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2016 Skål USA Journeys, Volume 3

Table of Contents

President’s Message ● FV Fund Update ● Skål USA Updates ● Skål Event Information ●

Community Involvement ● Skål USA Club Awards ● Skål USA Resource Center ● Region

I Round Up ● Region III Round Up ● Region IV Round Up ●

Region V Round Up ● Skål USA Shop

A Letter from the Skål USA

President

Dear Fellow Skålleagues,

The annual Skål International USA election cycle

has begun. Several candidates have submitted

their names, Skål resumes, and professional

curriculum vitae, and have been vetted

and qualified for consideration in this

year's election.

Please note that all voting is done by your club

president and each club has one vote. Clubs that

had 66 or more Active, Life, and Retired

members as of October 15, 2016 will

automatically receive two votes. All club

presidents were sent a secure electronic ballot via

email.

Voting opened November 1st at 12:00 am Central

time and will end on November 30th at 11:59 pm

Central time. Please notify the Skål USA

Administrators at SIUSA@buses.org as soon

as possible if you believe that your club president

will be unavailable during the voting period.

In this initial election year for the two new

Director of Membership positions, the candidate

receiving the most votes will serve a two-year

term, and the candidate receiving fewer votes will

serve a one-year term.

Please note that all candidates must receive a vote

from 50% + 1 of the votes cast to win.

The following are this year's candidates:

President

Holly Powers

SI Boston

holly@hollypowerstravel.com

Vice President Administration

Burcin Turkkan

SI Atlanta

burcinturkkan@useh.org

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Vice President Finance

Alton Hagen

SI Kansas City

ahagen@agendausa.com

Vice President Membership

Tim Hemphill

SI New Orleans

themphill@mccno.com

Toni Koster

SI Reno/Tahoe

toni@zoomaway.com

Two Directors of Membership

Jim Dwyer

SI Northern New Jersey

jdwyer1144@aol.com

Dave Ryan

SI Sacramento

dryan@classicvacations.com

Director PR and Communications (two-year

term)

Tom Moulton

SI Tucson

tom.moulton@pima.gov

Steve Richer

SI Washington

richeradvisors@gmail.com

Internal Auditor

Arthur Allis

SI Tucson

arthurallis@icloud.com

Ed Davis

SI Atlantic City

ez12ed@aol.com

We invite you to visit http://siusa.org/election/ to

learn more about the candidates.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate

to contact me.

Skål,

John N. Mavros

President

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Florimond Volckaert Fund (FVF)

Update

What is the Florimond Volckaert Fund?

The Florimond Volckaert Fund (FVF) was set up in

1954, in the name of the acknowledged founder of

Skål, to provide assistance to Skålleagues and their

immediate families who are in serious need of

assistance, during times of desperation.

If a Skålleague is in need of help, an application

should be sent to either the President of your Club

or the Skål USA International Councillor, who will

convey the application to the three FVF Trustees.

They will assess the request and quickly come to a

decision.

Policy Change:

As previously advised, all donations to the FVF

must be received by Skål USA within the calendar

year for which the donation is intended. Donations

received after the deadline will be considered and

recognized for the succeeding year. We can no

longer account for pre-payments or accept

payments after the deadline based on when the

funds are required to be transferred to Skål

International.

The deadline for 2016 FVF contributions is

December 1, 2016.

Donations from the clubs help make the FVF viable

and able to fulfill its special purpose. We would like

to recognize the following for their contributions in

2016:

SI Albany

SI Arkansas

SI Atlanta

SI Atlantic City

SI Baltimore

SI Boise

SI Central Pennsylvania

SI Ft. Lauderdale & Palm Beaches – in memory

of Dick Knorpp

SI Hawaii

SI Jacksonville

SI Kansas City

SI Los Angeles

SI Memphis

SI New Orleans

SI Orange Coast

SI Orlando

SI Pittsburgh

SI Reno/Tahoe

SI Sacramento – in memory of Dick Knorpp

SI San Francisco

SI San Jose

SI Tucson

SI Washington

Contribution by Skål USA in memory of Dick

Knorpp

Contribution by Carlos Banks in memory of

Dick Knorpp

Contribution by John H. Bogrette, Jr. & Mary

Ann Bogrette in memory of Dick Knorpp

Skål USA Updates

A Message from the VP of Finance

Dear Skålleagues,

For those who have been wondering why you

haven’t yet received the invoice for the annual

renewal of insurance premiums for our General

Liability, Directors & Officers Liability, plus Crime

coverage, it’s because we’re still waiting the

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underwriters to provide us with accurate insurance

premium quotes and invoices.

