The Equalizer
Sabine District Transportation Club
Member of Traffic Clubs International
Please keep our troops and their families in your thoughts and prayers.
Volume 09 Issue 12, December 2009 SDTC, PO Box 20103, Beaumont, TX 77720
January 12, 2010
Deral Segler-Guest Speaker at Cattle Company Luncheon
New traffic and criminal laws went into effect on September 1, 2009.
These new changes include:
Seatbelt requirements
Driving with suspended license
Child passenger safety seats
Driving without insurance
Wireless communication device
Concealed handgun
DWI with child passenger
Driving skills exam
New Texas resident requirements
Motorcycle operator training course
Helmet exemption sticker-insurance requirements
You need to be knowledgeable in the changes and the effect they have on our businesses and well as personally. This is your chance to hear it from an expert!
Reservation Form for January 12, 2010 Luncheon
Please make reservations for _________persons at $17.50/person
Check is attached (___) Bill me (___)
Will pay at the door (___)
Signed_________________________
Date _________________
Firm___________________________
Phone________________
Address_______________________
______________________________
Clip and mail to SDTC, PO Box 20103, Beaumont, TX. 77720, fax (409) 842-5154 or call Joe Ochoa (409) 791-3255 or Sherry Eckerle (409) 791-3259.
You can also e-mail your reservations to: Sherry.Eckerle@sbcglobal.net
No cancellations will be accepted after noon on Friday, January 8, 2010.
2009 Annual Christmas Party was a success!
The party begins with the driving conditions typical for SE Texas in a rain storm that just wouldn’t quit!
However, the folks in attendance were ready for a night of trading, swapping, ooo’s and ahhh’s as each gift was unwrapped, stolen or swapped!
This year’s gifts included many bottles of assorted liquor which was unusual.
As 2010 approaches, it brings to mind the new year’s resolutions that most of us make with good intentions. However, make a commitment to volunteer to help in the local charities and churches this year to help those still in need.
Web Site Update: To reach the web site from the Internet: http://www.txsdtc.org To retrieve the Equalizer from the server: http://www.txsdtc.org/equalizer/december2009/ or from the web site: txsdtc.org
If you want your newsletter mailed each month, please let your secretary know.
Be sure to visit our sponsors listed both in the Equalizer and on the Web Site…
Board Meeting Announcements:
There will be a Board of Director’s meeting on January 12, 2010 preceding the luncheon.
Upcoming Events
January 12, 2010 - luncheon at the Cattle Company – guest speaker, election day, scholarship recognition day
February 9, 2010- 6 pm BBQ at Rich Courville’s, installation of officers
March 9, 2010 – luncheon at the Cattle Company – Port recognition
April 13, 2010 Shrimp boil – location to be announced
May 11, 2010 – Spring golf Outing, NTW Week, National Transportation Person of the year, NTW Raffle drawing
Scholarship Recognition January 12, 2010
A student from Lamar will be recognized at our January luncheon as well as our other scholarship recipients:
Vincent Bartholomew–Port of Port Arthur
Logan Theriot–son of Anthony Theriot, YRC
Lacy Theriot–daughter of Anthony Theriot, YRC
Ashley Landry–daughter of Gene Landry, Briggs Equipment
Please make note of your calendar to attend this luncheon as you don’t want to miss the opportunity to greet these students that we helping with financial assistance with their education!
__________________________________________________
My sincere thanks for the prayers, visits, cards and flowers that you provided me and my family during the recent illness and death of my mom, Annabel Wheatley. We are a very close family and she will be missed. My head tells me she is no longer suffering, but my heart is still having a hard accepting that she is gone. Having such a great group of colleagues and friends is making this time for me a lot easier.
Thanks!
Sherry Eckerle
Election of 2010-2011 SDTC Officers & Board Members
It is that time of year again to vote in the new leadership of our club for the ensuing year beginning in March.
These officers and board of directors will be elected to their positions by our members through a ballot vote. This ballot has already been sent in the mail to our members. Be sure to return your ballot in time to be counted!
However, in case of a tie, there is a run-off election that is held during the meeting on January 12, 2010, so it is important that our members be present to vote on the candidate of their choice.
SUMMARY OF ELECTION PROCEDURES
1. Names of the candidates nominated by the nominating committee shall be furnished to members not later than twenty (20) days prior to the annual elections (12-23-08).
2. At least fifteen (15) days before the election date, twenty (20) or more resident/resident life members may submit names of additional officers and/or directors to be included on the official ballot (12-28-09)
3. At least fifteen (15) days before the election date, ten (10) or more additional names for non-resident/non-resident life members may submit additional names for non-resident director to be included on the official ballot. (12-28-09).
4. Official ballots shall be mailed to each eligible member at least seven (7) days before the election.(01-4-10)
5. Official ballots must be returned to the club secretary not later than 10:00 am on the day of the election (01-12-10). Specific directions for handling the mailing will be shown on the ballot and envelope and should be followed. Particularly no names on the ballot return envelope.
