Branch 32 Website: http://branch32.sirinc2.org/

Sir Happenings Newsletter: http://sirinc.org/sirhappenings/

From Big Sir

Happy New Year to all. Ihope you will join me inlooking forward to aprosperous 2015 forBranch 32 as we celebrateour 45th birthday this year. At our January luncheonwe will have several newmembers joining ourBranch.

Welcome to SteveSabanovich who visited us in November as a guest ofhis sponsor Bob Catalano.

I also want to welcome the members of Branch 153who are joining Branch 32. In the last few years, Branch153 was unable to maintain its membership at asustainable level. Therefore, at the end of 2014 theBranch was disbanded. We are very fortunate to haveseveral of the Branch 153 remaining members recognizethe great attributes of Branch 32 and come join us.Please seek out Al Mau, Bob Coffee, Jack Williams,Aare Onton, Tony Ridolfo, and Rudy Griffin and showthem our branches great friendliness by welcome themto Branch 32. Buy them a drink, and introduce them toyour group of friends.

I would like to recognize a member of Branch 32 whohas once again stepped up to help SIR. Our own SIRGary Pelton has been appointed SIR State Chairmanof Bocce. This sport is rapidly gaining wide spreadinterest within the SIR community and now it will have itsown designation at the state level.. While Branch 32 has

for several years had a vigorous Bocce program underour esteemed Bocce Czar SIR Jack Vierhus, it is justnow becoming popular state wide. Congratulations toGary who I know will use his expertise of Bocce and hisextensive knowledge of the workings of SIR at the statelevel to promote Bocce. We will probably be hearingsoon about regional, area and state-wide Boccetournaments just like we have for golf. Congratulationsagain to SIR Gary Pelton.

We need to fill several committee positions. While wehave a full set of committee Chairman for this year,several of them need a backup person. Somecommittees need to function even though the chair is “ontemporary vacation”. Please look over the list of ourcommittees in our roster and “give back” by stepping upto help your Branch in these areas.

Normally the Roster committee published our Branch 32roster at year-end for distribution at the Januaryluncheon. But this year the committee wanted to includeall of our new members who are joining us in January solook for the 2015 Roster at the February meeting. All new members make sure and get your picture takenat the January meeting. I ask all members to make it a priority for 2015 to bringyour neighbors, friends, and acquaintances to ourluncheons so they can enjoy our great programs and ourgood fellowship. And hopefully they will want to becomemembers and our Branch will continue to grow andprosper. It is an interesting fact that 90% of our guestsbecome members.

I want to thank, in advance, Little Sir Wes Howard andpast Big Sir Jim Sleigh who together will be chairing theJanuary luncheon meeting. I will be unavailable to attend

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Non-Responsibility Clause: All Tours and other activities arranged for or by Sons in Retirement, Inc. and its branches are for theconvenience and pleasure of the members and their guests wishing to participate. Sons in Retirement, Inc. and its branches do notassume any responsibility for the well being or safety of the participants or passengers, or their property, in any matters pertaining tosaid tours, trips or other activities.

January 2015 Volume 47 No. 1

the meeting and I appreciate their stepping in for me. I’llsee you at the February luncheon meeting.

I hope that 2015 will be the year that more memberschoose to become more involved in our Branch. Thereare lots of fun activities and travel available. Remember,“what you get out is equal to what you put in”.

Big Sir Bruce Henry

Membership Report

Here we go at the beginning of a new year. There was agreat deal of turmoil in our membership numbers duringDecember. Several actives that were sidelined withmedical issues moved to inactive status. However weare fortunate that several members of Branch 153,which closed down at years-end, have chosen to join ourbranch. We are off to a good start but we must continueto push to increase our membership numbers. Start 2015 with a bang by bringing a friend to ourluncheon. A guest at a luncheon results in a newmember most of the time.

I wish you a Happy New Year and look forward to aProsperous 2015.

To be Inducted at the January 2015 luncheon:

SABANOVICH Steve Steve #14610177 Byerly Court PeggyCupertino 95014 (408) 813-4116steve@calhellas.netSales – Intuit Inc. 03/01None listedSPONSOR: Bob Catalano #139

MAU Albert W. Al #147903 Sunrose Terrace #108 Wilma Sunnyvale 94086-8940 (408) 733-1136awmau@sbcglobal.netEngineer, General Tel of Michigan 06/06Golf / cards / ReadingSPONSOR: Transfer from BR 153

COFFEE Robert L. Bob #1486280 Radiant DriveSan Jose 95123-4852 (408) 225-2852rcoffee2001r@yahoo.comFinance, Lockheed 07/14Golf / BocceSPONSOR: Transfer from BR 153