We first encountered a delay when we were advised

by the General Liability underwriter, after the

September 1st renewal date, that the premiums

quoted in past years had been “rated” incorrectly.

The underwriter needed to re-quote based on the

number of total members in the participating clubs

rather than the number of clubs as they had done in

past years.

A second delay occurred when we questioned the

premium quotes we received for both the Crime

Coverage plus the Director & Officer liability

coverage, (which were also received AFTER the

renewal date). It subsequently came to light that

those renewal quotes were based on an incorrect,

higher, number of participating clubs.

As of this writing, we still have not received the

revised premium quote for those two policies.

As we’ve been expecting a resolution to these issues

“any day now” for weeks, we’ve not sent out any

notices or invoices. Those will be distributed as

soon as possible after we hear back from the

underwriters.

Sincerely,

Alton Hagen, CMP, DMCP

VP Finance

Delete Members from the Roster

As a reminder, it is your club's responsibility to

remove those members who have resigned from

Skål, passed away, or have not paid 2016

membership dues. Please process these deletions

prior to December 31, 2016. In the case of any

members who pass away, please also notify the Skål

USA Administrator at siusa@buses.org.

Skål USA will be sending out your initial 2017 dues

invoice along with a copy of each club’s current

membership roster at the beginning of January via

email. The more new members who are processed

during the traditional dues free period during

November and December the better. Each Club's Treasurer is to send on or before

January 31st, a check, payable to Skål USA, for the

club's membership dues to Skål USA (including

Skål International dues). This check for dues is to

be sent to the Skål USA Administrator. It is

recommended that clubs update rosters through the

Skål International, website, before December 31st

so invoices sent at the beginning of January will be

as accurate as possible. Any changes to your

roster must be submitted to Skål International,

not Skål USA.

If a member has not paid their 2017 dues by

February 1st, it is suggested to drop them to avoid

paying too much. To reinstate a member who pays

their dues late, just send an e-mail to the Skål

International requesting to reinstate them. There is

no need to complete a new application form. Your

Regional Vice President (or, after new board

members assume their duties on January 1st, your

Director of Membership) can assist you in showing

you how to delete members.

Skål USA Outreach Mission to

Washington, D.C.

Skål International USA recently undertook an

initiative to bring new relevance to the organization

with the goal of attracting new members and

helping with retention. One of the action steps was

to meet with leaders of sister national governing

organizations in the nation’s capital and explore

some form of affiliations.

President John Mavros lead a Skål delegation in

Washington D.C. that was joined by members of SI

Washington. The group met with US Travel

Association, American Society of Travel Agents,

Destination Marketing Association International,

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American Hotel & Lodging Association, American

Bus Association, Student Youth Travel Association,

the National Tour Association and Ethiopian

Airways. The delegation was well received by all of

the organizations and all pledged to collaborate to

raise the awareness of Skål in the U.S. in a variety

of ways. Discussions ranged from formal

affiliations with mutual benefits to commitments to

include selected Skal news items in communiques

to their respective members and everything in

between.

The initiative was launched when John Mavros was

elected Skål USA President by forming the Futures

Committee Chaired by Tim Hemphill. The

Committee has held several conference calls and

will conduct an in person workshop in November.

A report is expected be issued in early 2017.

“I was very encouraged by our reception in D.C.

and I have no doubt it will bear fruit. It seems we

have some real momentum that will help us in

turning the tide of losing members,” said Skål USA

President Mavros. “The Washington club was

instrumental in making our arrangements and I

couldn’t be more thankful,” he continued.

The meetings in D.C. were arranged by SI

Washington member Steve Richer, who with SI

Washington President James Enright and SI

Washington member Barry Biggers accompanied

the delegation.