6. Official ballots will be tabulated at the annual election meeting by a teller committee of three (3) members, appointed by the President. In the case of ties or no majority, a run-off election will be held at the election night meeting between the two (2) candidates receiving the highest number of votes for the office or directorship involved. The run-off election will be decided by a majority vote of
members present.
NOTE: Date shown in ( ) are deadlines for the item indicated.
THIS IS YOUR OFFICIAL NOTIFICATION OF CANDIDATES AS OUTLINED IN ITEM 1.
If no additional names of candidates are received by 12-23-09, the official ballots will be mailed as soon as possible after that date, in order that members can receive all ballots in time to be returned by 01-12-10.
Don’t forget to mail your ballot!
The 2010-2011 Nominations are:
President: Gene Landry, Briggs Equipment
1st Vice President: Bubba Metz, Neff Brothers Towing
2ndVice President: Mike Garza – ISP Elastomers Corp.
3rd Vice President: Seth Farris – Wilson Warehouse Co. of Texas, Inc.
Lane Olson – A OK Moving & Storage
Immediate Past President Joe Ochoa, Wilson Warehouse Co. of Texas, Inc.
Secretary/Treasurer Sherry Eckerle, Wilson Warehouse Co. of Texas, Inc.
________________ (write in candidate)
Board of Directors: (vote for 3)
Al Anselmo, Texas Storage
Jason Brooks – Averitt Express
Bobby Sullivan – Briggs Equipment
Ronnie Hicks – Port of Port Arthur
Robert Ferguson – Bayou Din
Lloyd Gentry – Wilson Warehouse Co. of Texas, Inc.
Non-Resident Director: Chris Popjoy, KCS Railroad
______________________________(write in candidate)
Please keep in mind that as you vote for these positions, the Board requires regular attendance for monthly board meetings.
The History of New Year's Resolutions
The tradition of the New Year's Resolutions goes all the way back to 153 B.C. Janus, a mythical king of early Rome was placed at the head of the calendar.
With two faces, Janus could look back on past events and forward to the future. Janus became the ancient symbol for resolutions and many Romans looked for forgiveness from their enemies and also exchanged gifts before the beginning of each year.
The New Year has not always begun on January 1, and it doesn't begin on that date everywhere today. It begins on that date only for cultures that use a 365-day solar calendar. January 1 became the beginning of the New Year in 46 B.C., when Julius Caesar developed a calendar that would more accurately reflect the seasons than previous calendars had.
The Romans named the first month of the year after Janus, the god of beginnings and the guardian of doors and entrances. He was always depicted with two faces, one on the front of his head and one on the back. Thus he could look backward and forward at the same time. At midnight on December 31, the Romans imagined Janus looking back at the old year and forward to the new. The Romans began a tradition of exchanging gifts on New Year's Eve by giving one another branches from sacred trees for good fortune. Later, nuts or coins imprinted with the god Janus became more common New Year's gifts.
In the Middle Ages, Christians changed New Year's Day to December 25, the birth of Jesus. Then they changed it to March 25, a holiday called the Annunciation. In the sixteenth century, Pope Gregory XIII revised the Julian calendar, and the celebration of the New Year was returned to January 1.
The Julian and Gregorian calendars are solar calendars. Some cultures have lunar calendars, however. A year in a lunar calendar is less than 365 days because the months are based on the phases of the moon. The Chinese use a lunar calendar. Their new year begins at the time of the first full moon (over the Far East) after the sun enters Aquarius- sometime between January 19 and February 21.
Although the date for New Year's Day is not the same in every culture, it is always a time for celebration and for customs to ensure good luck in the coming year.
Ancient New Years
The celebration of the New Year is the oldest of all holidays. It was first observed in ancient Babylon about 4000 years ago. In the years around 2000 BC, Babylonians celebrated the beginning of a new year on what is now March 23, although they themselves had no written calendar.
Late March actually is a logical choice for the beginning of a new year. It is the time of year that spring begins and new crops are planted. January 1, on the other hand, has no astronomical nor agricultural significance. It is purely arbitrary.
The Babylonian New Year celebration lasted for eleven days. Each day had its own particular mode of celebration, but it is safe to say that modern New Year's Eve festivities pale in comparison.
The Romans continued to observe the New Year on March 25, but their calendar was continually tampered with by various emperors so that the calendar soon became out of synchronization with the sun. In order to set the calendar right, the Roman senate, in 153 BC, declared January 1 to be the beginning of the New Year. But tampering continued until Julius Caesar, in 46 BC, established what has come to be known as the Julian Calendar. It again established January 1 as the New Year. But in order to synchronize the calendar with the sun, Caesar had to let the previous year drag on for 445 days.