survey.
It was terrific that 78% opened the Email, but after opening, only 33% clicked on the survey link, and then 66 of the 71 members completed the survey!
It’s difficult to understand as a membership, that we struggle to obtain at least a 65% – 75% response, with a short survey. I understand that possibly only the members that voted, have been attending the LDL luncheons recently or in the past. They wanted to make their voices heard, the purposed changes will reflect those results.
The BEC will discuss these changes at the upcoming April meeting, eliminating the June LDL lunch ( have a normal monthly luncheon , with speaker) and move to 1 “upscale” / “gala” event in December. Our hope is that more members will give this event a chance, sign up to attend with your spouse, partner or sufficient other. Give it a try!
Keep in mind, anything can be adjusted, “tweaked” or changed, just communicate and participate😉!
Thx for your continuing support,
Tom
Big SIR Branch 8
February 2025
Last week the ACC committee sponsored and held a breakfast meeting with the Activities Chairmen and some BEC members. The meeting had a structured agenda, that had Activity Chairman discussing member participation in their activity and how to increase the interest in that activity.
There was also time allotted for the Chairman to participate in “Breakout Sessions” with a ACC committee member. This was the Best! Unbelievable communication and energy was the hi-lite of the meeting. In fact, they were still going strong when time ran out.
The ACC committee is in the process of compiling all the information form the meeting and “Breakout Sessions “. This information will be summarized and passed on to the Branch.
One item that has come out of the meeting, is the urgency of the membership to update any personal and emergency information with SIR Branch 8 and with any Activity Chairman that you are participating in.
A “Special Thanks” to the ACC Committee (Mike Frey, Ken Main, Dennis Mierzwa, Chick Lowry) for an awesome job of arranging a meeting, that certainly will assist grow our Activity participation and membership.
Are you participating in an Activity? Why not join one today? Thanks for all your support!
Tom
January 2025
In a past Little SIR Hotline article, I had referred to SIR members in BR8 to get involved. We need more participation from the membership to “step up” with assisting in leadership roles. “It’s Your Branch”!
Well, the need is here in 2025 to fill some of these position.
There is an immediate temporary position open to assist our treasurer, Peter Shapiro, with the May and possibly the June luncheons. He will be out of town.
Assistance will be needed to collect funds for the luncheon, record attendance and distribute meal selection. Looking forward, if you have some Excel skills, may turn into an Assistant Treasures position 😉.
The SIR BR8 priority positions include:
Public Relations Chairman & Assistant Chairmen.
With the focus on increasing membership and getting the SIR organization out there, these marketing positions are at the top of our list.
A Constant Contact Directorship / Administrator is needed to assist with the ever growing “Active” Member Email service. Assisting and sharing responsibilities with the Attendance Secretary and Assistant Attendance Secretary, with tasks related to Luncheon Attendance, Sign up Forms, Miscellaneous Emails and Constant Contact Surveys.
Do you like to travel?🙂
A Chairman is needed to “head up” the BR8 Traveling SIR’s activity. Working with another branch helps the activity flow a little easier.
Like to work with computers?🤨
We need an Assistant System Manager to work with Dan Weller on BR8 data and various system aspects.
What an opportunity!
Get involved👍
Thanks for your support!
Tom
Little Sir Sez,
May 2025
Little SIR Sez
We have been spending time looking to ensure that our luncheons are rewarding. We realize that this is what brings our members back. The food needs to be good and whatever is presented must be of value. Our June luncheon replaces a Ladies Day Luncheon. We are putting more effort into the December LDL to hopefully make that a better event leading into the holidays. And we have what we hope for the June luncheon will be special for us, especially for the storytellers among us. We have not yet chosen the icebreaker questions that we will give to you. This will be done.
Having described this, what happens when recorded becomes the keystone for how we promote SIR. Articles and pictures go into the Hotline and onto our website. We can always use more pictures. I thank Meng Horng and Dan Crowley for the pictures they send to us. You can do this, too. Please send us those shots at what is happening at the other activities. It is a really good way to connect with prospective members.
Looking forward we will be hearing about three different organizations for which their finances have been impacted for one reason or another. They are BART, Food Bank, and Meals on Wheels (MOW). The Branch has, of course, been supporting Food Bank. There may also be opportunities to support MOW like Food Bank, by getting engaged. This is not fund raising.
Dan Smith
Little SIR
April 2025
We are truly fortunate in having a diverse membership with many different backgrounds and interests. These members can share with us life experiences that engage and interest us. Roger Lamm presented an accounting of a trip wherein he and his son visited 7 of the 12 very distinct, primitive tribes that reside in the Omo River valley of southern Ethiopia. This was not a Tauck tour. They were tribal people that opted to retain their customs as opposed to modernize (except that I did see a cell phone hanging on one guy). If you attended the April luncheon, you were exposed to a fascinating accounting in the history of mankind. My question to myself was, “Is this where we came when they say that human civilization is out of the cradle of Africa.”
In quick review of the tribes that Roger and his son visited, using Roger’s description:
With the Hamer tribe, Roger’s camping host “was a nice man, the tribal chief, who had killed nine people and had three wives.” Their coming of age ceremony, jumping on the backs of bulls, and women asking to be whipped, was truly directly out of the National Geographic magazine of old.
Nyangaton women “wear adornments of things we throw away, like old watch bands.”
Karo members “paint white and black geometric designs on their bodies.”
Dasanach “appear to be the poorest based upon their housing, their cattle, and their children’s clothing, or lack thereof.”
Mursi are famous for their “lip plates.”
Dorsi weave everything “including 20-foot-tall huts, shaped like elephant’s heads.”
Konso live in “densely populated, stone enclaves.”