Skål USA President John Mavros presenting the Skål Flag to

Matthew MacKaren, Senior VP, Member Services American

Hotel and Lodging Association

John Mavros, Tim Hemphill, and Steve Richer attend a dinner

hosted by Skal International Washington D.C. at The

University Club

The delegation meeting with Peter Pantuso, President & CEO

of the American Bus Association

L to R: Steve Richer, Tim Hemphill, Kelly Bigel, Assistant

Director Business Development, American Society of Travel

Agents; and John Mavros

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L to R: Steve Richer, SI Washington; Tim Hemphill, RVP

SIUSA, SI New Orleans; Hiwot Mengesha, Travel Industry

Sales, Ethiopian Airlines; Skalleague Nigusu Wardofa, North

American Regional Manager, Ethiopian Airlines; and John

Mavros, SIUSA President, SI Orange Coast

US Travel Association with Malcom Smith, SVP Business

Development & General Manager, IPW-Michael Martin, Mgr

International Marketing and Caith DeBaun, Director of

Communications Project:Time Off

Public Relations Opportunities for Skål

USA Clubs with PR Newswire

Dear Skålleagues,

At the beginning of the year the

PR/Communications and Website Committee set

a goal to promote the SKÅL USA brand in the

USA to potential members by establishing a

systematic and professional PR campaign using

external channels at little or no cost, and to refine

the current communication channels to increase

membership satisfaction.

The committee accomplished this goal with PR

Newswire. PR Newswire offered SKÅL USA six

free nationwide press releases in exchange for the

addition of their Travel News Link to our

website. We have issued five nationwide Press

Releases this year. There are links on SKÅL

USA website for each release. We received daily

reports of our exposure and based on the reports,

our exposure has increased steadily. The last two

press releases were picked by 216 media

channels; which includes major newspaper

websites and some local TV channel news sites in

major US cities.

The SKÅL USA PR/ Communication & Website

Committee asked PR Newswire if this

opportunity could be extended to SKÅL Clubs in

the USA that have an active website. PR

Newswire will offer their news feed services to

your club at no cost. The news feed will be

customized to fit your audience and built to

match your site's look and feel. In exchange for

placing the PR Newswire feed on your site you

will receive the following benefits at no cost:

The news feed will feature current content

which, combined with your original

content, will provide reliable, interesting

and useful information to your readers.

Your site will be included in the network

report, so clubs can see the sites that have

published their news releases. These

clients will, for the most part, be a VP,

SVP, or EVP of PR or marketing at these

companies, fairly difficult titles to reach

and will raise the visibility of your club

and our brand.

You will receive a number of

complimentary news releases nationwide

in exchange for placing the PR Newswire

link on your blog. You can use these

releases at your discretion to promote

your clubs.

We are very excited about this opportunity to

allow our clubs to have free nationwide press

releases and help them promote SKÅL events

and promote your community service activities.

The increased exposure of our SKÅL USA brand

in nationwide media will increase brand

awareness. Interested clubs should contact

Jeanette Jirau at PR Newswire

at Jeanette.Jirau@prnewswire.com to discuss this

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opportunity further. Please contact me

at burcinturkkan@useh.org at your convenience

with any questions you may have.

Best Regards & SKÅL,

Burcin Turkkan

Region IV VP

PR- Communications & Website Committee

Liaison

Skål USA Press Releases in 2016

Click the links below to view the Skål USA Press

Releases that have been issued so far in 2016:

August 15, 2016

http://www.ttrweekly.com/site/2016/08/skal-and-

unwto-condemn-attacks/

August 12, 2016

http://www.travelagentcentral.com/industry/skal-

international-usa-condemns-terrorism-57591

July 13, 2016

https://www.yahoo.com/news/skal-international-

usa-restructures-board-positions-90-percent-

170000195.html

June 2, 2016

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/skal-

international-usa-announces-officers-

300278929.html

Skål International Elects New Officers

The 2016 General Assembly of Skål International

held on Monday, October 31 elected David Fisher

from Kenya as the new President of the largest

tourism association in the world. The new C.E.O. of

Skål International, Daniela Otero, was also

officially introduced.

The newly-elected Vice President is Rafael Millan

Pérez from Mexico and Teresa Díaz Comas from

Spain was elected as the new Director. Frans Staal

from the Netherlands was elected as Auditor.

The 2018 Skål World Congress will be held in

Kenya.

Congratulations to all!

Skål International to Restart Addis

Ababa Club

The Addis Ababa Skål Club, charter #311, held a

well-attended reorganization meeting on October 25

at the Jupiter International Hotel.

The reestablishment of the Addis Ababa Club will

add another important nation to the Skål family.

