LAKE TAHOE CHAPTER
MOAA - LAKE TAHOE CHAPTER
Never Stop Serving
Our Purpose
The purposes of the Chapter shall be to promote the purposes and objectives of the Military Officers Association of America; foster fraternal relations among retired, active and former officers of the uniformed services and their National Guard or Reserve components; protect the rights and interests of active duty, retired, Reserve and National Guard personnel of the uniformed services and their dependents and survivors; provide useful services for members and their dependents and survivors; and serve the community and the nation.
President's Message
MOAA National's primary mission is ensuring that veterans are well taken care of by Congress. They offer a number of collateral services including scholarships which the Lake Tahoe Chapter is working on now. Since we became the MOAA Lake Tahoe Chapter in 2006, we have focused on supporting the Reno Veterans' Guest House which provides lodging and food for families of veterans undergoing treatment in the adjacent VA hospital.
A second goal is support of the Northern Nevada Civil Air Patrol (CAP). That has been scheduled as a yearly event, and proceeds are donated to the CAP. More recently all three services, particularly the Air Force, have found they placed too much emphasis on rockets and unmanned aircraft and are encouraging support of the CAP. The CAP is doing a great job of getting young kids interested in flying right up to the point of getting licensed. The CAP also assists with SAR missions. We have in Incline Village noted author, Air Force veteran and CAP enthusiast Dale Brown. He has agreed to be active with MOAA Lake Tahoe Chapter's effort to expand support of the CAP. We had plans to schedule a meeting at the Minden Airport during a CAP drill, but Covid 19 put a halt to that. It's still in the offing, however, as the pandemic recedes.
MOAA Lake Tahoe Chapter held its annual picnic dinner August 19 at St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church, Incline Village. The event honored Neal Ward, Sr. and his son Neal “Clint” Ward, who both flew for US Air Forces. Both are inurned in the beautiful community columbarium in St. Patrick’s. Net proceeds of the dinner went to support the Civil Air Patrol a U. S. Air Force auxiliary which trains young men and women aged 12 to 21 to learn to fly.
The senior Ward graduated from Texas A&M in 1937, joined the US Army Air Force as a B17 bomber pilot and was shot down over Germany. He was captured and managed to escape but was recaptured and spent the balance of the war in solitary confinement.
Neal “Clint” Ward, also an A&M grad (1967), became a USAF pilot and was killed in action in 1969 during the Viet Nam war when his plane was shot down as he thwarted an enemy truck convoy on its way to destroy a village. His remains were found in 2019 and returned to the United States to be inurned next to his father in St. Patrick’s columbarium in a ceremony joined by his A&M classmates and members of MOAA – LTC.
Civil Air Patrol honor guard members escorted guests to the Wards’ niches in the church columbarium and briefly recounted their heroic sacrifice. CAP volunteers were led by former USAF Captain and current CAP mission pilot Dale Brown, author of many New York Times bestsellers and a resident of Incline Village.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS FOR 2019
We celebrate our 40th Anniversary this year
In Photo is LtCol Roger Leach, USAF Ret., Noreen Leary, CEO of Veterans Guest House, and Col. Gary Thomsen, USAF Ret.
In 2020 our chapter was the Veterans Guest House raffle grand prize winner of $ 5000, and we donated it back.
This year, 2021, the Veterans Guest House is again holding the raffle. Instructions for how to donate will be emailed to you. Raffle tickets are $100 each, and you can buy them online at veterans guesthouse.org. The winning tickets will be drawn at half-time of the Army/Navy game on Saturday, December 11th.
Veterans Guest House provides temporary lodging and a caring environment for veterans and their family members who travel to Reno for their medical care. To raise funds the organization conducts an annual cash prize raffle. The Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) is a national organization chartered by Congress and is comprised of active and retired military officers. Its 125 member Lake Tahoe Chapter sponsors educational events and supports veterans’ needs.
The guest house is located at 880 Locust Street near the Sierra Nevada Veterans Medical Center.
Photos from MOAA-CAP Picnic
August 12, 2021
Chapter Directors
Chapter Recruiting 2021
Lt Col Roger Leach, USAF Ret
LEGISLATIVE LIAISON - LTCOL GUY FORTIER, USAF RETIRED
I encourage all members to stay current and take action on important legislation in Congress by signing up for MOAA’s EMail Action E-list.
