NEWS

• Santa's come early! and a uniform design has been chosen
• details will be announced on Sunday, Dec 17th
• please come on Sunday and you will be measured for your new uniform
• many thanks to Henry Beben and Phil Hennings for their excellent , and speedy, work
• changed 'Upcoming Performances', under 'Alumni Corps', to include new performances

• last Thursday (Nov 30) Bogo Avsec had surgery to remove his prostate. The surgery was successful and Bogo is now home and doing well
• John Shearer, while still recovering from his knee replacement, is back attending rehearsals
• Ted Wilson has also returned from his convalescence and has moved from Contra to Alto

Important Communication to All Members of the Optimists Alumni Drum Corps From Len Perrin - President
Dear Fellow Corps Members:

On behalf of your Executive I would like to thank all of you for your support and the trust you have placed in us to lead your organization. We can only pledge to you, to do our best to continue to progress based on the values and traditions of the Optimists Drum & Bugle Corps.

When the Alumni Corps started in the fall of 2002 we were focused on appearing at the G.A.S. annual convention to be held in Hamilton in May 2004. This was the commitment that drove the Corps in its early days. Since that time the Corps has made great strides in improving our collective musical capabilities but we do not have a clear picture of where we want to go and our next milestones. You, the members have spoken and elected a new Executive body to lead the Corps in its future endeavors and to determine our future direction. As your President I am convinced that we need to establish a set of realistic goals and how best to achieve them. I am therefore pleased to advise that your new Board has unanimously agreed to proceed with the development of a Strategic Operating Plan to set the future direction of our Corps.

To be successful in this endeavor it is essential that the plan be based on a consensus of all participants. Richard Robida has agreed to lead the development of the plan and has the full support of your Executive. Each of you will be contacted by Richard or one of his committee members to get your input, ideas and opinions.

Thank you for those who have already submitted the Member Survey form as part of our parade attendance records. This data will be used to keep you involved in this project. If you have not yet forwarded this information to our Secretary it is essential that you do so as soon as possible so all interested parties will be included. Even if you have not committed to be an active member for 2007 we value your opinion and would like to include you in building a consensus for the future of the Optimists Alumni.

I plan to be an active participant in the development of the plan and will keep you posted on our progress.

Thank you in advance for your continued support.

Len Perrin


If you have not already done so, please send an email to Paul Thompson (paulnew48 @ yahoo.ca) and include the following information:

• Name
• Instrument played
• Home address
• Phone
• Email address
• (If none, please advise)

On November 5th the Board created a committee to investigate and recommend a uniform. Henry Beben and Phil Hennings are the members of that committee. Their goal is to create the best possible uniform and do so at an affordable price.

In the two weeks since the committee was formed:

• they have determined that there are eight potential manufacturers in southern Ontario
• they have personally visited each of them
• they have discovered that only two of them are capable of producing our uniform
• they are awaiting cost estimates from these two companies

As a result of their research, they also decided to explore companies in the United States. So far

• they have contacted three companies in the US
• they plan to visit the largest manufacturer in the US by the end of November

When they have completed their investigation and have prices, they will submit their report to the Board.

• Randy Cochrane gives the corps the flag which the Toronto Optimists Colour Guard received for winning the 1968 Circuit Guard Championship.