Sons & Daughters Update

Hello to each of you.

Time for an update on progress with the Sixth Marine Division's (6thMarDiv) Sons and Daughters Group. I apologize for a gap in my email responses from Feb through April: I retired from the Marine Corps in January, my husband and I sold our Virginia home by February, and we packed-up and headed west! After several months of settling family issues in CA, we are now relocated in Scottsdale, AZ, and love it. The weather is awesome and we are convinced that God made AZ roads for Harleys…

Our new contact data is:

Jean and Bill Steed
7507 E. Roy Rogers Rd
Scottsdale, AZ 85262
(H) 480-563-4731
Same email: billysteed@prodigy.net

For those of you on the "to" line above, welcome! According to either data I have received from you, Ms. Dornan's 6thMarDiv membership records, or your parents' input, you have already expressed interest, or might be interested, in being a part of the 6thMarDiv Sons and Daughters (S/D) Group. For those of you on the "info/cc line," you are either an interested party (such as an elected/appointed officer or key person in the Division), or the parents of a S/D for whom I have no email address. Regardless, please pass my email to your offspring!

In case this is a "first heard salvo" for anyone on this email, let me briefly describe the Sons and Daughters group concept.

Last fall, the Division approved a concept for a Sons and Daughters Group. I presented the following S/D Group goals and mission to the Marines at the Sep 2002 reunion:

• Keep the memory of the 6th Marine Division alive and well in the coming years;
• Help the Division members enjoy the benefits of their organization today, and in particular, ensure them a carefree time at the annual reunions;
• Boost Division membership and bolster its coffers.

We envisioned the offspring adjunct functioning as a structured team under the umbrella of the existing 6th Marine Division. At this time, there still are no plans to form a separate Sons-Daughters organization outside the Division apparatus.

I originally recommended that the offspring stand-up an operational structure to shadow that of the existing 6thMarDiv. For each elected/appointed 6thMarDiv officer/chairman, there would be a designated Son/Daughter assistant action officer (AO). This AO would manage a supporting team (worse case, a team of one!) of other S/Ds. The AO/team mission is to serve as supporting staff, brainstorm and plan with Division officials, ensure mission accomplishment, and ease the burden on Division members during the year and at the annual reunion.

Here's where we stand with the S/D concept

As I briefed the Div. President, John Foley, last year, I needed to see what interest was out there in the S/D arena before committing a level of support to the Division. So we launched an article and supporting questionnaire in the Division's newsletter, explaining the group concept and soliciting interested members. While not all of you returned the questionnaire, many of you have signed up as Associate Annual members with the Division. That is wonderful, because it certainly boosts the coffers--which was one goal of the S/D group--and shows your respect for your parents, the Corps, and country.

Many of you sent me emails, saying 'count you in and you're ready to support.' That is great and thanks for taking the time to do so. Others waded through the questionnaire (smile) and sent it back--that was great too, as it gave me a more focused look at available skills and levels of support that could be targeted at specific areas of responsibility within the Division

Now, at this point I have a roster of approximately 70 confirmed or potential S/D contacts. I know there are so many more out there, and we need to keep spreading the word. However, these initial findings confirm the interest is there and we can move on with a support plan for the Division. Note, I am finally back working with the Division webmaster, Lucy Young (also a S/D), to populate the S/D button under the Division website; hope to have that done by week's end, so check in out after that….Any suggestions of course are welcome…

I would like to hold a S/D round table at the upcoming Division reunion. As I hope you all know through the website and your parents, the Division's annual reunion is 24-31 Aug 2003 in St. Petersburg, FL., at the Hilton Hotel. All the details are available on the Sixth Marine Division website. In the extract provided below, the reunion chairman, John Foley, is hoping to boost attendance at what promises to be a fantastic reunion. If you want to come, we'd love to have you and it is not too late. Please contact John directly and he'll make it happen.

