President’s Column
M
Rick Lodewyck President
M.A.C. OFFICERS Rick Lodewyck President
Benjamin H. Hulsey First Vice-President Michael York Second Vice-President Sandy Stoner Treasurer Joseph G. Lipic Secretary TERM ENDS 2007 Benjamin H. Hulsey Joseph G. Lipic Rick Lodewyck Sandy Stoner L. Michael York TERM ENDS 2008 G. Scott Engelbrecht Jon Gustafson Carwin B. Lindenbusch David L. Pentland Justin A. Williamson TERM ENDS 2009 W. Thomas Chulick Edward A. Corich Margaret J. May Philip “Flip” Schwarz William A. Springer
embers of the Long Range Planning Committee and the Board of Governors have been busily reading the member survey results, and some things are immediately obvious – the overwhelming majority of the comments have been positive, and it is clear that the members who responded to the survey enjoy their club. There are also an enormous number of suggestions that have been made, and several committee members have taken a lot of their time to distill these suggestions into summaries by area. I’d like to recognize those members who chaired subcommittees for their contributions – Tom Albus chaired Food & Beverage; Bill Conway chaired Programs; Tony Daws chaired Club Life; Mark Levison chaired West facilities; Joe Lipic chaired Finance; Flip Schwarz chaired Membership and Nat Walsh chaired Downtown facilities. We are very grateful for their contributions and for the support of the other Long Range Planning Committee members who assisted them – Melanie Couchman, Don Gunn and Len Ruzicka, and of course for the leadership of Justin Williamson and Carl Harshman. Each subcommittee has produced a summary report of their interpretation of the survey results as applied to their area of concern. We have a number of new ideas that have been advanced by this process, and this input is very timely as we continue to proceed with the definition of renovations that are to be contemplated for our Downtown Clubhouse. In early January there will be a meeting of the Board of Governors and Long Range Planning Committee chairs to prepare an executive summary of the survey results. This summary will be the first step in completing the current strategic plan. Our plan is to publish the 2006 Member/Spouse Survey Executive Summary in the February edition of the Cherry Diamond. Further, within 30 days of the joint Governors-LRP chairs meeting, we plan to create the new Strategic Plan for the M.A.C. It’s been great to be a part of this process of soliciting the input of our more than 3,200 members about their vision for our future. It is apparent to those of us involved in the planning process that we need to stress the value of having each member take an active role in describing his or her vision for the M.A.C. – this is, in fact, YOUR CLUB, and if everyone would take a modest amount of time to contribute input on an ongoing basis, it would make for a healthy and vibrant Missouri Athletic Club. I also ask that you make sure that you are getting The Buffet – the M.A.C.’s weekly e-mail about important activities and news so that you can be reached for communications from the Club. You can send me an e-mail at the address below, and I’ll make sure that you are added to our list. Throughout December both clubhouses were bustling with countless holiday parties, banquets and events. Whether you attended a Rams buffet, enjoyed a holiday dinner or hosted a private party at the M.A.C., we hope that you were able to enjoy the spectacular holiday decorations and the festive atmosphere that is so characteristic of the Missouri Athletic Club during the holidays. The month of December began with the Hermann Trophy Banquet. Despite foul weather and venue relocation, the M.A.C. pulled off the Hermann Trophy Banquet as beautifully as ever. This year the M.A.C. paired with SLU, who hosted the men’s college soccer
Final Four, to present the annual Hermann Trophy on SLU’s campus. The M.A.C. would like to extend a special congratulations to Hermann Trophy winners sophomore forward Kerri Hanks and junior forward Joseph Lapira, both from the University of Notre Dame. The M.A.C. had another major sports function in the middle of December, the Jack Buck Sports Awards. Members voted Rams wide receiver Torry Holt as the 2006 Sports Personality of the Year. Cardinals Manager Tony LaRussa, Walt Jocketty, Mike Shannon, SLU Athletic Director Cheryl Levick and the World Series Trophy were all also in attendance that evening. It was a fantastic event that aired live on KMOX Radio and was shown on Fox Sports Midwest television. In addition to these annual sports events, the M.A.C. hosted a wide array of Christmas events in December. Breakfast with Santa and Family Night with Santa were both a huge success, and the children, as always, loved chatting with St. Nick. There was also a Fox Theatre trip to see “A Christmas Carol,” a Christmas Dinner Dance and several special holiday meals this year at the Club. The M.A.C. also hosted its annual New Year’s Eve Gala in the Missouri Room, which is always an elegant affair. With the holidays behind us, it’s time to look forward to the long winter ahead. Avoid cabin fever by taking up a new hobby at the M.A.C. In January, the M.A.C. will host Latin dance lessons and defense bridge lessons at the M.A.C. (see calendar for more details). As we start a New Year I want to communicate some upcoming changes for our West Clubhouse. We are strengthening our security measures in order to better protect our members and their guests and their property. As you may have already noticed, the exterior door at the Racquetball/Handball hallway on the south wall of the West Clubhouse has become a fire exit only. All members and guests entering M.A.C. West from the south will now enter through the door at the fitness center. All persons entering through this door will now be required to sign in at the fitness desk when entering through this door, regardless of destination within the building. All persons entering the Club from the west door wishing to access the locker rooms or athletic facilities will now be directed past the Pro Shop, and will sign in at the Pro Shop desk. This coming summer, swimming pool access will also be directed via the Pro Shop sign-in desk, and the exterior pool gate will remain closed except when we are hosting events. Access to the restaurant areas will not require sign in, with entrance available from the north portico entrance, and from the stairs at the west entrance. We ask that you understand our goals – we have more than 3,200 members, and our staff needs to be able to utilize practical methods to strive to keep our facilities secure for our members and their invited guests. I not only welcome your questions, comments and input – I want to encourage it. Please take a minute to e-mail me, or write a note to me or to Larry Thompson, and give us feedback about YOUR CLUB. Rick Lodewyck rlodewyck@mac-stl.org
Cherry Diamond January 2007
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