By Ted Elzinga, Far West Regional Vice Chairman
One of the regional volunteers who works behind the scenes and therefore gets very little recognition is the Regional Scholarship Chairman. For the past three years, Ruth Samad of San Diego Mensa has performed this task. This year Merv Meyer of Harbor Area Mensa will be coordinating the effort. Scholarship essays are not sent directly to the Regional panel. Only the winners at the local level move on for the possibility of winning additional honors at the regional level. The winners of the regional competition move up to the national level. If any of you in the Harbor Area are willing to help judge regional essays you can contact Merv at (310) 423-2289 to volunteer.
We owe all of the scholarship contest volunteers, both local and regional, a vote of thanks for facilitating a Mensa activity that is perceived as benefiting mankind in general.
Another contest that is in progress is the Publications Recognition Program, formerly, the Newsletter Awards Program. The name change is not for the purpose of being trendy or politically correct but to be able to expand toinclude electronic publications as well as the printed newsletters. This is a national Mensa competition and it is being ably coordinated by Donna Jadis from Connecticut. Editors should keep in mind that the deadline for entering the contest is March 7.
In the past year, the financial condition of American Mensa has improved considerably. We are now taking a large step to save even more of your dues money. I anticipate that shortly AML will have a new and permanent home. This will be a building that is owned by the Mensa Education and Research Foundation (MERF) and leased to American Mensa. AML is the sole shareholder in MERF so when this building is acquired, we can in a very real sense say that it is our home. A committee will be appointed at the AMC meeting in April to search, find and acquire a suitable building in or around Ft. Worth.
Your mission for this month, should you decide to accept it, is to show your appreciation to a Mensa volunteer.