IN A MESSAGE DATED 7/29/03 JOHN FOLEY, PRESIDENT OF THE 6TH DIV. ASS'N WRITES:

All 6th Div. Marines: We need your presence at the 6th Division Reunion at St. Petersburg, FL, August 24 to August 31 2003… We have had over 135 Marines added to the taps list so far this year. The loss of all those Marines--and 146 in 2002 and 144 in 2001--has reduced our Membership causing the registration to fall way below the required room reservations held. If you can, please call or e-mail me and I will take care of all arrangements with the hotel and any other reunion needs. At this time, no advance payment is needed….

John Foley - President and Reunion Chairman
E-MAIL: JOHNFOLEY226@HOTMAIL.COM
Ph: 1-352-686-6209
SEMPER FIDELIS

I, too, urge any of you that can break away for even a few days to do so. The reunion itself is going to be the Best, Mr. Foley has taken care of that! Moreover, there is so much to do in the Tampa area: several museums, unique gardens, the Wharf, diverse shopping opportunities; luncheon and dancing abroad a cruise ship, a grand finale banquet at the hotel, and don't forget the BEACH! And of course, the centerpiece, the Hub, of any Marine reunion is the hospitality room and rest assured, no one will be disappointed this year!

The Division's new historian, Laura Lacey, is honoring attendees with two presentations on Division history, highlighting the Battle of Okinawa, and featuring the personal, oral histories provided by many of the Division warriors. Laura also will focus on the major tenets of her Master's thesis on this subject-- a work now under consideration for publishing. Her oral presentations will be on Wed and Thurs evenings, and we'll be sure to put all the details into the welcome packets handed out at the hotel.

The Guest of Honor, Colonel James B. Laster, Commanding Officer of The Basic School, Quantico VA, will deliver the banquet speech. The Colonel is not only a phenomenal speaker, but also a premier officer in one of the Corps' most critical commands. As always, the banquet is the crowning glory to a fun-packed week, replete, with fine dining and dancing.

I would appreciate the following feedback from each of you so I can arrange a time for the S/Ds to get together at the Division reunion. I'd like to stage it Thursday, since we want to out-brief the Men's Meeting and Ladies' Auxiliary Meeting which both convene late Friday AM. The purpose of our meeting would be to confirm a plan for group organization, mission and support; and consider other options such as dividing us up in "districts" to provide regional support across the country to the Division.

Please shoot me an email/call/etc. regarding the queries below:

1. Are you coming to the reunion?
2. When are you arriving and departing?
3. Can I count on you to assist with some events, logistics, planning at the reunion to relieve the burden on the Older Generation? (e.g., welcome the vets; spend a few hours at the arts/crafts table; help draw up a banquet seating chart; ride shotgun for the reunion chairman, John Foley, during the reunion so he too can relax and enjoy the masterpiece he has been painstakingly planning this past year)
4. Would you like to attend the S/D meeting and if so, do you have any concepts for organization, mission, and 2004 support that you'd like to present/discuss?
5. Do you mind if I provide your contact information directly to the incoming Division Officers so that they can contact you if they need help with something during the year?
6. Would someone like to volunteer to put the existing information I have on S/Ds in a database to make additions/updates easier and enhance our ability to display date in a more user friendly format (e.g., spreadsheet). Several of you mentioned that you were experts on data basing and I am not, period. I do have a roster of about 70 names, with associated information, saved in a WORD document, but I really want a spreadsheet (smile). If you are interested, PLEASE contact me soonest….
7. If any of you do not want to be on a S/D roster, please let me know and I'll immediately remove your name. The roster, of course, will only be provided to 6thMarDiv officers/ unit directors. Also, I would like to be sure each S/D had a copy of the roster, updated at least quarterly, so we can effectively network. Again if you do not want to be part of the organization and appear on the roster, just let me know.. Hope to hear from each of you soon…

R, Jean Steed

Contact Information
Bill Pierce
PR Chairman
(Weapons Co., 29th Marines - 6th USMC Div.)
gyrene629@aol.com

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