Northern Colifornio Lumber ftterchonts Stockpile The Merchondising Ammunition qt lgth Annuql

Presidency of the Lumber Merchants Association of Northern California was bestowed on Frank Heard, Motroni-Heard Lumber Co., Woodland, California, during the closing hours of LMA's 19th annual convention, April 19-21. at the Ahwahnee hotel in beautiful Yosemite National Park. Dealer Heard accepted the presidency with enthusiasm and humility after first paying tribute to Outgoing President Hamilton Knott of Yosemite Lumber Co. in Fresno.

For his faithful and inspiring leadership of LMA during the past two years, Dealer Knott received a surprise gift of a miniature desk and chair set-a replica of a full-sized desk and leather chair set awaiting him back in Yosemite Lumber's new Fresno ofifrces.

Heard, who had served as vice-president under Knott for the past two years, then went on to introduce the man who will fill the association's number two spot, Madera Dealer Elmer Rau, head of Madera Lumber & Hardware. The association's venerable Ira E. Horton, of South City Lumber & Supply in South San Francisco, was again unanimously re-elected treasurer.

The 19th annual LMA convention officially got underway on Sunday, April 19, with a golf tournament at the Wawona Golf Course in Yosemite Park, with President "Ham" Knott and Charlie Dart of K-Y Lumber Co. running the tournament.

Winner of the coveted LMANC low gross trophy was "Shorty" Weaver of Paramino Lumber Co., who bested all efforts with his 26 scorecard. Last year's winner, Visalia Dealer Ray Noble, was unable to be on hand to defend his

OFFICERS & DIRECTORS

Frank Heard, President

Elmer Rau, Vice-President

(New Directors have

Bob Adams

Noah Adams Lumber Co.

Walnut Grove

*Frank Baxley

Brey-Wright Lumber Co.

Porterville

Frank Boileau

Fairfax Lumber Co.

Fairfax

*Bob Cross

Selma Lbr. & Hardware Co.

Selma

Charles Cross, Sr.

Truckee-Tahoe Lumber Co.

Truckee & Tahoe City

C. D. Dart

K-Y Lumber Co.

Fresno

Dale Farrell

Sonoma Mill & Lumber Co.

Sonoma

Cloyd Garner

San Joaquin Lumber Co.

Stockton

Beverly Gibson

Sierra Mill & Lumber Co.

Sacramento

A. W. Hanson

General Lbr. & Supply Co.

Berkeley

Frank Heard

Motroni-Heard Lumber Co.

Woodland

Clair Hicks

Hicks Lumber Co.

Salinas

C. E. Hinshaw

Diamond Gardner Corp.

Chico

*Mel Hirsch

Dolan's Bldg. Materials Co.

Sacramento

I. E, Horton

So. City Lbr. & Supply Co.

South San Francisco

I. E. Horton, Treasurer

Jack Pomeroy, Exec. V-P (*) in front of name)

*Wayne Inman

San Luis Mill & Lbr. Co.

San Luis Obispo

Earle Johnson, Jr.

Watsonville Lumber Co.

Watsonville

Frank Kotey

Home Builders SuPPIY

Lodi

Herb Mabie

Economy Lumber Co.

San Jose

Arthur Martin

Hales & Symons

Sonora

Howard McCulloch

Yosemite Builders Supply

Merced

*John Mensinger

American Lumber Cc.

Modesto

E. H. Metcalf

The King Lumber Co.

Bakersfield

*Sam Nigh

Hebbron-Nigh Lbr. Co.

Santa Cruz

Elmer Rau

Madera Lbr. & Hdwe. Co.

Madera

Duke Rohland

Sylvan Lumber Co.

Citrus Heights

*Steve Ross

Central Lumber Co.

Hanford

*Ed Schlotthauer

Willard Lumber Co.

Fresno

*Al Stockton

A. L. Stockton Lbr. Co.

Daly City

A. B. Wilson

Frank G. Noyes Co.

Napa

Medco's Ed Nave nipped last year's low-net winner Ralph Lamon for possession of the LMANC low net trophy.

Following the tournament was the first of three industrysponsored cocktail parties, held from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. in the Ahwahnee's Indian Room. An informal dinner followed the get-acquainted party.

MONDAY _ APRIL 20

Monday morning dawned with clear blue skies and brilliant sunshine-made to order for the Lumbermen and Lumberladies Outdoor Breakfast, held in the beautiful setting of Firefall Meadows.

_ At 12 Noon, the Ahwahnee's huge main dining room was filled to capacity for the Invocation presented by Dr. James Woodruff,- ancl the President's Welcome bv ttamltton Knott.

_ Following lunch, LMA President Knott presented tl-re first of the -iwo afternoon speakers on the program-Frank

"You've got to change your habit patterns," Lovejoy warned. "Start selling lumber on the basis of its quality rather than its price. Merchandise respect for wood, the many uses for wood, excite the consumer about wood and, most important, don't lose your identity as a lumber dealer.

"Don't stock every item that comes along that competes with lumber. Lumber is where you dealers present have made your success," Lovejoy emphasized.

"The problem is not to produce goods in this country," he stated, "the problem is to sell them. The retail dealer has got to get out and sell. p1i_ting fo_r customers to come into your store is not enough," he declared.

"Put SING in your merchandising and, above all, remember that no sale is really complete until you have made the buyer a salesman for the thing which you've just sold him," the New York City executive concluded.