Next, we shift gears and learn how one of our communities is addressing a current issue. We are pleased to have Sue Noack, mayor of Pleasant Hill presenting about the changes in housing we see happening around us. Sue states, “In an attempt to reduce the lack of housing in the state and more specifically in the Bay Area, many new state mandates and laws have been enacted along with new processes to require cities to plan for more dense housing. The presentation will attempt to explain the processes and the rationale behind them. In addition, the presentation will discuss what affordable housing truly is and the continued difficulties in meeting the demand.”
I hope to see many of you at our May luncheon. I think that we can learn from what Sue has to say.
Best,
Dan Smith – Little Sir
March 2025
As Little SIR, my basic active function other than backing up the big SIR, is to ensure that this organization is running smoothly. So, when we tore apart the audio-visual arrangement at the luncheon, that’s not right and action is required to prevent this happening again. Also, when the laptop’s battery died, ending the speaker’s slide show, that is an issue that demands a fix. Our speaker, John Mercurio of East Bay Regional Parks did not let our issues bother him. When the system failed because of the battery, he shifted into questions and answers, which worked well for the members. Afterwards, we are addressing the issues behind these faults to prevent this happening again. This includes ensuring the those seated in the back of the room can hear the presentation. Yes, we apologized to John, who has been very gracious about this and may
even join in with our hikers.
The branch is also dealing with the Ladies Day Luncheon arrangements, which will be discussed by Big SIR, Tom De Grande. Naturally, Tom has my support on this matter. We hope to make this a better, go to type of event.
It is, of course, the activities that give this organization purpose. We use our website,
https://www.sirbr8.com/, and our newsletter, the Hotline which is accessible within the website, to get the word out. These sources can be easily viewed by members as well as by visitors who may have interest in joining us. We want to attract those visitors and give them the opportunity to join us. They may want to join an activity like a hike. We encourage that as an introduction to what we do. Or they may want hear a certain speaker at a luncheon. I am aware from having been editor for the Hotline, that not all activities receive equal billing. This is really a function of how diligent the chairman is about updating what is happening. And the updates are a function of how often the activity gets together. Frequency is not an issue.
What was an issue, and has been addressed by the Activities Coordinating Committee, is
whether the articles describing the activities had become stale. Or if updates were being
published in the Hotline. Submitting your articles to Hotline@Sirinc3.org provides us with this valuable information, both for the Hotline and the website. Also, if you in your activity do something that is worth taking a picture, we would like for you to share that.
Finally, our speaker in April will be member Roger Lamm, who will be talking about the National Geographic Before Television. I figure that many of us recall families having libraries of National Geographic magazines and that very old articles could become interesting again.
Best,
Dan Smith – Little Sir
February 2025
I am curious as to whether any of our members might join the Contra Costa County Search and Rescue team. We heard Jon Kalan talk about this organization, which is all volunteer and some 200 members strong. Certainly, there are physical qualifications to be met. I felt that Jon gave a very thorough explanation of what SAR does, including a couple of case experiences. Jon was a little frustrated with us because we could not get the audio for his videos working on our new laptop. But, as Jon did his presentation, I do not believe that this issue was evident.
Our March speaker will be John Mercurio, a director with the East Bay Regional Parks.
Last month I spoke of the videos were made of each of the four sessions of our recent End of Life (ELP) presentations. The Branch intends to make these videos available after they are edited. Look for this, soon. Our intent is to help membership become aware of the choices they have for living arrangements as we age. I am certainly aware that most of us, the statistics state 95%, want to live our lives out in our homes. We are not the only organization providing this information, as the various senior centers in our community also delve into this. The point is we should all have a game plan in mind as we age.
That brings me to another point. When we contact membership about dues, we inevitably find that some of us are dealing with a health issue or they our taking care of a loved one dealing with an issue. Also, we see each other at the luncheons and/or at the activities we pursue. When someone falls out, we get concerned about their wellbeing. We would like to know about your situation. Letting the chairman of the activities you participate in or Membership Secretary, Rich Knowles (grichthek@gmail.com) know is always appreciated. After all, this was one of the motivating forces behind ELP.
Best, Dan Smith – Little Sir
January 2025
I hope you got to listen to our speaker, Andrew Parrott, talk about the various factors one may consider with the market going forward. It was interesting that so much of the current market growth has been vested in a small group of hi-tech companies. I heard Andrew refer to them as the “magnificent seven.” Whatever, Andrew did provide us with a parallel report titled “The Great Moderation: Riding a Wave of Economic Stability.” If you would like a copy of this report, whether you attended the luncheon or not, email me at dns.lns02@astound.net.
I learned a lesson in the face of this luncheon. Boundary Oak was starting to serve lunch and our speaker had not shown up. I was getting worried. What a way to start out being Little SIR. Andrew arrived just in time, as he was targeting noon. My lesson, make sure I communicate when to arrive to our speakers.
There is another lesson stemming from a current event involving the Branch that I will share with all. Videos were made of each of the four sessions of our recent End of Life presentations. The Branch intends to make these videos available after they are edited. Unfortunately, one file was lost in this process. It is being remade, at a cost, so that we will have the complete set. The lesson for all of us is, “back it up.” We are dealing with Murphy who has a cruel but wise hand. This Murphy Law is, “Whatever you really value will be lost.” Whenever you do something in this wonderful electronic world of ours, make sure that you back it up.
Our next speaker will be Jon Kalan, representing the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team (CoCoSAR). The CoCoSAR team consists of about 200 professionally trained searchers under the direction of the Contra Costa County Sheriff Emergency Services Division. The team is made up of unpaid volunteers with extensive, specialized search & rescue and medical training. Would you want to join them? Come to the luncheon and listen.
Best,
Dan Smith – Little Sir
last updated 05/25/2025 by MLF
