Springtime, Convention-time Are Here Agoin for Deqlers

Springtime-and convention-time-are upon us again. April will be a busy month for most of us, what with the N-AWLA annual at White Sulphur Springs, \Arest Va., April2l-23; the SCRLAnnual in Los Augeles, April 19-21, LMA's Yosemite annual, Aprll 24-26; the Northern California Section meeting of FPRS in San Francisco, April 28-29; the Arizona Retail Lumber & Builders Supply Assn. annual in Phoenix, April 2&29; the Spring meetrng of the Northwest Hardwood Assn. in Eugene, April 15-16, plus probably a few others we haven't heard about as we go to press in this, the middle of March.

Naturally, nobody, not even master magician Houdini, could hope to hit them all. Fortunately, though, attendance at just one of these meetings will accomplish the purpose. And that purpose, of course, the betterment of the lumber industry through a free exchange of ideas, and a chance to add your voice to the thousands of others behind these associations, all geared to one motive . the Promotion of Wood.

For Northern California dealers, suppliers ancl lumbermen, the time to add their voice, their support, to The Cause will be at the Lumber Merchants Assn. annual Yosemite convention at the Ahwahnee hotel, Sunday, April 24, through Tuesday, April 26. Several new innovations have been added to the LMA program this year, including an improved program for the ladies, attendance drawings for the business meetings, and a cousiderably "beefed-up business program centered around the popular "roundtable," or workshop, idea.

There will be three, possibly four, of these "roundtable" sessions at which dealers, sawmill representatives, wholesalers, distributors, hardware and building materials distributors, and manufacturers will all have their day in "court."

"\Mhat Can We Do to Help Each Other?" will be one of tl-re sessions. Another, a dealer session covering (1) How to Service the Weekend Builder . . Profitably, (2) Opportunities in Component Construction, and (3) Employee Compensation and Incentives.

A third session will include on its panel a retailer, a building materials manufacturer, a hardware distributor and a building materials distributor. A fourth session, dubbed the "Afternoon Little Theater," will feature four of the latest sound films on new products, new trencls ancl successful merchandising.

On the lighter side of the program, the Association will again schedule the Wawona Golf Tournament on Sunday afternoon, the popular l.umberjack's Breakfast in Firefall Meadows Monday mornipg, an Industry-Sponsored Cocktail Party for each of the three evenings, plus dinner dancing and entertainment both Monday and Tuesday evenrngs.

All this, on top of the natural beagty of Yosemite National Park, should make this-the 20th annual Lumber Merchants Association of Northern California conventionone of the most successful in L\{A annals.

Northern California Dealers Named To Convention Committee

The dealers who will serve with Executive Vice-President Jack F. Porneroy on the Conventi,on Committee for the 2fth annual of the Lumber Merchants Assn. of Northern California, at the Ahwahnee hotel, Yosemite National Park, April 24-26, are CHARLES DART, chairman, K-Y Lurnber Co., Fresno; EDWARDS METCALF, King Lumber Co., Bakersfield; DICK CROSS, Cross Lumber Co., Merced; STEVE ROSS, Central Lumber Co., Hanford; DUKE ROHLAND, Sylvan Lumber Co., Citrus Heights, and LMA President FRANK HEARD, Motroni-Heard Lumber Co., Woodland.

Reservations are now being accepted and should be <lirected to Association headquarters. 24 California Street. San Francisco.

43rd SCRLAnnuql to Bring Deoler-lAembers Into Focus With Pqrticipotion Progrom

E,xecutive Vice-Presiderut Orrie W. Hamilton, President Gilmole W. Ward and the ofiicers ancl directors of the Southern California Retail Lurnber Association are planrring a New Look for lumber dealer conventions with the .l3rd annual of the association in the Ambassador hotel, Los Angeles, April 19-21. The main purpose this year will be to bring the member dealers new ideas that will help them to operate their yards more profitably with all segments of tl-re industry pooling their know-how to make those pr<,rlits grow.

The exhibit this year, in adclition to the eagerly awaitecl new products and ecluipment, will include some brand new services designed to rehabilitate the retail yard operation rvhen the dealers put them to work.

A greater auclience participation is planned for the 43rd annual meeting, with several programs to include discussions, visual aicls, a playlet and, of course, the stimulating qnestions from tl"re floor. Tl-re speakers have been engaged with ar.r eye to their modern itleas ancl proven-prolit theories.

The tentative program, late in IVIarch, inclucled a l-rumorous talk by the popular California humorist, Stary Gange, at the Kick-Off lttucheon; a Pioneer's bieakfast inangurating the Pioneer Lumbermeu's Club of California, at which the SCRLA will award scrolls to veteran lumber and materialmen making thenr lifetime members; tlie Playlet on Wholesale-Retail problems and suggested solutions ; a Management Workshop, at a luttcheon sessiott, which so far includes Dealers Norbert Bundschuh, Ed Stoner, Jr., Bill Cowling, Jr., J. Eric Beckstrorn and Ed Ludwick, and the annual Hoo-Hoo and Hoo-Hoo-Ette luncheon, which will include the Fashion show and a presentation by Wally Kennedy of Fresno of how the San Joaquin Valley HooHoo Club 31 won tremenclous national acclaim with its Woocl Promotion program, called "Our Daddy Is a Lumberman."

The sensational docun.rentary preparetl by l-ook Magazine, "NIr. Dealer, Look in the Mirror," first shown at the 1959 NRLDA Exposition in Cleveland, is expected to be shown, as well as some outstancling special film by Wood Conversion Company, The Celotex Corp. and others'

As if this were not already spectacular enough a program for anv 3-dav convention of lumber dealers and associate inclustiy meir-rber., Orrie Hamilton's program_ committee has arranged for some brilliant evening entertainments: Milton Berle will be the star when the conventiotr moves irrto the Cocoanut Grove of tl-re hotel for tl-re final evening. The evening before, for the annual Bancluet, they have (Continued on Page 48)