The activities of the club were suspended more than

forty years ago after the military coup which

toppled Emperor Haile Selassie.

This project, which was initially suggested by SI

Washington tour operator member Yohannes

Zeleke had significant support from club members

his Excellency Girma Birru, Ethiopian Ambassador

to the United States, and Nigusu Wordofa, North

American Regional Director of Ethiopian Airlines.

Desale Mitiku Asfaw, General Manager of Grand

Holiday, Ethiopia Tours, and chairman of the

committee to restart the Addis Ababa Skål Club,

said, "We are very excited about the interest that

this effort is receiving from travel industry leaders

here in Addis. Top hoteliers, tour operators, public

sector, and airline executives are expected.

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"The fact that two key Skål Clubs with both strong

membership numbers and high recognition within

the global travel community have come together to

help us is a big motivator. The clubs in

Washington, DC, and Nairobi are co-sponsoring our

re-emergence."

It is anticipated that a strong Skål Club in Addis

Ababa will add another voice to Ethiopia's

aspirations to become a major travel destination.

With its World Heritage Sites, global air service

connections through Ethiopian Airlines, and status

as the de facto capital of Africa as the home of the

United Nations and African Union, Addis has a lot

to offer.

Stephen Richer, Past Regional Vice President of

Skål USA, the chairman of the Addis Ababa

committee in the Washington Skål Club, and a

thirty year Skål member in five different clubs,

traveled to Addis Ababa to speak about Skål to the

attendees. Richer reported, "Skål has been one of

the key networking tools in my career to increase

visitation to all of the destinations for which I have

worked, including starting a Skål Club from scratch

in Atlantic City, New Jersey."

Asfaw and Richer traveled to the Skål International

World Congress in Monte Carlo, Monaco, where

they invited fellow Skålleagues from around the

world to attend the proposed charter night activities

this coming April, which will include opportunities

to tour Ethiopia and co-sponsor country, Kenya.

L to R: Yoseph Getnet, General Manager, Gihon Travel and

Tours and an Individual Skal Member from Addis Ababa;

Stephen Richer, chairman of the SI Addis Ababa committee for

co-sponsoring SI Washington; Desale Asfaw, General

Manager, Grand Holidays, Ethiopian Tours, and organizing

chairman for SI Addis Ababa; and prospective Skal member,

Solomon Tadesse, CEO, Ethiopia Tourism Organization

L to R: Desale Asfaw, SI Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) organizing

committee chair, and Steve Richer, SI Washington co-

sponsoring committee chair for SI Addis Ababa

reestablishment, prepare to welcome prospective Skalleagues

and media to the first meeting of the club in nearly forty years

at the Jupiter International Hotel on October 25.

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Upcoming Skål Meeting and Event

Information A Message from the VP of Administration

on the 2017 North American Skål

Congress

Dear Skål Members

Did you know that Toronto, Canada will be the

location for the next North American Skål Congress

on June 15 - 18, 2017?

The North American Skål Congress (NASC) is a

mandatory meeting for all clubs to attend. During

the 2016 NASC in Boise, Idaho, the delegates

overwhelmingly voted to provide a $500 credit to

each club sending a voting delegate to the congress

to help with the cost of attending.

This year, your Skål USA Board listened to your

suggestions and changed the format of the meetings

by making sure the board meeting is less than two

hours, an open forum was added to provide

delegates an opportunity to discuss issues important

to their clubs, and that the AGM that provided

relevant and important information in a much

shorter business session. This year we even beat the

Canadians on time!

Skål International Toronto has prepared a

tremendous program and it is already open for

booking.

Unlike past conferences, we urge every club to

share this information with all their members and

make this a club event rather than just sending your

president or SIUSA rep. Let us get many Skål

members involved as it will be a great experience

they will enjoy and benefit from.

The Skål Canada Toronto flyer can be accessed

by clicking this link. Please understand that the

prices listed are in Canadian dollars. The US dollar

is very strong and as of today the actual price you

will pay is as follows for hotel and Congress:

Per person rates:

$750 - Double Occupancy

$1,044 - Single Occupancy

$528 - Congress only, no hotel

Rates are subject to the conversion rate at the time

of booking and full payment.

Don't miss this wonderful opportunity to join Skål

members from around North America. I urge you to

discuss this event with your members and book

early.

