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 03, March 2009 S.D.T.C., PO Box 20103, Beaumont, TX 77720

Shrimp Boil April 14, 2009

It’s that time of year for our annual shrimp boil! The committees are ready, the plans are complete, and we are ready for some fun! The menu consists of boiled shrimp, potatoes, corn, drinks, and desserts. Door prizes are going to be raffled as well.

Gather your friends, family and co-workers. Reservations can be made by calling any board member, or a member of the calling committee, faxed, or e-mailed.

The calling committee: Robert Ferguson – 651-1708, Mike Garza 724-8853, Joe Ochoa- 791-3255, or Sherry Eckerle-791-3259. Fax number (409)842-5154., e-mail address: Sherry.Eckerle@sbcglobal.net

Event information:

What: Sabine District Transportation Club Annual Shrimp Boil

When: April 14, 2009

Where: Pipefitter's Local #195 Hall, 3184 Hwy 69 S, Beaumont, TX. 77705, Ph: (409) 722-0434

Time: Doors open at 5:30 pm; Serving begins at 7:00 pm

Cost: $25/person

Reservations: preferred in advance (limited number of tickets available at the door)

Note- tickets cannot be mailed after 4-1-09 to ensure arrival – they can be picked up at the door

No cancellations can be made after April 10, 2009 at 3 pm.

Reservation Form for April 14, 2009 Shrimp Boil

Please make reservations for _________persons at $25/ea.

Check is attached (___)

Bill me (___)

Will pay at the door (___)

Signed_______________

Date _________________

Firm____________________________________________

Phone________________

Address_________________________________________

Clip and mail to S.D.T.C., PO Box 20103, Beaumont, TX. 77720,

fax (409) 842-5154, Ph 724-8853-Mike Garza, or Sherry Eckerle (409) 791-3259,Robert Ferguson (409) 651-1708,Joe Ochoa (409) 791-3255

You can also e-mail your reservations to: Sherry.Eckerle@sbcglobal.net

Cancellations cannot be accepted after 3pm on April 10, 2009.

National Transportation Week Raffle

Drawing: May 12, 2009 Cost: $2/ea. or 3 for $5 Need not be present to win!

Grand Prize: 2-Southwest Airline tickets to anywhere in continental US Sponsor: S.W.Airlines

1^st prize: Coushatta Resort & Kosati Pines Golf Package

Sponsor: Coushatta Resort

2^nd prize: 4- Astro game tickets parking pass

Sponsor: Clark Freight Lines

3^rd prize: $100 S.W. Airlines gift certificate

Sponsor: T.A.Services

4^th prize: $100 S.W.Airlines gift certificate

Sponsor: T.A.Services

5^th prize: $100 S.W. Airlines gift certificate

Sponsor: T.A.Services

6^th prize: Golf package

Sponsor: Bayou Din

7^th prize: Golf package at Brentwood Country Club

Sponsor: Brentwood Country Club

8^th prize: 1-night Stay MGM Elegante

Sponsor: MCM Elegante

9^th prize: $50 Gift Card – Cattle Company

Sponsor: Cattle Company

10^th prize: Autographed picture of Duane Brown

Sponsor: Houston Texans

11^th prize: Free Oil Change

Sponsor: Meineke Brothers

12^th prize: $25 gift card

Sponsor: Academy Sports (Nederland)

13^th prize: 15% off purchase

Sponsor: Rao’s Bakery

Raffle Sponsors:

Koasati Pines

Clark Freight Bayou Din

Rao's Bakery

Spring Golf Outing May 12, 2009

Date: May 12, 2009

Location: Brentwood Country Club

Time: TBA (to be announced)

Cost: $65/golfer (includes fee, carts & dinner)

Four Man scramble – everyone welcome

Dinner that evening at the Cattle Company 6 pm.

You can register your team at the Shrimp boil or by calling Bubba Metz at 299-0301 or Sherry Eckerle at 791-3259.

Many thanks to Mike Smith from the Port of Beaumont and Ronnie Hicks from the Port of Port Arthur for being our guest speakers for the March luncheon.

These guys are busy at the ports! They have many expansion projects going on and are really handling many tons of various cargos through their facilities.

The web site for the Port of Beaumont is:

www.portofbeaumont.com

Their cargos include: Military equipment for both Iraq & Afghanistan, forestry products, bulk grains, potash, plant refinery expansion units & equipment.

