Minutes, April 8, 2002
John McGinn, Vice President of the MooCow Bikers, opened the meeting at 8 PM on April 8, 2002. Approximately 50 people were present and 14 new visitors were introduced.
John briefly discussed the Harley Davidson (HD) motorcycle raffle we have planned for later in the year. Thanks to Frank James we have a great bike picked out, a 2002 Pearl White HD Fat Boy. Tickets will be $100.00 each with the benefits going to Blood and Fire (B & F); approximately 400 tickets will be sold. Right now we need a printer for the tickets. More details will follow with information published on the website (www.moocowbikers.org) and emails to everyone.
Chris Franklin from B & F gave us an update on what is going on at the downtown facility. He stated that B & F primary mission is chartered from Isaiah 58 ("...share your food with the hungry, and provide the poor wanderer with shelter....and when you see the naked, to clothe him....and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness...the Lord will guide you always.") Chris stated with the help of Chick-fil-A (CFA) they will have a new kitchen soon at the main building downtown and be able to feed more then 300 a day. B & F ministries continue with over 16 locations worldwide. Recently a group from Atlanta went to Mozambique, where they assisted with an orphanage that has over 600 children. Chris said this was an awesome experience, where God has given B & F the opportunity to assist in raising these children, and it is really more about what the children are doing for the B & F ministries team, then what they (B & F) are doing for the children! Chris stated it was hard to find anyone that was not filled with joy in Mozambique. They have very little, but they are very rich. God's heart is for the poor, and He says that if you give to the poor, you are lending to Him, and He gives back with double interest. Chris encouraged everyone to come visit at B & F, because God will show up as surely as you do, and He will do something for you.
Everyone is encouraged to checkout the calendar pages on our Yahoo Club site. It has over 100 events in and around Georgia running through the Fall months. If you haven't joined the Yahoo Club site do so by signing up (its free) at: to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/moocowbikers. Also checkout the website at www.moocowbikers.org, it gets better and better everyday thanks to Jim Corley our new webmaster. You can send Jim info and pictures to be posted on the website at jcorley@jimcorley.com
- Rock Ranch Ride recap. If you missed the Second Anniversary Ride on March 30, 2002, you missed a great day at the Rock Ranch. Although it was a little wet, everyone had great fun, good food (although not CFA), and over $580 was raised for B & F.
- Deals Gap Ride recap. Randy Adams and Mike White rode to Helen, Georgia and Deals Gap (check out the photos on www.moocowbikers.org). With a wonderful food stop at Graybeards Restaurant, they covered over 465 miles in two days down the Foothills Parkway, through Tennessee and the North Georgia Mountains. Deals Gap was quite an adventure with over 11 miles and 300 curves, once was enough for this daredevil roadway! All in all they had a great ride and scouted out some good locations for future MooCow rides.
- Dennis' church, Tabernacle Baptist, located in downtown Atlanta, is hosting a "biker blessing" this Sunday, April 14, 2002. We will meet at the Fayetteville CFA Dwarf House at 10:30 AM and depart for Dennis' church. This will be a wonderful time to praise God with other bikers and believers. After church there will be dinner on the church grounds and all are invited. Later in the afternoon, the MooCow Band is playing at Piedmont Park.
- On Sunday, May 5, the Berachah Church, Corinth Road, will have a "Lets Roll" Sunday. Everyone is invited to the service at 9:30 AM and picnic on the grounds at 12:00 noon. Come on your bike if possible.
- Mark Trail gave everyone some information on the upcoming Georgia Police Memorial Ride (11th Annual Ride for Fallen Officers in Georgia). This ride is scheduled for April 27, 2002, starting at Turner Field and riding to Stone Mountain Park. Ride begins at 10:30 AM with registration at 8:00 AM. For more information call 770-452-8720.
There were no Minutes for the March meeting.
a. Membership: Membership dues are payable now to Jeff Pritchett. The cost is $15.00. Please give Jeff any updates to your address/email/phone numbers too. Jeff's email is jpritchett@mindspring.com New members are encouraged to get their photo taken for the next membership roster printing. Seven new members signed up this meeting.
b. Budget/Funds: Total collections for B & F this meeting were $669.00.
The following club group rides are scheduled for the next two months:
- April. Date: Saturday, 20 April. Great Southland Stampede Pro Rodeo, Athens, Georgia. This will be a great ride starting at CFA in Fayetteville. We'll ride the back roads to Athens, Stegeman Coliseum, and attend this sanctioned PRCA event. This is the largest professional rodeo in Georgia. It features all the major events, including bareback riding, saddle bronco riding, barrel racing, and bull riding. Plan to eat at the rodeo or we'll stop somewhere along the way. For details on the rodeo call 706-542-9374.
- May. Date: Saturday, 25 May. Stone Mountain Harley-Davidson has a ride that honors veterans on this date. The ride leaves from that location and goes to Andersonville, Georgia to the National Historic Site at the Andersonville Civil War Prison. That same weekend is the Andersonville Historic Spring Fair. We'll probably leave from the CFA, Fayetteville location. This is a great historical site and fair, there will be Civil War battle reenactments, authentic encampments, crafts of blacksmiths and others. We can also visit the Drummer Boy Civil War Museum, the Andersonville Prison Site, and the National Prisoner of War Museum. More information can be obtained from www.andersonvillega.freeservers.com or 229-924-2558.
Next meeting dates for Calendar Year 2002 are: May 13, June 10, July 8, August 12, September 9, October 14, November 11, and December 9.
No old agenda items were discussed.
No new agenda items were presented.
No safety brief was given this meeting. However, Mike White has volunteered to be our Safety Officer. Checkout the website for his April's Safety Tip on riding with a group and the "sweepers" responsibilities.
Dan Cathy, President, shared some wonderful thoughts with us this meeting. He started with giving us a short demonstration on "directions." Dan stated that usually when you plan a trip you have a map, directions, and maybe even a compass. But as his demonstration showed, we all have very different understandings of what directions are or where we might want to go. Dan believes to stay in the right direction today, we have to have two things in our hands: technology and God's Word. Technology is important just because of the times we live in. Especially in the business world where you have to be constantly pre-positioned for change, and be able to quickly adjust your direction to accommodate changes! Sometimes change is just a matter of attitude with how we personally and professional deal with our life's adjustments. And although keeping abreast of technology is important, keeping God's Word in your other hand is more important to your life. Dan said on a daily basis we should spend time in God's Word, because if you become "cool" toward what God wants for you in your life, then you might miss some wonderful opportunity He has planned. He encouraged us to find a comfortable medium for both God's Word and technology. But you should continually ask yourself: "do I spend more time with Bill Gates (technology tools, i.e., the computer, the phone, or the fax)….than I do with God? You will find you are richly blessed if you spend more time in God's Word.
_____________/signed/_________________
Dan Cathy, President