Sincerely,

Holly L Powers

Vice President Administration

Skål USA Winter Board Meeting To Be

Held January 26-28 in Orlando

The Skål USA Winter Board meeting will be hosted

by SI Orlando January 26 – 28, 2017 at the

beautiful Melia Suites Hotel in Celebration, Florida.

Celebration is the Walt Disney Town close to the

Magic Kingdom.

Proposals to host this event were prepared by SI

Orange Coast, Hampton Roads and Orlando. All

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proposals were discussed and voted upon during the

NCM in North Little Rock in September. Orlando

made a compelling proposal combined with the

lower cost of air travel to this destination made the

decision unanimous for all Board Members. A

great thank you to all the clubs that submitted

proposals to host this event.

The newly elected Executive Committee of Skål

USA take office on January 1, 2017 but are

officially pinned and the Presidential Chain is

passed during the Winter Board Meeting at the

welcome reception hosted by SI Orlando.

A Board meeting will be held on Friday, January

27, which will honor outgoing President John

Mavros and review his year as President. Training

of new officers and discussion of goals set for the

coming year plus committees will be announced.

All Skål members are invited to observe the

process. Package details for observers will be send

out following the conclusion of the election period

which ends on November 30th. The Melia Suites

Hotel will offer an attractive rate for this event and

3 days prior and 3 days’ post of the meeting so

anyone thinking of a Florida/Disney World vacation

should take advantage of this great offer.

Past Skål Meetings & Events

2017 National Committee Meeting (NCM)

in North Little Rock a Great Success

The 2016 National Committee Meeting (NCM) was

a tremendous success thanks to the hard work of SI

Arkansas and the new format of the event.

Delegates loved the shorter meeting sessions and

Open Forum where everyone came together to share

ideas.

Skål International Director Rafael Millan of Mexico

and Skål International Canada President, Doug

McPhee attended and enjoyed the events.

From the welcome reception held at the Yacht Club

with cocktails being served on private yachts, to

dinner in an amazing museum of old treasures was a

great way to kick off the weekend. Your Skål USA

Executive Committee held their Board meeting to

only 1 hour and 45 minutes and the AGM was

completed in under 4 hours. Delegates enjoyed the

Open Forum discussions and the free time to

explore Little Rock. A tremendous event was

planned at Arkansas’s submarine the USS

Razorback and the closing event at the distillery

was great fun. SI Arkansas hosted a wonderful

hospitality suite each night.

Thank you, SI Arkansas, and especially Karen

Trevino for planning such a wonderful event.

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L to R: Rafael Millan, SI Vice President; Doug McPhee, Skål

Canada President; Skål USA VP Administration Holly

Powers; Skål USA President John Mavros

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Skål USA President John Mavros presents SI Arkansas, SIUSA

Representative, Karen Trevino a plaque in appreciation of her

outstanding hard work organizing the 2016 NCM held in N.

Little Rock, Arkansas

President John Mavros presents Past President Carlos Banks

with a plaque in appreciation of his hard work in updating the

By-law and Statute changes made during this year’s AGM in

Boise.

Skål USA Attends IMEX in Las Vegas on

October 20

L to R: SI Las Vegas member B’Anka Nader, Skål USA

President John Mavros, SI Las Vegas EST Ann Parsons

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Community Involvement

Share your community involvement experience!

Please provide the name, dates, and a brief

description of the

events/causes/scholarships/services that you are

involved in via email to siusa@buses.org.

Sign Up Now for Tourism Cares for Our

Cities

“City tourism—with the economic and employment

opportunity it creates—increases the well-being for

the billions living in the world’s cities. The projects

our industry will work on will affect not just the

visitors, but will also enhance the lives of those who

call these cities home.”

— Don Hawkins, professor emeritus of tourism

studies at George Washington University & special

advisor to the United Nations World Tourism

Organization

Volunteer in 2017 with Tourism Cares for our

Cities in Oakland (March 23-24), Detroit (May 11-

12, with Travel’s Big Give), Providence (Sept 14-

15), and Toronto (Oct TBD) – Skålleagues can sign

up at the Tourism Cares member rate!

In each of these vibrant cities, volunteers will work

with local partners to fulfill the most pressing needs

of the city. In some cases it will be helping to

transform the urban landscape by reviving public

spaces or enhancing the accessibility of recreational

facilities and amenities.