WILLIAMS John B. Jack #1515278 Elmwood Drive DorothySan Jose 95130-1817 (408) 379-1458jack_wms@pacbell.netEngineer, Lockheed 06/06Computers/Photography/Genealogy

SPONSOR: Transfer from BR 153

GRIFFIN Rudolph G. Rudy #5210363 Denison Avenue EdnaCupertino 95014-2428 (408) 257-2591rudyg3grif@aol.com Engineer, Signetics 12/28GolfSPONSOR: Transfer from BR 153

ONTON Aare Aare #15414690 Aloha Avenue JudySaratoga 95070-6004 (408) 867-2842onton@alum.mit.eduSenior Engineer/Physicist, IBM 12/10Golf/ MusicSPONSOR: Transfer from BR 153

RIDOLFO Anthony Tony #15320077 Ljepava DriveSaratoga 95070-4343 (408) 867-5362None providedNone providedNone providedSPONSOR: Transfer from BR 153

Membership changes:

Active #72 Darrel Slafter has been dropped because hehas moved away.

Active # 49 Tom Gillespie has transferred to Inactivestatus because of medical issues.

Active # 14 Jim Lucas has transferred to Inactivestatus because of medical issues.

Active # 59 Howard C Davis has transferred to Inactivestatus because of medical issues.

Active # 78 Al Marseline has transferred to Inactivestatus because of medical issues.

Inactive #155 Jim Ousley has resigned due to majorhealth issues.

Tom Donovan who resigned to care for his wife hasrequested reinstatement as an Active member. He willretain # 40.

Our current membership status, as of January 1, 2015 is93 active members, 12 Inactive members, and 7pending Inductees. Remember, bring a guest to lunch and when they join,you win a free lunch.

Respectfully Submitted:

Bruce HenryMembership Chairman

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Birthdays and Anniversaries

Birthdays

Name Birthday

Ed Barrett 01/02

Harry Peabody 01/07

Paul Vogel 01/10

Bob MacQuarrie 01/14

Lee McLaughlin 01/17

Joe Phillips 01/19

Howard A. Davis 01/21

Bob Edwards 01/28

James F. Kilty 01/29

Melvin L. Grant 01/31

Anniversaries

Couple Anniversary Years

Married

Ernie and Deborah Brookfield 01/16 25

Ken and Muriel Spring 01/30 61

Guest Speaker

Since we are clearly a group ofold duffers, one of thecharacteristics of men in ourage bracket is the adverseaffects of old age on our mind.

It rears its ugly head mostly injust everyday events such asforgetting or misplacing justabout everything.

And on a serious note we allknow someone who has developed Alzheimers diseaseor memory loss.

This month’s Speaker is Dr. Stephen Cain.

Steve is a chiropractor, author and award winning publicspeaker who has focused his studies and his practice onbrain health and performance.

While in chiropractic school he enrolled in a post gradu-ate diploma program called “functional neurology.” Thisis a field focused on natural ways to optimize the humanbrain.

He is close to obtaining his diploma in neurology andhas been doing his own extensive research on neuro-plasticity for the last five years.

Steve leads various workshops and seminars on brainhealth and founded the company “Whole Brain Health”,a health coaching company for seniors in the earlystages of memory loss.

His office is located in Campbell.

Steve is a graduate of the University of Michigan in 2007with a Bachelor’s of Science degree, concentrating onPhysical and Biological Anthropology.

Steve attended Life University from 2007 to 2011 wherehe earned a Doctor of Chiropractic degree which in-cluded studies of the Central Nervous System and Pe-ripheral Nervous Studies.

Since 2009 he has 250 hours of post-graduate studies in“Functional Neurology” at the Carrick Institute of Gradu-ate Studies where he expects to receive a diploma inNeurology in 2015.

We certainly believe that Steve’s presentation will be in-formative and very useful to all of the members ofBranch #32

Pat Ryan, Co-Program ChairmanJim Claitor, Co-Program Chairman

This Month's Luncheon

Three Flames Restaurant. 1547 Meridian Ave, San JoseCA 95125. Wednesday January 21 at 11:00am.

Chicken Fried Steak, Mashed potatoes,gravy, and vegetables

Call now if you know you will not be at theJanuary Luncheon. Call Jack Vierhus,Wesley Howard, or Bruce Henry.

Bring some and take some!!

