Penobscot County Conservation Association

President: Woody Higgins

Meeting Date: March 2, 2006 at 6:00 PM

A Ham dinner will be served at 6:00pm. This is the meeting where we have the Scholarship recipients from University of Maine at Orono and Machias as our guests.

The Student chapter of the Wildlife Society will be putting on their Game Dinner on evening of April 9th and I hope to have tickets at the meeting for this event.

The 68th Sportsmen's Show will be held on March 17, 18, and 19 at the field house at the University of Maine. We will be asking for volunteers to sign up to help at the meeting. We need ticket sellers and takers, door guards, and raffle ticket sellers so sign up for a few hours and help out. This year's show is bigger and better with us moving back into the "Pit". There is still available booth spaces so go out and sell one. This year there will be food available for the show workers at the club booth. There will be no free food at the food booth.

The 31 Gun raffle is one of our better fund raisers but the effort from club members is lacking this year. We need to get more members involved in selling these tickets. Please come and see Forrest Davis and take a book or two and help out.

Included you will find several possible by-law changes. We will discuss these changes and vote on them at the May meeting. At the May meeting we will also be electing officers, a budget vote, and committee reports.

The PCCA held a GPS course for members on January 21st. This course was taught by Randy McEwen, who is also a club member. We had 10 members attend the class all of which had varying levels of experience with map, compass and their GPS. I don’t think anyone left the class saying they didn’t learned anything and most found their GPS wasn’t some magical box, but an instrument that is fairly easy to use once they learned the basics. I think everyone who attended was glad they had and would recommend the class to other members.

A reminder that Dean Smith is heading up a Wild Turkey contest for the May season. $5.00 will get you entered. See Dean at the meeting.

Proposed PCCA By-Law amendments

• Article 6 Section 1 to read:
Any resident of the State of Maine may become a resident member of the Association upon being sponsored by a current member in good standing and upon payment of dues and filing an application for membership which shall be acceptable by a majority of the Board of Directors. The membership chairman shall be empowered to sign and issue an official membership card as evidence of membership to any person duly qualified.

• Article 6 Section 2 to read:
Any person residing outside of the State of Maine, having been a past resident member in good standing for a minimum of 5 years, may become a non-resident, non-voting member of the Association upon payment of dues and acceptance of his application

• Article 7 Section 1

(a.) $35.00 for the first year of membership
(b.) $25.00 per year after the first year for all members that have not attained “Life Member” status.
(c.) (Remain unchanged)
(d.) $60.00 for first year of Family membership
(e.) $45.00 per year after the first year for all family memberships.
(A “Family Membership” shall be described as a membership for an adult and their significant other and any child(ren) of either, who has not obtained their 18th birthday. All of which live within the same household. Any member who has not attained the age of 18 shall be a non-voting member.)