President’s Message
Dear Compatriots,
It is an honor and a privilege to serve the South Coast Chapter of the SAR as its new president. I want to thank our former Vice President, Jason Temple, for his contributions to our Chapter. Moreover, I want to thank former President Scott Whitman for his mentoring and five years of leadership.
While Scott will remain on our Board of Directors as the Immediate Past President, he also serves as the Membership Chair for CASSAR. With the lion’s share of our board members continuing in their roles for the 2024-2025 term our chapter leadership remains solid.
February is filled with a few activities for our members to enjoy:
- On Sunday, February 18th, our chapter Color Guard will again support the Massing of the Colors and Salute to the Armed Forces at Forest Lawn in Hollywood Hills (program starts at 3:00 pm). This must-see tradition has been in place for more than 30 years and you are encouraged to join us there. It is the largest celebration of its kind in the western United States, with over 600 people and fifty color guards participating each year. There will be a vintage war-birds flyover.
- On Monday, February 19th, we celebrate President’s Day (George Washington was born on February 22nd, 1732). This federal holiday honoring Washington was originally implemented by an Act of Congress in 1879 for government offices in Washington D.C. and expanded in 1885 to include all federal offices. In 1971 the holiday was shifted to the third Monday in February.
At our monthly dinner meeting we join in celebrating Andy Bailey’s 40th anniversary with SAR. Andy is one of the founding members of our chapter. Please join me in congratulating Andy on reaching this significant milestone.
On the 24th, the San Diego Chapter is once again hosting George Washington’s Birthday Dinner at the Green Dragon Tavern in Carlsbad (4:30 – 8:30).
I look forward to serving you in the coming year and seeing you at our chapter meetings at Mimi’s Cafe in Irvine. Please let me know of suggestions for our meetings or other activities.
In patriotism,
Barry Michaels