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- Written by: Dan Sullivan
Hello, Vienna Moose 1896 Members!
Welcome to the beginning of the Moose year! Below, we have a “Welcome” letter of sorts, that will help you navigate some of the various communication methods we have within the Vienna Moose Lodge, as well as other pertinent bits of information.
Additionally, as we begin this year, we are looking for anyone interested in heading or joining any committees (now that we are ONE MOOSE, any gender can fulfill these roles). There are some in need of some loving attention. We need someone to head up our Community Service committee. Currently, all other committees have been doing the work of community service. It would be nice to have a group that could coordinate with all the other committees when needed. We are also looking for a few members to help during our General Membership meetings; for instance, we need a Sergeant at Arms and inner and outer guards. For the Sargent, inner and outer guard positions at this point, they just need to attend two meetings a month. If you are interested in any of these positions, please reach out to any board officer or me. I am hopeful that some of our members will step up and help out our lodge. Thanks in advance for even considering it!
Dan Sullivan
President
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- Written by: Dan Sullivan
The Vienna Moose is looking for members that wish to participate in being a volunteer guest bartender on different nights of the week and to fill in when our regular bartenders cannot make it to work. This position would not be a paid position. But all the guest bartenders would keep all tips. The only requirement for helping in this capacity is to be alcohol server certified by either Tips training or State of Virginia trained. To become Tips trained it costs $40.00 and the State training is free. If you decide to become state-certified, we ask that you take the state Managers' Alcohol Responsibility Training (MART) exam.
If you are interested in this quest, please let a board member know today! We can help you with your alcohol training.
If you wish to do the Tips Training please use code "MOOSETIPS" for a 40% discount.
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- Written by: Dan Sullivan
The Vienna Moose has had an unexpected opening on its board of officers. Rob Vilardo had to resign because of a work conflict of interest this month. I cannot express enough gratitude for his help during the last few months. He has been instrumental along with all other board officers in turning the lodge in a new good direction. We have only grown and become more efficient in our efforts. I want to personally thank Rob for his help; you will be very missed.
Now on to the unexpected open board seat, the Treasurer seat is now open. We are looking for someone to fill a very important role on the board. But first and foremost, we are NOT looking for someone to fill the role of temporary Administrator. So, we are just looking for someone to fill the treasurer role.
The Treasurer of the Lodge is the Treasurer of the corporation. The duties of the Treasurer include the following:
- Attend Lodge, Board of Officers, and House Committee meetings;
- Ensure that the Administrator deposits all funds as often as possible but not less than once per week;
- Receive, from the Administrator, duplicate deposit slips showing the weekly deposits made by the Administrator to the Lodge, House Committee, and other authorized accounts, and he shall initial the duplicate deposit slips to be retained by the Administrator as a receipt;
- Be the custodian of all securities along with the Administrator and Governor;
- Perform all other duties required of him by the General Laws of the Order;
- Sign authorized checks, but never when blank;
- Conduct a weekly inspection of all Lodge and House Committee financial records to verify that all accounting entries are current, and such entries are consistent with all receipts and expenditures;
- Serve on the Lodge "Rookie Of The Year" Selection Committee;
Please know that the person that steps up to fill this seat will not be doing this alone. All board officers are here to help the new person get up to speed.
If you are interested in helping our board, please reach out to a current board officer and ask us questions about the position.
Fraternally,
Daniel Sullivan
President Vienna Moose Lodge #1896
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- Written by: Dan Sullivan
There has been a break in our defending circle. On December 1, 2021, William Harrold Jones died after battling illness. Bill had only been a member of our lodge for a short time but he was someone everyone liked talking to. For me, he was a friend, a confidant, and someone I enjoyed sharing stories with. If you are a long-time resident of the Vienna area, I am sure your paths crossed. I met Bill and his wife Judy more than 25 years ago. It hurts to know he has broken free of his earthly bonds. Bill, you will be so missed by so many.
