June Newsletter

June 2022 FWRRC NEWSLETTER

FWRR Club Meeting

The next meeting of the Fort Wayne Rifle and Revolver Club will be held on Monday, June 6, 2022. Meeting Place: VFW Post 857, located at 2202 West Main Street in Fort Wayne. Meeting Time: 7:00 p.m. Agenda: Standard meeting format. Food and drink are available at very reasonable prices before and after the meeting.

Please make an effort to attend meetings, as a quorum is required to conduct club business.

Cleanup Day Report

Cleanup Day was held on April 23, 2022. Attendance was extremely poor, despite the fact that it was a sunny and warm day. Only twelve members participated. Nine members participated before and after Cleanup Day, to stage material, to perform preliminary work, and to accomplish tasks not completed or not started on Cleanup Day.

The tasks that were completed included the following:

1.Graveling and grading the Pistol Pit parking area and range roads. 4 triaxle loads of gravel were put down. Thanks go to Lynn Rosswurn. Lynn spent two full days on his tractor to accomplish this major undertaking.
2.Installing a gutter, pipe, a base, and a tank for a cistern system that will provide water for lawn chemical mixing and watering. Most of the work was performed before and after Cleanup Day. Jim Sweeney led this project, supported by Marty Didion, Tom Fortman, and John Halter.
3.Repairing the 300-yard number board frame and installing the new number boards that were painted by Dave Fritz.
4.Trimming overhanging branches along the north road.
5.Repairing and adding improvements to the outhouse. This effort included replacing a door, rehanging doors, installing fencing, and graveling the entry area. This project was led by Jim Johnston who was supported by Craig Ross and Clyde Ford.

Two planned projects were not started: Removal of the porta-jon in the 300-yard Pit and installation of a drain at the 100-yard firing line on the 300-yard portion of the Main Range. Installation of the drain may require the range to be shut down on a weekend because most member volunteers are available only on weekends.

The following individuals participated in Cleanup Day activities: Craig Bartsch, Larry Beardsley, Bruce Bunting, Aaron Kohler, Dennie Mc Nabb, Gene Pelter, Terry Thoma, Rick Schwaiger, Ted Smeltzer and Ted’s son, David. Ted’s son, David, is a non-member. This list does not include the individuals whose names are listed elsewhere above. Please forgive any unintentional omissions.

It is worthy of note that the members who participated in Cleanup Day projects ranged in age from 53 to 77. Fourteen of the member participants were retired persons. It is understood that younger members may have family obligations that must take precedence; nevertheless, the burden of maintaining the facility is a responsibility that should be taken seriously if the club is to continue to exist and facilities are to be maintained and improved. More participation by younger members in meetings, maintenance activities, committees, etc. will provide those members with the historical background and experience that are key to assuming future leadership roles. For that reason, willingness to be an active club member and to work as a team member should be among the major factors considered when referring a person for membership.

Membership Status

As of May 20th, the number of members in good standing is 366.

Junior Program

The Club’s Junior Program is alive and well, thanks to the efforts of Larry Beardsley, Mike and Glenna Grannis, and Mark Walters. A number of High Power shooters are also very involved in developing our Juniors. It’s exciting to see the young people’s enthusiasm. Some really fine scores are being turned in. Please check the Club’s website for more information concerning the Junior Program.

Newsletter Delivery

Approximately 80% of the membership receives the newsletter via e-mail. Those members who have e-mail accounts and who currently opt for postal delivery are asked to consider receiving the newsletter via e-mail next year. Doing so will save printing expenses (newsletter and mailing labels), postage, envelope cost, the time and fuel spent traveling to/from the printer, and the manual labor associated with stuffing, labeling, stamping, and mailing envelopes. Just send an Email to martindidion4@gmail.com and CC: billmac099@yahoo.com with “Newsletter Delivery” in the subject line.

Maintenance Activities

Thanks go to Ted Smeltzer and John Halter for servicing and thoroughly cleaning the John Deere lawn mowers.

A Note to the Mowing Crew

Darrel Fish procured a gasoline blower for use in dusting off the mowers and concrete areas. The blower will be stored with the string trimmer. Both machines require a 50:1 fuel/oil mixture.

Reminders

Clay targets are only to be shot from the hut at the south end of the 25/50/100-yard portion of the Main Range. Take care to ensure that clay targets, wads, and shot land on club property.

Water obtained from the hand pump and the cistern are not potable.

Please make certain to close the outhouse doors (it keeps them from blowing open and getting damaged) and to lower the toilet seat covers (that makes things a bit more pleasant if you need the facility).

Sad News

It has come to the Club’s attention that two members have recently passed away: Jim Crawford and Dave Gessner Sr. Both men were historically strong club supporters.

Jim participated in both small-bore and high-power rifle competitions. He held several small-bore records and was always among the top competitors at high-power matches. In years past, one could always count on seeing Jim trimming the branches along the north road on Cleanup Days.

Dave enjoyed high-power, service-rifle competition and was a regular attendee at Camp Perry. Dave has traditionally been an extremely generous supporter of the club and the Club’s Junior Program.

Mowing Schedule

The 2022 Mowing Schedule will be made available on the Club’s website https://fwrrclub.org/ . Dates are tentative, depending on weather and ground conditions. Mowing times vary according to volunteer availability. Efforts will be made to provide mowing date and time updates on the website. The Main Range is closed during mowing and other range maintenance activities. It is recommended that members check the website for updates.

For Sale

Members who wish to sell shooting-related items may send add information to Marty Didion at martindidion4@gmail.com. Ads must be received three weeks before meetings in order to appear in the next newsletter.