President's Blog - Summer 2006
Summer 2006
With the country in the grip of a heat wave, Clan MacDougall held its Annual General Meeting in the cool mountains of western North Carolina. Grandfather Mountain Highland Games formed the backdrop for our gathering.
Beginning Thursday night on the mountain the clans assembled, Clan MacDougall's presence was voiced by two dynamic women, Tammy Rondinaro and Kelly Wright. Their war cry gave fair warning to all assembled that Clan MacDougall's intentions were honorable but other clansmen could be at risk.
Early Friday morning Buzzy Bramble, Southeast Regional Commissioner and his wife Susan, had the Clan MacDougall tent area set up and ready for the guests. Everyone met Don Northcutt, our new VP for membership, for the first time. Many came from long distances to attend the Games and Annual Meeting. Among those were Beth and Bruce McClintock the Mid West Regional Commissioners from Missouri. Past Presidents and their wives were also in attendance: Wylie and Debbie McDougal, Jack and Nancy Kane, John A. and Pricilla McDougall. Although unable to make the meeting, Dick and Betsey MacDougall made it to the Barbeque on Saturday evening.
We also owe a debt of gratitude to Tammy and Steve Rondinaro, the Society's Public Relations team, for capturing so many special video moments during the weekend.
Friday also was full of meetings: The Board of Directors met in the Eseeola Pool Pavilion. It was a lively meeting and we managed to deal with all the issues on the table. The Board meeting was highlighted by the creation of a Membership Committee, chaired by Don Northcutt. Wylie McDougall challenged the committee to come up with a plan to expand the membership and pledged that the MacDougall Trust would support the plan. We are looking forward to the results of their deliberations.
Bill Leroy, the Treasurer, couldn't attend the meeting but submitted a financial report that indicated the Clan MacDougall Society is sound fiscally and in the black for the year.
William Ermatinger, Recording Secretary, reported that he was successful in incorporating the Clan Society, which is a first step to becoming a bonafide charitable 501(c) 3 organization.
The other significant action taken by the Board was to nominate individuals for officer positions for the terms July 2007-June 2009: President: Beacham MacDougald; 1st VP President, Bill Leroy; VP of Membership, Don Northcutt, VP of Treasurer: Current President; P Donald MacDougall: Recording Secretary/Archivist: William C Ermatinger. The election will take place per the bylaws in the Month of April 2007. Individuals nominated may withdraw and the nominations are open prior to the elections.
The Editor of The Tartan, Pat McDougal, received Board approval to publish upcoming editions of The Tartan in color.
Suzanne McDougal reported on her efforts in working with Walter MacDougall on the revision of his book, "Journeying in MacDougall Country."
Beacham MacDougald, President Elect, reported on the Laurinburg/Oban youth exchange and his plans to focus on getting young people interested in Scottish events and activities - specifically within the Clan MacDougall Society.
Another action taken by the board was to make our name officially, "The Clan MacDougall Society of North America."
After the meetings, all adjourned to the Eseeola Lodge for cocktails and dinner. Greg McDougall, composer and guitar player,pleasantly entertained everyone as he strolled the grounds of the beautiful Lodge playing serenades during the cocktail hour. So, instead of being piped into dinner this year, the group was strummed in. (see: Vol. 41 #1 Pg. 5).
A hardy thanks goes to Ashby McCown, the new MidAtlantic Regional Commissioner, for his presentation of the "Address to the Haggis." Ashby graciously stepped in at the last minute to perform this important ritual.
The Awards Committee chaired by Sandra MacDougall presented Somerled Awards to Wylie McDougall and John W. McDougall. The Appreciation Awards presented by Debbie McDougall, Nancy Kane and Pat McDougal went to W. Troy McDougal, Mel and Nyla MacDougal, and Dr. Robert McDougal.
It was so nice to see John McDowell Moore and a large contingent of his family including several grandchildren this year.
After the dinner Greg’s wonderful singing voice and original musical compositions were enjoyed by all. Our entertainment was pure Scots with William Ermatinger giving us a very interesting and historical presentation on the origin of the Celts. Ashby McCown assisted by Peter Clepper followed with an informative tutorial of the origins of the Gaelic language.
Joe Borneman and Tammy Rondinaro were responsible for the AGM and the wonderful dinner and entertainment. Our thanks to both of them. Thanks to Malcolm MacDougall for volunteering to be the new North Carolina State Rep as well as working on the AGM agenda for next year.
On Saturday, there was much activity at the tent visiting and signing up new members. Later on we had the 2nd annual family barbeque, a tradition started by Beacham to provide an opportunity for the members, friends and family to spend some time together in an informal setting. The 2nd annual barbeque was a success with over 50 of the clan and friends attending. There was little left of "Porky Campbell" when the evening came to a close at sundown. A big thanks to Beacham for all the time and effort he spent preparing a wonderful event. A good time was had by all.
The MacDougalls were well represented at the Parade of Tartans on Sunday. During the afternoon we all said our good byes and made arrangements to join each other at upcoming games all around the country. This was our 41st Annual General Meeting and we expect that the 42nd AGM will be even better.
Slainte,
Don MacDougall
Webmaster's Note: This message was originally posted on our old Web site in August 2006. I transferred it to the blog format on Oct. 29, 2006.