Friends are a gift from God
They bring us joy and happiness
And help us in times of need
That's why I can truly say
How glad I am I had this friend
If you knew Bill please leave a message of support for him on the Dignity Memorial website.
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- Written by: Dan Sullivan
Brothers and Sisters,
It is with a heavy heart that we tell you that Robert Mock has passed on Friday, November 12, 2021. Robert was a member for more than 50 years. He was our go-to guy for many things back in the day. You would never meet a kinder humbler soul than him. It hurts to know that he has left this world too soon. We pray for his family in their time of need.
If we get updates, we will update this article with more information. If a member has a photo that Robert and would like to share for inclusion in this article please contact us. Again, we ask that you pray for his family.
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- Written by: Dan Sullivan
As most everyone that grew up in the Vienna area as children, we all remember going Trick or Treating with friends. We had the hard plastic masks that you could not see through and the costumes that made us think we were some kind of superhero. The last couple of years with COVID it has been tough for the little Trick or Treaters.
As almost like a Superhero the lodge held a Trunk or Treat on Sunday, October 31, 2021. The festivities started at 1:00 pm. The lodge had about 50 trick-or-treaters at that time. The cars were decorated in spooky Halloween or NFL football themes. We had all sorts of costumes like a huge rainbow unicorn (Mr. Torregrossa) to multiple huge tyrannosaurus rexes, to a tiny Superwomen, Disney was well represented with so many princesses from Elsa to Sleeping Beauty and others.
The lodge was surprised by the amazing turnout. At the end of the day, we guestimate that we had over 200 kids and parents in attendance. With this kind of turnout, we already have plans for another next year. And next year we will do it even better!
I want to thank everyone involved in the Trunk or Treat from the members that dressed up in costume, the members that decorated their cars, the soup cooks, the pinata helpers, the smores makers, to the fire pit watchers, and to those just cheering everyone on. It was an amazing day for everyone. The joy on the faces of the kids, parents, and yes members were priceless. Thanks, everyone for a job well done!
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- Written by: Dan Sullivan
When the Moose of the Year award was created as part of the Moose International awards program, it has been an honor for the lodge to give these awards out to members. The award is given each year to a member that exemplifies volunteering, signing up new members, and supporting Moose’s core values of Mooseheart and Moosehaven. It is usually given to new members but this is not a rule. This year’s recipient is very deserving of this award and his name is Steven J. Torregrossa. Steve has been a member for a number of years, but his support of the lodge has been amazing. We want to thank Steve for all his help in work done around the lodge, signing up new members, and helping with everything else around the lodge. If you get a chance please thank Steve for all his help!
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- Written by: Senior District 4 Reporter - Dan Sullivan
This is our membership report for the Virginia Moose district 4 meeting for Saturday, October 9, 2021. We had a great turnout for this meeting. President Ben Kern, Franconia 1076 opened the meeting to a packed room. Officers in attendance included Secretary - Wayne Noel of Fredericksburg 1655, Vice President - Charles Burke of Woodbridge 583, Past President - Dennis Rossi of, Warrenton 1695, and Chaplain - Larry Mastin of Fredericksburg 1655.
There was a special election for the seat of the Chaplain between the incumbent Larry Mastin and Skip Skaggs. The first order of business was to hold the election. Larry Mastin was elected. We want to thank Skip Skaggs for his continued support of Moose’s core values.
The next Virginia Moose District 4 meeting will be at the Centreville Moose 2168 on Saturday, January 8, 2022, at 10:00 am for executive officers, and 11:00 am for general membership. Dennis Rossi has volunteered to be the new District 4 membership chairman.
Lodge reports were read from all the lodges in the district below are some of the highlights from the other lodges:
- Centerville: BACONTOBERFEST Saturday, Oct 30 from 2 pm – 6 pm.
