Cherokee Hiking Club
198 Crews Drive, Benton, TN 37307

Monthly Club Meeting
Thursday, October 9, 2008

October Club Meeting: The October 9 meeting will be held at the home of Al Rymer beginning about 5:30 with supper around 6:15.  Al will provide hotdogs & fixings.  Bring a covered dish, a lawn chair and roasting sticks if you have them; drinks & ice are provided by the club.  

October Meeting Minutes:  The monthly meeting of the Cherokee Hiking Club was held on October 9, 2008 at 5:30 PM at the home of Al Rymer.  Thank you, Al, for sharing your place by the Hiwassee with us.  There were 26 members and 8 guests present.  Following a wiener roast & potluck, President Randy Morris called the business session to order at 7:15 p.m.  Minutes of the previous meeting were read by Secretary Jane Bohannon and approved as read.  Ann Gray reported the current balance.   

New Business: A nominating committee for choosing 2009 club officers was appointed.  The following members were chosen to serve:  Debbie Flower, Martha Firestone, and Belinda Mantooth.  Their recommendations will be presented at the next meeting. 

Old Business:  Club tee shirts are still available in all sizes for a cost of $15.00.  

Boyd Firestone made a motion to support the by-laws and mission of the Southeast Foot Trails Coalition and Marc Bernatti seconded the motion.  Rick Harris will follow up on how much financial support the SEFTC will need from the club.  The vote was unanimous for supporting the SEFTC initiative.  Since we need a second representative, Randy will ask Diana Ristom serve.   

We followed up on Richard Carroll’s request for leading hikes for the Cleveland area Boy Scouts.  There were no volunteers from the club.   

Ken Jones and Clayton Pannell discussed the Southern Appalachian Forest Coalition proposal for wilderness designation.   Concern was expressed about future clearing of the massive dead hemlocks without the use of power tools and the continuous need for clearing and brushing out trails.  There were also concerns about limiting the number of group participants on hikes and campouts and lack of access to wilderness areas if the proposal is passed. 

A paper ballot vote will be conducted at the November meeting as to whether the club will support the SAFC Wilderness Proposal. INFORMATION REGARDING THE PROPOSED WILDERNESS EXPANSION CAN BE ACCESSED VIA THE CLUB WEBSITE AT www.cherokeehikingclub.org.   Please review the information. Absentee voting will be allowed.  (Form & instructions at end of newsletter.)

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