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Awards

Travel

March 12-18, 2015: “Azaleas,Plantations & Cajuns”. 7 days inCajun country includes home pick up,round trip air, 3 nights Drury Inn inBaton Rouge and 3 nights Royal

Sonesta in New Orleans, 13 meals (6 breakfasts, 4lunches, 3 dinners. Tours include New Orleans School ofCooking class w/lunch, National WWII D-Day Invasioncraft Museum, Evangeline State Park (Acadian House,Evangeline Statue), Antebellum Homes in Natchez MS,Houmas House Plantation & Gardens, and Gator FarmTour. City tours: Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Natchez and

New Orleans.

Cost $2630 (dbl occ) $3080 (single). Deposit of $250with final payment due January 10, 2015. OptionalInsurance available ($206 dbl occ, $249 single.Brochure/Application available at travel table or contactJohn Pletsch (408) 274-2992 or (408) 504-1255 (cell), orMike Console (408) 246-1080.

Friday May 1, 2015. “Horse Racing at Golden GateFields”. Enjoy the Day at The Races. Cost $100 perperson. Trip includes transportation, buffet luncheon atthe Turf Club and Driver Gratuity. Motor Coach willdepart at 10:00 am from the VTA Light Rail station atCapitol Expressway and Narvez Ave, and return atapprox 6:00 pm. Pick up a brochure at the SIRluncheon or call John Pletsch (408) 274-2992 or MikeConsole (408) 246-1080 for information. Deadline forsign-ups is April 15. Also bring along friends.

August 20, 2015: “Phantom of the Opera” A 2:00P.M. Performance at the Orpheum Theater in SanFrancisco.

This one day trip includes: round trip motor coach,hosted lunch at the Fog Harbor Restaurant on Pier 39,admission to Phantom of the Opera loge seating, drivertip, and a short tour of S.F. Christmas Lights, if timeallows and Christmas Lights available.

Cost: $178 per person. No deposit, full payment due onsign-up. Checks preferred, there will be a charge foruse of Credit Cards. Trip costs are NON- Refundable—Although may be transferred if minimum count has beenmet and/or there is an active waiting list. Sign-updeadline: July 6th, 2015. We expect an early sell-out, sodon't wait until the deadline to sign-up, you'll probablymiss the show or we will put you on our waiting list for asecond chance, if there are cancellations!!

Make Checks Payable to: Cruise AdventuresUnlimited Trust AccountMail to: Mike Console 3527 Parkland Ave. SanJose, Ca. 95117

See brochure for Meal choices at Fog HarborRestaurant in San Francisco.

Be sure to stop by the travel table at theluncheon to obtain brochures on the latest trips!!

Travel Bulletin If you would like to receive your Bulletinvia email, email your request to rwshields @ comcast.net fromthe email address that you want your Bulletin delivered to. Youwill get your copy of the Bulletin monthly as opposed to thebimonthly mailed copy! If you are not interested in travel get your name taken off ourmailing list by contacting Bob Shields at (408) 268-4975, emailrwshields@comcast.net, or your branch Travel Chairman.

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Rene Padilla presents Noble Sir Award to Dwight Buzick

Bruce Henry presents 2014 Big Sir Award to Rene Padilla

Activities

Camera Club

The Camera Club has no activitiesscheduled for January.

The following is the schedule for the firsthalf of 2015.

Field Trip – Santa Clara WaterPurification Facility Thursday February

12, 2015 This field trip will be to the new WaterPurification Facility at 4190 Zanker Rd. San Jose. Thetour starts at 12 noon and is 45 minutes to 1 hour long.We should arrive by 11:45am to have time to check in.You must be registered to participate and all those whoresponded to my e-mail are registered. If others wouldlike to participate let me know and I will try to get youreserved. After the tour we will go to lunch at Five GuysBurgers, 4180 N First St, (return on Zanker, right onHolger Way, becomes Headquarters Dr, right on North1st.)This trip is wheelchair accessible. There will be nocarpooling. Field Trip – Hakone Estate and Gardens WednesdayMarch 25, 2015Hakone Gardens are located off Big Basin way on theway out of Saratoga. The address is 21000 Big BasinWay but look for the signs. The gardens open at10:00am so we should arrive about 10:15am. Admissionis $6.00 for seniors. The paths are covered with eitherfine gravel or rock and there is limited access for wheelchairs. There will be no carpooling.

Club Meeting - Wednesday April 22, 2015 1:30 pmDon Pedrottis home The meeting will be at Don Pedrottis to critique thepictures taken at last two field trips, and pick the threewinners for each. Everyone should bring their Two (2)best shots of each trip for judging.