- Franconia: Moose Market place on Saturday, Oct 26 from 1 pm – 5 pm
- Herndon: Halloween Family Party on Saturday, Oct 23 from 4 pm – 7 pm
- Manassas: Trunk or Treat on Sunday, Oct 24
- Stafford: Warm Clothing Drive during the month of October
- Vienna: Halloween Parade on Oct 27, Stache for Charity month of Nov
- Warrington: Christmas Popup marketplace on Nov 6
- Woodbridge: Halloween Contest Oct 30, Thanksgiving Dinner on Nov 25
Randy Pierce gave a talk about veterans and the moose. He is a member of the Fredericksburg Moose and works to help Vets get the benefits they deserve. He asked the crowd in attendance if they knew of someone who needed help navigating the Veterans Affairs health system. He helps veterans navigate the paperwork to get the help they so desperately need. He also talked about service dogs “Paws for Vets” and “Paws for people” groups which he supports. He discussed the cost involved in the training of even one dog is huge. He asked for different lodges that want to help in this effort to contact him directly so he can find a way for you to help. Cathy Rossi discussed WOTM membership and how ladies should know that if they do not keep up their new lodge dues they will lose their hard-earned awards in the Moose. Please reach out to the women that you know to let them know to keep their honors and awards they need to keep up their Lodge dues too.
We discussed the up-and-coming Moose International Publications Awards to be held at the next Moose International Convention in Orlando Florida. The entries should be in no later for newsletters and article submission on March 4, 2022, at 4:30 pm. For website submissions, the entries should be sent in by February 24, 2022, at 4:30 pm. For each, the lodge should hold a current publications permit. Please see the Moose International website for more information.
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- Written by: John Dearing
We wanted to keep the membership up to date with our current membership drive. Wow, we have signed up 51 new members in the first five months you are doing fantastic with the recruitment of our newest members.
This year's membership quota for this 2020-2021 year is 53 new members. We are well ahead of our previous year's new member rate at this point. But this is not to say we should slow down now. So, do you know of a worthy friend, family member, or maybe someone you meet at a local restaurant or bar that might make a wonderful Moose member?
Virginia Moose Association Membership Info
To everyone that reads this, thank you for all you do to support this lodge, Mooseheart, Moosehaven, and our community. You always make us proud to call you members/friends/family!
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- Written by: Dan Sullivan
September brings the start of cooler weather at the lodge and with it brings lots of changes too! Our reorganization is going well. We managed to welcome a lot of new faces to the lodge and not just to the board of officers and committees. I want to personally thank all the members for stepping up during this reorganization. It is you we must thank for the continued success of the lodge. Going forward I am sure there will be some more hiccups to overcome. But the one thing I can say for sure, we are back open for business.
My list of members to thank is long please bear with me as I go through some. Thanks to my new board of officers and committees. I do also want to say this list is not all-inclusive because there are so many new members to thank. Just know we are so thankful for all your help!
Our New Board Officers
- Vice President: Bruce Chappell
- Treasure: Robert Vilardo
- Chaplin: Scott Flesch
- First Year Trustee: Roger Chang
- Second Year Trustee: Kurt Kohls
- Third Year Trustee: Andrew Jennison
- Our appointed Sargent at Arms: Alan McClelland
Our New Committee Chairs
- Activities: Steve Torregrossa
- Application Review: Sharon Chappell
- Financial Review: Looking for a chair
- Communications: Daniel Sullivan
- Heart of Community: Looking for a chair
- Government Relations: Chris Oskuie
- Loss Prevention: Looking for a chair
- Membership/Retention: John Dearing
- Moose Charities: Looking for a chair
- Moose Legion: Mark Los
- Ritual: Jeff Sargent
Now, I know many of you knew the former board of officers and our former administrator, while they are no longer with us, it was my pleasure to work with them. They worked tirelessly for years to move the lodge forward in the right. The one constant in life is change. I can only hope that those of you that continue to stay understand too and help the lodge in moving forward to a more harmonious fraternity and financial success.
In conclusion, we are still in need of some committees to be formed, but I see that happening soon. I am overwhelmed by the support of our new members. Please keep up the great work and stay tuned for new member activities being planned right now.
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