The German Air ship Ventura was shipped from German to the Port of Beaumont, where it was assembled and then started the final leg of its journey by flying to the San Francisco, Ca. area where it will be stationed. Quite a crowd of onlookers were there to see this mark of history!

The Port of Port Arthur is also growing. Hurricane Ike gave these guys a scare with the rising water, but very little damage was done to the Port facilities. There were several boats that anchored at the Port during the storm and they weathered just fine.

The Port of Port Arthur is actually 1 foot higher that the Port Arthur sea wall.

The web site for the Port of Port Arthur is:

www.portofportarthur.com

National Transportation Week

May 11 thru May 17, 2009

Celebrate!

Mayoral Proclamation for National Transportation week to be given by Mayor, Becky Ames, on May 5, 2009.

Watch for pictures of this event in the next Equalizer.

We invite you to come and be a part of NTW celebrations beginning with the Spring Golf Outing, & ending with the raffle drawing that night!

National Transportation Person of the Year: Each year our club recognizes one of our members who have made outstanding contributions in the field of transportation. This year our committee consists of Joe Ochoa, Sherry Eckerle and Danny Phillips. Should you have a nominee, please get in touch with this committee or fill out the form below & submit it to one of these committee members

Please fill in the name of a current member of the Sabine District Transportation Club that you feel has made significant contributions towards transportation, logistics and our club. This nomination will be kept confidential and the winner will be announced at the awards dinner on May 12, 2009.

Please fax this form to 842-5154, e-mail Sherry.Eckerle@sbcglobal.net, or phone 838-0126 Danny Phillips or 791-3255-Joe Ochoa or 791-3259- Sherry Eckerle.

Calendar of Scheduled Events:

April 14, 2009 – Annual Shrimp Boil

May 12, 2009 – National Transportation Week

National Transportation

Person of the year

Spring Golf Outing

NTW raffle drawing

June 9, 2009 – TBA

July 14, 2009 – Fish Fry at Rich Courville’s

Board Meeting Announcement:

There will NOT be a Board of Director’s meeting in April.

We will reconvene in May.

Watch for the Mayoral

Proclamation for

National Transportation

Week

May 11-17, 2009

TWIC Cards

to become activated at the local Ports on April 14, 2009. If you haven’t got your card yet, you need to apply. You will be required to have TWIC cards to enter secured areas for the Ports. If you need any information to apply, you can call our secretary, Sherry Eckerle@ (409) 791-3259.

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/march/2009/ or from the web site: txsdtc.org

Be sure to visit our sponsors listed both in the Equalizer and on the Web Site…

Did you know??? Editor: Sherry Eckerle

. * Where did Spring Break begin?

It was well-known back in ancient Greece and Rome that young students tended
to get a little wild in the Spring. In early America, students took a break
in the Spring not to have fun, but to help their parent’s plant the early
crops. But Spring Break as we know it began in 1938, when a swimming
competition began attracting students from East Coast colleges down to Fort
Lauderdale each Spring. Other students began making the trip, and by the
1960s, Daytona Beach was also involved. Like many other things, Spring Break
exploded in the sixties, and has been a part of American life ever since.

* How many people travel on Spring Break each year?

This year, probably between 2 and 3 million. What may be down this year is
the number of students who travel outside the United States during Spring
Break. It had been creeping up near the 25 percent mark, but due to a
combination of higher airfare prices and the Natalee Holloway story, fewer
students are willing and able to visit the more exotic locales. The top two
Spring Break destinations are expected to be the same this year as they have
been the last several -- Panama City, Florida, and Daytona Beach, Florida.

* Why is Spring Break a haven for underage drinkers?

Part of it has to do with fake identification. If a person from Iowa, for
instance, brings a fake ID to Florida for Spring Break, he's much more
likely to get away with it because odds are that a Florida bartender won't
know exactly what to look for on an Iowa ID that makes it authentic. Most
states employ some combination of features that make their ID cards
difficult to forge, but with people coming in from all over the country,
it's nearly impossible for workers to know which ones apply to which cards.

* What alternate Spring Break destinations are available?

An organization called Alternate Spring Break allows students to spend their
Spring Break volunteering in spots all over North America. You can get
involved in things like rehabilitating wildlife in the Everglades or
building a recreational center for kids in Guatemala. Break Away, which
helps to coordinate and organize these activities, estimates that about
35,000 students will take part in these types of events this year.