New for 2017: share best practices and enhance

business relationships at Travel’s Big Give May

10-12 in Detroit, part of National Travel & Tourism

Week. Travel’s Big Give features educational

programs focused on Detroit as a destination, the

importance of city tourism, corporate social

responsibility programs and social and business

networking opportunities.

Registration is now open for Tourism Cares for

Oakland and registration for other events open six

months ahead of each program. Take advantage of

your Skal member rate and join us in Oakland,

Detroit, Providence or Toronto in 2017!

Celebrate the Best in Giving Back to

Travel!

Join the Tourism Cares community to celebrate the

Hearts of Travel Awards honorees, December 15 in

NYC, immediately preceding the Travel Weekly

Readers Choice awards at The Conrad Hotel.

The honorees will be announced in November, in 3

categories:

The Legacy in Travel Philanthropy Award,

(previous winners include Micato Safaris, Lindblad

Adventures, and Myths and Mountain); the New

Innovators Travel CSR Award (awarded in 2015

to Nikoi Island), and the Philanthropic Champion

of Travel (awarded in 2015 to John Noel).

Get your ticket now, at the special member rate, or

learn more at www.TourismCares.org/Celebrate.

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Skål USA Club Awards

SI Arkansas & SI Boise Recognized at SI

World Congress

At the recent SI World Congress in Monaco, SI

Arkansas won third place for Skål International

Club of the Year. In addition, SI Boise won the

award for largest percentage increase in

membership growth in the world in 2016, and SI

Arkansas won the award for second largest

percentage increase.

Coming in first for Club of the Year was SI Cancun,

followed by SI Canberra. The other Skål USA clubs

in the running were Atlantic City and Jacksonville.

Congratulations to all the winners and nominees!

Skål USA President accepting the award on behalf of SI

Arkansas

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Skål USA Resource Center

Share Club Event Information and

Photos with Fellow Skålleagues!

Skålleagues are encouraged to share photos from

Skål USA and club events as well as information on

upcoming meetings of clubs and the travel and

tourism industry as a whole on the Skål USA

Facebook page. The Facebook page is open to

members and interested non-members alike. To

view or share photos on our page:

1. Visit the Skål USA Facebook page at

https://www.facebook.com/groups/SKALUS

A/ (you may need to log in to Facebook

and/or click “Join Group”)

2. Click the “Photos” tab near the top of the

page, under the board photo. You will now

see a compilation of photos sorted by the

date posted.

3. Click the “Albums” tab below the “Photos”

tab. You will now be able to view albums of

photos that have been uploaded, sorted by

the date posted.

4. From here, you can create a new album for a

particular event by clicking “Create Album”,

or add photos to an existing album by

selecting that album and clicking “Add

Photos” at the top.

In Case You Missed It: Skål USA

Webinar: Define, Distinguish, Position

Yourself with All the Right Public

Relations Tools

April 15, 2016

Presented by SI Orlando's Kathy Hernandez,

President of KHA PR, this Skål International United

States of America webinar is intended to help equip

you with the tools to help you get your message out

better.

View the Recording!

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/60745

09646523263235

This session touches on a number of topics, such as:

Creating A Face For Your Company/Your

Club

Establishing Your Designated Press Contact

Press Releases With Hot Topics

Online Press Rooms That Generate

Attention and Business

Social Media – How Not To Be Afraid Of It

Staying In Front Of The Media

Public relations can be an essential function that

Skål USA clubs can harness to help you get new

members. Click the link above and view the

recording to discover new ways to connect to your

members, the media, prospective members and

other clubs!

In Case You Missed It: Skål USA

Webinar: How to Develop Young Skål

within Your Club November 17, 2015

Presented by Jennifer Ackerson, Nicholle Fearon,

Alexandra Pick, and Cynthia Pisco from SI Long

Island; Burcin Turkkan from SI Atlanta; and Adrius

Valiulis from SI Toronto.

View the Recording!

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/recording/7887

715368898646530

Finding ways to engage the younger generation is a

challenge that nearly all organizations face. As you

learned in a previous Skål USA webinar,

millennials have different wants, needs, and desires,

and organizations must adapt and be responsive in

order to remain relevant in the future. Skål

International has taken a terrific first step with the

formation of Young Skål, but Skål clubs can

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certainly take it upon themselves to create

initiatives that will further incorporate millennials

into the membership. Several clubs in the US and

Canada have set an excellent example with their

efforts to get younger people engaged. Skål USA

invited representatives from several clubs to

participate in this webinar and share the keys to

their success. Click the link above to view the

recording and find out the keys to recruiting and

empowering Young Skål members!