Field Trip – Wilder Ranch State Park and WaddellCreek Beach Wednesday May 27, 2015We will ride pool from Ace Hardware parking lot and planto leave by 9:00am. Wilder Ranch State Park is on Hwy.1 north of Santa Cruz. We should arrive at about10:15am and spend and hour and a half exploring theold ranch. The next stop will be at Davenport for lunch.We will continue north to Waddell Creek Beach which isknown for its wind surfing. We should leave for homeabout 3:00pm to avoid the traffic in Santa Cruz. Moredetails later. The ranch is wheel chair friendly but thebeach presents a problem.

Attend the Picnic June 17, 2015 All Branch 32 Members are invited to participate in thecamera club activities. You do not have to have a fancy

camera and some of our winning photos were made withsmall compacts or smart phones. All Wives are alsoinvited to participate in any Camera Club activities.

See your roster for phone and e-mail.

Don Pedrotti, Camera Club Chairman

Golf

Seven Sirs participated in ourDecember 9 tournament at DeepCliff. The tournament scheduledfor December 16 was rained out. Iwould like to thank all of our clubmembers for promptly submitting

your 2015 NCGA dues. You made my job easy.

Our Deep Cliff tournaments for this month are scheduledon the 13th and 20th. Several of us from Branch 32 willmiss our tournament on January 20 as we'll be travelingto Nuevo Vallarta and Paradise Village for a week ofgolf. I'd like to thank Dean Johnson in advance forhandling the tournament in my absence.

A schedule for the 2015 Area 5/20 monthly tournamentsstill has not been published. As soon as I know thedates, I'll notify our members. Lets have a good turnoutfor our first tournament on January 13.

The December results are as follows:

December 9

Closest to #3

1st No One

Closest to #8

1st Jim Claitor 10’ 5”2nd Bob Grandey 17’3rd Galen Gipson 24’

Closest to #13

No One (Less than 10’ in 2)

Closest to #16

1st Paul Vogel 15’ 5”2nd Wayne Whorton 21' 6"

December 18

RAINOUT

Paul Vogel, Golf Chairman

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Bocce

Branch 32 Bocce is Alive and Well

2014 Summary

Let me take this opportunity to thankall the Branch 32 Bocce Brothers for making 2014 abanner Bocce year. The Branch 32 Bocce Brotherhoodgrew to a total of 22 members. We averaged between 8to 12 players per game. The highest single game 16players and the lowest was 6 players. The Branch alsoadded a second day (4th Tuesday) to our monthlyschedule. We played when it was very hot and evenplayed in the rain. In 2014 we played our first COED game. Four couplesenjoyed the fun and friendly competition of an afternoonof Bocce. The teams were evenly matched and theLadies were very competitive. By all indication theLadies enjoy themselves and indicated they lookedforward to another opportunity to join their SIRs inanother COED Bocce game. After the game the playerswent to the Olive Garden for an early dinner or latelunch. We will schedule a 2015 COED game sometimein late February or March. Watch for a Bocce Alertconcerning the possible times and Dates.

January 2015

On Tuesday January 6th under cloudless steel blue sky13 Branch 32 Bocce Brothers assembled on the LakeAlmaden Bocce courts eager to start the 2015 Bocceseason. The temperature was in the low to mid 70s witha very light breeze. SIR Bob Macquarrie introduced hisguest Gary Palton to the Bocce brothers. The 14players were divided into 4 teams and the games wereunderway. All the player were having trouble adjusting tothe new court surface. Each court has it’s own biases’and that coupled with surface conditions made ballcontrol more difficult. The new player was a quicklearner and made several good shots. As usual each ofthe old pros made their share of great shots. Theinaction between the play was lively and light hearted.Every player gave as much as they got. The gamesended and all enjoyed the afternoon of Fun, FriendlyCompetition and great Fellowship that is Branch 32Bocce. The next scheduled Bocce game is Tuesday January27th (4th Tuesday). Plan to join your fellow Branch 32members for an afternoon of great fellowship.

See ya on the courts

Jack Vierhus, Bocce Chairman

Gardening

Our garden club is part of the SIRAreas 5 and 20 Garden Club.Members meet on a monthlyschedule to enjoy guestpresentations on gardening topicsand to exchange information on

gardening. Wives are encouraged to attend.

We meet on the 2nd Wednesday of every month at11:00 AM at the Denny’s Restaurant at 1140 HillsdaleAve. (near Almaden Expy) in San Jose, CA.

Contact our Club Chairman, Fred Gardner who willanswer any questions and insure you have badges.

Bowling

Chairman: Vic Miller

Bridge Club

Chairman: Harry Wenberg

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January 2015 Bocce Photo

Special Transition Photo

Christmas Party Photos

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2014 Big Sir Rene Padilla passes gavel to 2015 Big Sir Bruce Henry

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