Dr. Orlo M. Brees followed Lovejoy to the platform. Dr. Brees, public relations director-Western Division for the National Association of Manufacturers. an association of businessmen and industrial concerns representing 85/. ol America's production and 7I/o of her employmJnt, spoke on "What is America?" Dr. Brees deplored the lack of responsibility on the part of the average voter-too complacent, too dependent on the government for his keep. As a result, government spending is today taking one clollar <lut of every three that Americans earn, he noted. The federal budget for the first tirne exceeded one billion dollars way back in the "war year" of 1917, he said. Since that time there lras been a monumental 7500% increase in govern- ment spending while our population has only increased a paltry (by comparison) 74/o.

Brees, a devoted anti-Socialist, urged the American voter to "get down out of the granclstand and on the playing field while there's still time." Too many people are rushing to welfare agencies throughout the country at the slightest excuse. Too many people have come to consider government as a super-entity above the people, capable of SUPPORTING THEM-rather thar.r an irrstrument of the people which must be supported IIY THITN{, he saicl. I)rrring the rrext five years our work force will be increasecl by some 5,000,000 individuals, Dr. IJrees noted, rvhicl-r will necessitate a capital expenditure of some 25 billion clollars on tl.re part of private industry in order to create these jobs.

E. Lovejoy, an inspiring speaker and executive of Socony Mobil Oil Co. of New York City. Lovejoy, while admittedly an "outside" speaker, also had the advantage of being on the "outside-looking-in" when it came to analyzing the many merchandising and operating problems confronting today's retail lumber merchant.

"Put SING in your merchandising," he said, "MerchandiSING is spiritual as well as physical. It should tell your customer of the joy and contentment that comes to him with the ownership of the thing which you are trying to sell him. The lumber industry, like many another, has just come through a prosperous ag'e, an age which has also bred complacency in many quarters," Lovejoy stated. "During this period, too much of the SING has gone out of merchandising," he said.

"There is no place in our econorny, if we are to rnaintain it as we now know it, for bigotry and prejudice," Dr. Brees said in conclusion. "The American Heritage of icleas grouped abont the central concept of the dignity of marr and tl.re worth of the individual, the ideas of equality, responsibility and freedom, can only find its fulfillmerrt when these ideas have become the commor-r possession of all men everywhere.

"For if it is true that all men are created eoual. that men are endowed by their Creator r,r,'ith certain inalienable rigl-rts, that governments are constituted an-ror.rg men to secure these rights, then those statements are true in Rrrssia, Hungary and Cl-rina, India and Egypt, as well as in the U.S.A. Not that we have either the right or the resporlsibility to FORCE acceptance of these ideas upou otl-rer peoples . but it is both our responsibility and our privilege to continue to furnish to the world, through our owlr devotior-r to these ideas, concrete examples of their productivity in happiness and well-beilrg when free men voluntarily associate themselves together in a society rvhere one is for all and all are for one !"

The afternoon session concluded, the Convention moved into the second of its industrv-sDonsored cocktail parties in the Ahr,r'ahnee's main lounge. Dinner, entertairrmeirt featuring the "Onetos," a special spectacular Firefall and dancing irr tl-re Inclian Room concluded the second convention day.

N\\rPP field rnen, such as Prestamou, are contacting architects, buiiders and school districts throttgl.rout the Couutry on tlre behalf of \A-OOD.

Altl-rough Prestamon was enthrlsiastic about results of the campaign thus far, he did note that in contacting architects and builders, Lumber did sulTer to its competition due to its complexity of grades and variety of speciis.

T1.re second speaker was llou'ard Neal, representing National Associates, Inc., LNfA's pensiorr consultauts, u'htr outlined various pension and profit-sharing plans available to LMA members. Each pension arrang'ement, he noted, is tailorecl to suit the neecls of each individual participatirrg comDanv.

The main reason for a pension-type program being the desire on the part of management to treat non-nnion employes eclually as u'ell as union employes, each firm uorv affiliated with LX,IA may, througll using NA's already established trust, enjoy considerable sar.ings r.ron-nally associated with "group buying," he sai<l. Neal noted that NA currently has 50,000 such programs in force. ancl that sonre 10,000 firms are initiating a N'Iaster Trust Pensiorr Progran.r each year. Xlost of these firms, he notecl, fall into the 4 to 50 employee classifi catiorr.

TUESDAY_APRIL 21

At 9:00 a.m. sharp, LMA dealer members, associate members and guests met in the Indiarl Room for a threehour discussion of lien laws, stop notices, bonds, pension plans, profit-sharing plans, promotion of the use of lumber and wood products and other topics of interest to all dealers alike.

The first speaker on the program was Dean Prestamon, West Coast representative for NLMA's National Wood Promotion Program which kicked off last September. Through the use of slides depicting ads which have appeared in consumer, architectural, building and school publications, Prestamon outlined the NWPP to date. In addition to the "Build Better with Wood" advertising program,

The last speaker on the morning program lvas Leo Hubbard, secretary of Hayward Lumber & Investment Co., Los Angeles. Mr. Hubbard, an acknowledged expert in the field of lien laws, extensively reviewed and brought the group up to date on the late changes in these laws. Hubbard also touched on the legal technicalities of usury laws, noting that while a direct loan may only carry a maximum of lo/o interest, any carrying charge may be added at tl-re