Feb. 2000
(Photo by
Bob Coffey)
President's
Message
Portrait of ...
President's Message
Dr. Ernst Tomic
In the September 1998 issue of The Reflector
I asked you to suggest an alternative location to the Academy of Medicine
for our meetings. The Club was, at that time, spending more money than
we were able to raise. Rent of the Academy facilities was then - and still
is now - one of our biggest expenditures. Pat and Bern Dempsey then made
the very generous “Dempsey Matching Grant” to the club that enabled us
to balance our books and to retain the Academy as our meeting place.
It is a year and one half later and we again face the very probable loss of our home base, albeit for a different reason: The new director of the Academy Operations, Judy Gavatos, informed me that major architectural changes will be made to interior of the Academy. Since work may begin in early spring, she can not guarantee that meeting rooms will be available to us after March 2000.
Although we made reservations for the whole club year, we do not have now, nor did we ever have a legally binding contract with the Academy. If the commencement of construction is delayed beyond March, we may, at best be able to finish our club year at the Academy. For the coming club year we may or may not have use of the lower level conference room but we will certainly lose the use of the auditorium.
It is, therefore, imperative that we begin the search for an alternative to the Academy immediately. I welcome any and all suggestions for a location that offers
- Availability on three nights per month, September through May
- Seating for about eighty people
- An about ten feet high ceiling to accommodate our large projection screen · Some storage (at least a large, lockable steel cabinet)
- Parking
- Cost of less than $100 per night
My initial inquiries rule out an ideal facility, Arsht Hall (U of Delaware, on Pennsylvania Avenue) because of cost ($450 per night) makes the Edgemoor Community Center appear attractive if only on a cost basis. Non-specific suggestions to date included churches, schools, retirement homes, fire halls, and senior centers.
Please call 302-478-6393 or e-mail (eatomic@aol.com) your suggestions and, if possible, give me the names of persons to be contacted
