Greetings Atlantic Chapter Members,

I was asked by Fred Turjan to put together a note to introduce myself to all of you.

My name is Ron Figler and I live in Upstate New York in the Finger Lakes Region, 15 miles southeast or Rochester, NY and only four miles off of Interstate 90, the NYS Thruway, Exit 44.

Here’s a little background for those of you who don’t know me.  I have been an active member for the past four years and currently I'm apprenticing to become a performance judge.  I have taken my now four-year-old DD through, and have passed the three primary performance tests of the VDD-GNA.  I'm an avid hunter and my DD is my steadfast partner, on the water, and also into the field and timber.  

I took a look at an Atlantic Chapter email roster from 2007 which included 121 names of active members.  Sad to say, I only recognized the names of 27 of the folks on the list.  Safe to say, there are probably another 20-30 members, whose names are camouflaged by their email addresses whom I have met in the past.  None the less, that equates to half the members in the chapter whom I have not had the opportunity to meet.  Moving forward, I hope to change that number.   

I was recommended for the editor’s position by several folks who had attended the 2010 Atlantic Chapter Annual Meeting.  I was unable to attend due to family conflicts.  I gave it some thought before deciding to commit to the role.

I can honestly say it is very disheartening to receive the GNA's quarterly newsletter and to not see any print on the Atlantic Chapter's activity.  I know we are an active chapter!!!!  Help me to promote these dogs we enjoy and obsess over. 

The way I see it is I’m being asked to be the conduit for the quarterly newsletter. 
What I would envision my duties to be are as follows:
Identify key persons to submit images, containing names of people and/or dogs in the images and a short blurb of the event.
I would give ample time for folks to submit and ask for input on all facets of club-related activities, both pre and post, to give notice for awareness and attendance and also a recap of the event.
I would then pull together the received information, shape it into an article and submit to Larry Houck.

I can’t do this without your input.  I’m looking for contributions and stories from all active members to share with the chapter.  

Anyone wanting to contact me can do so via email at ronald.figler@cshdental.com or call me at 315-538-8557.

Regards,
Ron Figler