News about the Convention 2012

            (First of all, I need to tell you I took some awful pictures.  I think I need a fancier camera for those far away shots under low lighting.  Then I used two set of batteries, so I had to rely on my small camera which is even worse.  So please excuse the quality of the pictures. )

There were 6 members from the BEREA at the convention in Callaway Gardens: David Greene, Nancy Page, Deloris Fields, Dorothy Geter,  Marva Rogers, and Anne Miller. 

The trip is about four or five hours, according to how many wrong turns you make, road construction and conversation.  I was only 30 minutes late for the afternoon meeting with the presidents of Area V and VI, but David was on time. 

Tuesday Night Dinner Highlights:

·         I think I was mostly impressed with the food. The food was excellent and plentiful. Callaway Gardens has its own garden and grows most of their vegetables.  It was served buffet style and they had a great selection. 

·         The entertainment was by Darrell Huckaby.  He is a classroom teacher (38 years), syndicated newspaper columnist, noted author (10 books) and a public speaker.  He has been compared to Lewis Grizzard, and he was very funny especially when he was talking about teachers and the school situation.   (He also has cancer and will probably retire from teaching this year.)

Wednesday:

 First General Session:

·         The general session dealt mostly with GREA Committee Reports. 

·         After lunch was the “Presentation of Awards” received by the presidents of the local units.   

·         The afternoon was free to explore Callaway Gardens. It is a great place for a family vacation.   (I think I used up my batteries taking photos of butterflies and flowers.) 

Wednesday Night: 54^th Annual GREA Convention Banquet:

·         Special Guest was Georgia’s First Lady, Sandra Deal.  The GREA members have been given a special invitation to tour the Governor’s Mansion Tuesdays through Thursdays.  If you have a group of 10 or more, call 404-261-1776 for a tour, and if Mrs. Deal is there, she will give you the tour.

·         Special Recognition: Robin Ferst of the “Ferst Foundation for Childhood Literacy.”  Check out the website is: http://www.ferstfoundation.org/ .  It seems to be a worthwhile organization and they are always in need of volunteers.

·         There was also some great entertainment.  Sorry, I forgot to take notes and the names were not listed on the program. 

Thursday:

·         Second General Session included the installation of officers.  Mary Ann McDaniel will be the new GREA president. Her motto is GREA: Flying Higher and Higher.   Her banner has a blue background with an airplane and a hotair balloon in the foreground.

·         Next year’s convention will be at Stone Mountain at the Marriott.  Dr. Sloan said to bring your family and friends next year.  Something to think about!

• There were 616 in attendance at the convention this year.

(Note:  Gas was $3.34 in Warner Robins. Naturally I had already filled up in Pine Mountain at $3.69 a gallon.)  

Minutes GREA Executive Committee on April 30, 2012 - May 3, 2012

54^th Convention   at Callaway Gardens, Mountain View Inn