The Annual Meeting of the ASU Retirees Association was held on Saturday, April 21 in the Alumni Lounge of the Memorial Union.

The ASURA Annual Report, a document required by our Bylaws, was distributed to people as they came in to the meeting. Dave Schwalm was responsible for its publication this year, and he did a fine job.

Prior to the start of the meal, attendees enjoyed beverages and desserts. Dave Schwalm, outgoing President, called the meeting to order at about 1:30 p.m.

The 2011-2012 recipient of the ASU Retirees Association Scholarship, Nicholas Smith, told attendees about the degree program he is in (Business Information Systems), and that receiving this scholarship was extremely important to him. Nicholas comes from the San Carolos Indian Reservation. Joan Leard told the group about how much the ASURA Adopt-a-Family program means to those who are helped by it, and she presented a poster-board she had made displaying some of the letters of thanks and appreciation that we have received over the years from families we have helped.

Dave Scheatzle presented recent work by the Video History Committee: a collage of clips from a few of the 80 interviews completed so far. June Payne talked about what it was like to be a woman journalist in the early part of her career. Chuck Allen told a story about Al Michaels when he was a student at ASU. Larry Penley talked about his effort to get William P. Carey interested in making a major donation to the ASU College of Business.

Video interviews with Madelyn Wright, Mernoy Harrison, and Eugene Lombardi preserved stories of how Madelyn reluctantly worked late on a Friday night to review the academic eligibility of a football player at the behest of Frank Kush, who wanted the player to be eligible the next day; of how Mernoy came to be the founding Provost at the ASU Downtown campus, and of how Eugene's father obtained a violin, thus starting Eugene on his musical career.

In their video interviews, Robert Fleming talked about how he got the nickname "Coach" and about how a former student had made the quintessential recording of "Stars and Stripes Forever": when Fleming congratulated him on it, he replied that he had only played it the way he'd been taught by Fleming. Zeke Prust explained how his parents came to name him "Zenas". And Rudy Turk told the story of how he acquired a valuable collection of Maria Martinez pots for the ASU Art Museum. 

President Schwalm asked the group to recognize the following among those present: past presidents, and 2011-2012 office volunteers, Board members, committee chairs, and officers. He then introduced newly elected Board members and officers. Sheila Stokes explained that she resigned from her position on the Board and as Vice President (and 2012-2013 president) in order to pursue her hobby as a quilting artist. Her resignation prompted the Board to appoint Barry McNeill to take over her Board seat, and Bill Moor to take on duties as the 2012-2013 President.

With this, Dave turned the gavel over to the incoming president Bill Moor, who made a few brief comments and then adjourned the meeting.

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Story by Connie McNeill, photos by Val Peterson