The Association of
Public Relations Officers
and Bulletin Editors
of the
Society for the Preservation and
Encouragement of Barber shop Quartet
Singing in America, Inc.

ADVISORY BOARD

Herb Bayles W.Grant Carson Dick Girvin Mike Jones Brian Lynch Waldo Redekop

Escondido, Calif. Dallas, Texas Laguna Woods, Calif. Louisville, Ky. Kenosha, Wis. Hillsburgh, Ont.

Greetings, gentlemen.

Welcome back to the PROBEmoter. It’s been a little while since we had the pleasure of reading this outstanding publication. My thanks to Editor John Petterson for his patience during this time. It’s good to see him back in business.

As you read this I’m officially a PAST president. What a fun ride this has been. We’ve done a great deal of work over the past few years. You’ve heard this from me before, but I’m gonna tell you once again: You can be very proud of the men who have been serving you and the PROBE organization. My sincere thanks all of them. You’ll never really know the time and effort they’ve put into this and the dedication they have toward helping improve the quality of communications and promotions of the Society chapters.

One example of the way PROBE is gaining momentum is the presence in Portland and the International convention. Not only did we successful expose ourselves with the help of the big screens in the arena, we also provided a GREAT Web page with news of the convention during the week. News, results and photos were made available via the Internet to a world-wide audience, including even those online in their rooms on site at the convention. The Website received over 4,700 hits (visits) so we know it was a major success. The page is still available at: http://www.swd.org/roundup/Portlandmenu3.html (ED: No longer avaialble)

Speaking of rooms, PROBE hosted one of the BEST rooms in town. The PROBE suite was hosted by John Sugg, Bruce Anderson and David Wagner. We had some fine quartets drop by and sing and held some official meetings there during the week.

The PROBE suite in Montreal should be even better. Thanks to John and Bruce and David for their work (I didn’t make it to Portland). I'm also pleased to say the suite ended up costing us even less than we expected.

I’m thrilled to see the progress we’ve made through the past few years. We’ve seen the success in the area of helping our fellow editors via the Bulletin Editor Mentor Committee. Thanks to all the coaches led by Grant Carson. I understand several men who were helped by this committee have continued to learn by becoming mentors themselves. What a special deal. Thanks, guys. Thanks, Grant.

On that note, we’re also looking for the same results with the Web Page Mentor Committee led by David Wagner. Look for an article in this issue about that. I think they’ll be able to provide some outstanding advice to anyone wishing to promote their chapter via the World-Wide Web.

I’m also pleased to see the second year of the Outstanding Achievement Awards thrive. Not only are we able to promote and recognize those who have made great strides in PR, but we’ve also seen many of these people show their appreciation for this recognition by telling others of their award.

We’ve also taken the time to revise and update our bylaws. In the recent past we’ve taken control of our own organization and we’re handling our own dues and membership list. This would not have been possible without the tireless dedication of Dick Girvin. Thanks, Dick, you’re a real true-blue Barbershopper. He has also set up PROBEmail and giving us all a forum to share the questions, concerns, and support each other as we try to assist our chapters promote this hobby. Take advantage of PROBEmail.

Our biggest challenge is to increase our membership. To that end, we created a board position of membership vice president. It is my hope that we can someday soon reach 1,000 members. Currently we’re well short of that. If you’re reading this, you are a member of PROBE, but there’s a good chance your dues are up at the end of the year. As you may remember, PROBE is collecting its own dues now (unlike years past) so please go ahead and send in your 2003 dues ($10) and save us the trouble of trying to collect yours. I’d appreciate it.

There are great things in the near future. We have in the works an awards program to recognize the bulletin editors who publish online. Like the IBC, we’re establishing a contest to pick the BEST online bulletin for 2003. There’s a committee working on creating the criteria for this award. This is exciting as the communications world moves into using the Internet to promote. We are also planning to present recognition for the top barbershop Web pages, possibly the top ten. Watch for this.

We can’t end this year without pointing out two men who have served on the board and have now graduated to advisors status.

Waldo Redekop:

How could PROBE have survived without the dedication and support given us by Waldo?  His voice was critical to the process and his heart was ALWAYS with PROBE.  He served us very well and has left the Board after SEVEN years. Thank you, Waldo, you have no idea how much I appreciated your help. You are a hero of mine.

John Sugg:

I also wish to salute John Sugg. He served on the board of directors for the past SIX years. Any future officers can look to John for an example of how it’s done. Thanks, John. You know how much I appreciate your support and dedication to PROBE.

We were VERY lucky to have these two men on our side. I know they shall remain involved and continue to provide guidance and support.

Thanks to all -- it’s been a great ride.

Here’s to the future of PROBE