In Case You Missed It: Skål USA

Webinar: Selling to Millennials

June 30, 2015

Presented by Charlie Funk, SI Nashville

View the Recording!

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/86977

12387380414978

As we continue to bring in the next generation of

young professionals into the working ranks as well

as the bulk of our customer base, we need to

understand their motivation - needs and wants. This

emerging group is very unique in their interests,

communication methods and reference points. In

order to better incorporate them into Skål as well as

leverage their increasing buying power, we must

first try to understand and relate to their lifestyles

and career concepts as well as how to reach them

and get them to engage.

Got a Special Skål Occasion

Coming Up?

Installation Ceremony

Formal Dinner

Retirement Ceremony

Monthly Skål Meeting

Industry Event

Need a Commemorative

Note to Send

We’ve Got Your Bling!

Email us with your order: siusa@buses.org

17

Skål USA Regional Round-Up

To find out more about upcoming club events or to contact a club while you are traveling

to their neck of the woods, check out our Skål USA “Club Locator” webpage,

http://siusa.org/club-locator/.

Quarterly reports from each of the Regional Vice Presidents are posted here on the Skål USA

website.

News & Highlights from

Region I

A new Facebook page has been created to

highlight upcoming meetings in the region

and share additional pictures from meetings

and events!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/546803

928745080/

SI Boston holds September meeting

at Gillette Stadium, home of the

New England Patriots

Skål Boston continues to hold unique

meetings. Their September 15 meeting was

held at Gillette Stadium the home of the

New England Patriots. The Patriots rolled

out the red carpet and posted the Skål

International Boston logo over the entrance

and also on the scoreboard over the field.

Former Patriot Joe Andruzzi was the special

guest along with the team mascot “Pat the

Patriot”. Joe is a super bowl campion who

left the team after playing for 10 years when

he was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin

Burkitt Lymphoma cancer. Joe took

pictures with all who attended and even let

some where one of his super bowl rings.

$4,000 was raised from the meeting raffle

receipts and was presented to Joe for his Joe

Andruzzi Foundation that takes care of

needs of the families of people suffering

from cancer.

18

Joe Andruzzi, former New England Patriots offensive

guard, SI VP Administration Holly Powers (with

Joe’s Super Bowl ring), and Pat the Patriot

SI VP Administration Holly Powers with Pat the

Patriot

19

SI Long Island Meets at Marriott

Residence Inn at Plainview on

September 20th

SI Washington Holds Lobster Fest

20

Upcoming Issues of

Skål USA Journeys

March 2016

Materials due March 15th

Are You

Following

Skål USA

Online?

Join the

Conversation!

Share Your

Club

Stories!

Promote

Your

Meetings!

www.siusa.org

21

News & Highlights from

Region III

A new Facebook page has been created to

highlight upcoming meetings in the region

and share additional pictures from meetings

and events!

https://www.facebook.com/skalinternationalu

saregion3

SI Anchorage Celebrates 50th

Anniversary like “Mad Men”

Anchorage Skal Club #289 turns 50 years

old in November. The 65 dinner guests,

enjoyed the company of two of its original

charter members during the celebratory

dinner held at the Bridge Restaurant on

October 2nd, 2016.

Both Mr. Bob Halcro and Mr. Dick Garvin

were in attendance and “holding court” as

they talked about the Club’s early years. The

titans of the Alaska tourism industry like to

have a good time enjoying happiness, good

health, friendship and long life!

The theme was, of course, 1960’s attire.

Skalleagues and their dates dressed as Mad

Men, Hippie’s, Pan Am and Alaska Airlines

flight attendants. The honorable, Ms. Nancy

Klinski, was one of the first women to join

the club in 1990 and later became

Anchorage club president in 2005.

SIUSA Region Three VP, Mr. David Ryan,

generously took time to join the festivities

over the weekend and addressed the club

members during this milestone gala event.

As is customary, Skal members shared

memories, jokes and fellowship that truly

celebrated why the SI Anchorage club is

very active and growing 50 years after its

inception! SKAL!

