.FINAL THOUGHTS—Tom Umiker I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who assisted with
Tom’s Page OR “The President’s Party That Wasn’t”
the Convention and the work of the Federation this year. Everyone who agreed to serve on a Committee or took the additional responsibility to chair a committee has my heartfelt thanks and appreciation. Each of you played a special role in making the convention or the overall effective- ness of the Federation for our member Fairs something really special. It’s dangerous to name names of those who made a contribution be-
cause truthfully EVERYONE contributed something ..... If you served on our Ad Hoc Strategic Planning Committee, meeting
multiple times face to face and by conference call, thank you. Special thanks to Rick Vymlatil for his tenacious work in helping this Commit- tee look into the future of our organization. The 10 members of this Committee were specially chosen for their diversity and experience in the Fair industry. I want to personally thank them and look forward to the Committee’s final report and template for our future at the Summer Workshop. The Chairmen and Committee members of our Summer Workshop
and the Convention Program Dawn Rowe and Felecia Chivington are to be commended for putting together two excellent events. And thanks to Miranda Muir, Stacey Wade, and Jeanne Keaton and
the folks from the Florida Department of Agriculture for leading the charge and creating some awesome new exhibits that will further help our Fairs with our mission to promote Florida agriculture. The Ole Red signs and videos, the Ole Red photo opportunity, and the Ag Facts signs can have a great impact for Florida agriculture. Bill Olson, you and your committee couldn’t have made the Golf
Tournament any better. Better keep your eyes on Kathy Ross, Bob Johnson and the rest of the Sporting Clays committee!!! Paul
Davis....no one knows the challenges you faced and overcame
to make our Showcases special this year. Thanks Tradeshow Chairman Jim Ward and Hal (“Phillips”) Porter
for over a decade of work making the Tradeshow what it has become! Fran and Randy Crone-Welcoming Committee Chair and your com-
mittee, thanks for all your work in the office before we start, and during the Convention! We couldn’t do it without door prize and auction committee folks
like Jeanne Yonge and Lee Stokes. High 5’s to Teresa Agricola for Chairing the Sponsorship Committee
and increasing the involvement to record numbers for the second straight year. SPECIAL thanks to the President’s Party Committee with all the
South Florida Fair folks who volunteered to put their creative minds together to plan that occasion to be so special for every one. (Personally, the fire trucks and forced evacuation SHOW was a bit
over the top!!!!) Finally, the fire in the Convention trade show was inconvenient. Yes,
it could have been tragic. It reflected the instinctive positive reaction of every person present who is part of our industry. It brought out the BEST in our organization at all levels.
Thanks EVERYONE for a memorable year! TOM UMIKER P.S. Who’s Lisa??
Can you find Tom Umiker, Federation Past President in this photo? He was getting ready for the county fair parade! (if you can’t find him…..he’s the one of the left side of the Eager Beaver sign….)
TOM WHO?—Lisa Hinton If you haven’t heard by now, the Conven-
tion President’s Party was cancelled due to the fire in the trade show. We just don’t think it’s FAIR for Tom not to have a party……So Tom – here’s your Party…………….. For those of you that don’t know Tom quite
as well as I do, I just want to share with you a few thoughts. First, Tom and I go back over 43 years
when we served as State FFA Officers to- gether. Our group of 7 state officers came from every part of the state and we traveled
together for a year – motivating FFA members, promoting FFA, and learning a great deal. Every morning Tom greeted our group with “Good morning world! I feel healthy, I feel happy, and I feel alive!” As you can see, Tom has always loved life and he has funneled that love into the Fair industry. I have had the pleasure of working with Tom at the State Fair and
through various other committees and activities and admire his pas- sion for the Fair industry, his down-home common sense to problems, his patience in talking to anybody and everybody that has questions about ANYTHING. He has set an amazing example for me – even if people do wonder if we’re brother and sister sometimes because we give each other such a hard time! So Tom, while you didn’t have a President’s Party, please know that
you have affected my life as well as the lives of countless others in the Fair industry in Florida and throughout the United States. So, you definitely deserved a President’s Party – and I hear that Theresa had a
doozy planned for you – but since you didn’t get one – you’ll just have to accept our thanks for your year as President of the Federation and a lifetime of in- volvement in the Fair industry.
There really was a President’s Party (planned) – “Join Us For An Udderly Good Time” but it looks like Fran Crone was the only one that got in on the fun!
FAIRCRACKER-SUMMER 2016 7
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