If you have not signed up for MOAA’s Email Action E-List, do so now.
Go to www.moaa.org and on the top bar, place your cursor on “Take Action.”
In the drop-down menu that opens, click on “Contact Congress” and click on the box “Take Action” for those issues of importance to you.
This will enable you to get immediate notification of legislation being considered by Congress that is of importance to the active duty and while on the “Contact Congress” page, go to the bottom and under “Stay informed,” click on “Action E-List,” Just follow the directions from that point. retired military community.
Treasurer's report - Col Gary Thomsen, USAF Ret
Send dues or dinner checks to Treasurer, MOAA-LTC,
P.O.Box 3970, Incline Village, NV 89450
LAKE TAHOE CHAPTER DUES AND MOAA NATIONAL DUES
Here are some important facts that should clarify questions that arise about paying the Lake Tahoe Chapter dues of $25 per year and MOAA National dues.
Lake Tahoe Chapter dues: Your annual chapter dues of $25 are requested in November and December via the web page and the Christmas dinner/dance flyer emailed to you. If you attended the dinner, you probably paid your dues then also. If not, you either paid them separately or forgot to pay.
This year the board decided to roll over the 2020 dues to 2021. So, if you paid your 2020 dues, you do not need to pay for 2021, but if you did not, then your 2021 dues are due by Jan. 1, 2021.
We do not send an invoice or bill for the annual chapter dues of $25. If your dues are not paid by Jan. 1st, you will not receive a written notice of that. If you are not sure if you paid your 2020 dues, or if you are unsure and wonder if you “paid ahead”, please text or email the treasurer to learn your status. Gary@TahoeThomsens.com or 775-830-1409. He will reply within a week.
Those exempt from paying Lake Tahoe Chapter dues are WWII Veterans, widows, widowers, and active duty members.
MOAA National dues - These are separate from the chapter dues. And, if you are a LIFE member of MOAA National, you still need to pay your chapter dues - $25.
If you are a new member of MOAA National, you should receive a voucher as part of your “Welcome Letter” from MOAA National. It entitles you to one year of free chapter dues, but you must forward the voucher to the chapter.
MOAA-LTC OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS
CHAPTER OFFICERS
President CAPT James F. Clark, USNR (775) 831-1414
1st Vice President CAPT Dennis R. Haney, USA (775) 833-3037
2nd Vice President LtCol Jeff Poindexter, USAF Ret (775) 420-1676
Secretary LtCol Nancy K. Manter (775) 530-1498
Treasurer Col Gary Thomsen, USAF Ret (775) 830-1409
DIRECTORS
President Ex-Officio RADM Jack Calvert, USN Ret (775) 339-1233
Program Chair Maj Stan Wolken, USAF (650) 704-5991
Membership Chair LtCol Roger Leach, USAF Ret (775) 287-1121
Wash. D.C. Liaison LtCol Guy Fortier, USAF Ret (775) 831-3040
Personal Affairs Chair Kay Lehr (916) 203-4319
Newsletter Editor LtCol Nancy Manter, USAF Ret (775) 530-1498
Member-at-Large CAPT Loren “Biz” Obley, USN Ret (775) 831-8694
Contacts for your Senators & Representatives
The Honorable Jacky Rosen, U.S. Senate, Washington D.C. 20510,
Phone: (202) 224-6244
The Honorable Catherine Cortez Masto, U.S. Senate, Wash. D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 2243542
The Honorable Mark Amodei, U.S. House of Representatives, Wash. D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-6155
Anyone who wants to carpool, please contact any member of the board.
On the South Shore, call LtCol Jim Duke (530) 541-6179 or dukeattahoe@aol.com
CONTACTS
For questions or submissions to the web site:
Nancy Manter - nkelmanski@aol.com
phone: 775-530-1498
For dues and payment for events:
Gary Thomsen, Treasurer
MOAA - LTC , P.O. Box 3970, Incline Village, NV
For membership information:
Roger Leach - 775-287-1121
President: Jim Clark - 775-831-1414