22

SI San Francisco Unveils New

Website and Facebook Page

Keep up with the latest news, events,

dinners, and meetings by using the

following resources:

SI San Francisco’s new website:

www.skalsanfrancisco.org

SI San Francisco’s new Facebook page:

www.facebook.com/SKALClubSF

News & Highlights from

Region IV

A new Facebook page has been created to

highlight upcoming meetings in the region

and share additional pictures from meetings

and events!

https://www.facebook.com/skalusaregioniv

23

News & Highlights from

Region V

SI Los Angeles Hosts Summer

Fundraiser Event

L to R: Tom Moulton, Skål USA Region V RVP; Carl

Zicarelli, President, SI Orange Coast; Mok Singh, SI

Past President; Stan Jones, President, SI Los Angeles

SI Los Angeles hosted their summer

fundraiser event at the home of Mok and

Renu Singh on Sunday, August 28, 2016.

The charity is the Fred Jordan Mission and

donations will help provide back-to-school

items, backpacks, and more for children in

need.

SI Orange Coast Holds 40th

Anniversary Meeting

On September 7th, SI Orange Coast held

their 40th Anniversary gala reception and

dinner event at the Westin South Coast

Plaza Hotel, Costa Mesa.

Amongst the attendees were several past

presidents of the Club and former members

from - Los Angeles, Tucson, Washington,

DC, and Belfast, Ireland.

Thirty-five members and guests enjoyed a

wonderful cocktail hour and a superb dinner

menu.

During the meeting, Skål USA President

John Mavros presented a plaque of

appreciation to Founder and past President

of SI OC Mike Valen. President Mavros also

thanked the Westin South Coast Plaza and

GM Mike Hall for their continued generous

support of Snowball Express in 2006, 07 and

08. "The Westin Costa Mesa has been most

generous in our Snowball Express initiative

and we are proud to be associated with

them," said President Mavros. Snowball

Express is a charity that serves the children

of our fallen military heroes. American

Airlines has donated over 120 charters to

transport the children and surviving parents

to the annual Snowball Express events since

2007.

SI OC’s annual Christmas Dinner and Silent

Auction has been arranged once again at the

beautiful Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club in

Corona Del Mar by Commodore Ray and

Jeanne Kovacs. The date is Friday

December 2nd.

24

L to R: Tom Moulton, Skål USA Region V RVP; Mike

Smith, Vice President SI Orange Coast; Rod Hurt,

Past President SI Orange Coast; James Enright, Past

President, SI Orange Coast and current President, SI

Washington; Phil Campanelli, Immediate Past

President, SI Orange Coast; Deirdre O'Neil, Past

President SI Orange Coast; Mike Valen, founding

member of SI Orange Coast; Bob Zonitch, founding

member of SI Orange Coast; Carl Zicarelli,

President, SI Orange Coast; Skål USA President

John Mavros

L to R: Carl Zicarelli, President, SI Orange Coast;

Phil Campanelli, Immediate Past President, SI

Orange Coast; Deirdre O'Neil, Past President SI

Orange Coast; Skål USA President John Mavros;

Rod Hurt, Past President SI Orange Coast; Mike

Valen, founding member of SI Orange Coast; James

Enright, Past President, SI Orange Coast and current

President, SI Washington

Skål USA Shop

Visit us online at http://siusa.org/siusa-

shop/ for all of your Skål jewelry and pin

needs.

Skål Member Ribbons. Stand out from the

crowd! Maximum 50 ribbons per order.

Submit your order online or via email to

siusa@buses.org.

25

Credit Cards are now being

accepted for jewelry orders

To place a jewelry order using a credit card,

fill out and submit the order form on the Skål USA Shop web page (www.siusa.org/siusa-

shop). There will be a link at the bottom of

the order confirmation page to pay by credit

card rather than receive an invoice. Please

click this link and fill out the form, selecting

the “Other” box and entering “Skål USA

Store” into the text box. You will only be

charged once for your order. If you choose

to pay by credit card, you will not receive an

invoice.

Skål USA Shirts

Skål USA shirts with the official Skål logo

are available from Land’s End. To place an

order, visit the Skål USA Shop at

www.siusa.org/siusa-shop and click the

“Shirts” tab. On this page you will find a

link with step-by-step ordering instructions

as well as the link that will take you to the

Land’s End site to make a purchase. If you

have problems ordering, please contact Matt

Manousoff, Skål USA Administrator at 202-

898-4690 or SIUSA@buses.org.