2000 Winter Meeting
January 15-17, 2000
French Creek State Park
Southeastern Pennsylvania

Crisp, clear weather greeted the attendees of the FFLA Annual Winter Meeting held January 15-17 at French Creek State Park in Southeastern Pennsylvania. The occasion marked the tenth anniversary of the original meeting of the "Committee to Establish a National Association of Fire Lookout Enthusiasts", held at the nearby Hopewell Fire Station.

Friday afternoon saw directors begin to arrive, renew acquaintances, and set up displays. By the time the evening Board Meeting arrived, several more directors and guests had checked in. The meeting started shortly after the scheduled hour, with Directors Keith Argow (SE U.S., Chairman), Mark Haughwout (VT, E-Deputy Chairman), Gary Weber (ID/MT, W-Deputy Chairman), Keith Goodrich (ME), Chris Haartz (NH), Henry Isenberg (S New England), Marty Podskoch (NY), Steve Cummings (PA), Bob Spear (NJ), Bill Spach (DE/MD), Treasurer Shirley Goodrich, and Secretary Ray Grimes in attendance, as well as a handful of guests and members. (NJ Co-director Bob Wolff arrived for the Saturday session.) The meeting saw considerable discussion of topics including finances, merchandise, chapter size, membership development, and 501c3 status.

Saturday's session saw over thirty members and guests present. Following an invocation by Chris Haartz, a moment of silence was held in memory of former Maine Director Caroline Parmenter. Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry Chief Fire Warden John Berst addressed the group, followed by New Jersey State Forester Jim Barresi. Chairman Keith Argow then gave the keynote address "The Forest Fire Lookout Association in 2000, the First Ten Years". Conference host Steve Cummings, one of the original founders, then spoke on the beginnings of the organization.

Restoration reports were given by NY Director Marty Podskoch, Eastern and Western Deputy Chairmen Mark Haughwout and Gary Weber, and Pagoda-Skyline Chairman Bill Zana. The Pagoda-Skyline group is in the process of restoring the William Penn Memorial Tower on Mount Penn in Reading, Pennsylvania.

John Miller, District Forester of the local Valley Forge Forest District #17, PA Bureau of Forestry, spoke to the group on his current and past dealings with fire towers. Included was a slide presentation of an event early in his career, while he was a seasonal worker for the Flathead NF in Montana. Assigned to Kah Lookout, he was assisting in the maintenance of the tower; the replacement of the cap timbers under the cab atop the twenty foot tower legs. While the first beam had been replaced uneventfully, the second did not go quite so well; the final result was John riding the lookout down as it collapsed and finally crawling out from the midst of the debris!

NHLR presentations were made, as was the presentation of the Doug Newman Award; the 1999 award was presented to Shirley Goodrich. The 1998 award certificate was belatedly presented to Henry Isenberg.

Chapter reports were followed by the election of officers. The incumbent Chairman, Eastern Deputy Chairman and Treasurer, Keith Argow, Mark Haughwout, and Shirley Goodrich, were all re-elected.

After final details, the session adjourned with most of the group taking the tour to Hopewell Tower. Once at the top of the hill, many climbed the tower and several inspected the adjacent fire station, site of the original meeting. Six of the original eleven who met on that cold January day ten years ago were present; Cummings, Isenberg, Haughwout, Spear, Haartz, and NJ member and former Lookout Network Editor Joe Higgins.

The Saturday evening dinner was at the Sunny Crest Training Center near Morgantown. No one left the "all-you-can-eat" buffet dinner hungry! Upon returning to the French Creek conference site, the evening program included a slide show presentation by Pagoda-Skyline members on the background of the William Penn Memorial Tower and the Pagoda, as well as the accomplishments of the group. Interspersed during this were several drawings for door prizes; drawings for the raffle prizes and the conclusion of the silent auction were followed by the Anniversary Cake.

The Sunday tour group met at the park and caravanned to the Pagoda, overlooking the city of Reading. The upper floor of the unique structure was used as a fire lookout for two years prior to the construction of the nearby William Penn Memorial Tower. A short drive on up the hill took the group to the 120-foot stone tower, where the doors were opened for the group to look up inside. The tower is not yet open for climbing, but initial steps have been taken in preparation for eventual reconstruction of the steel stairway.

From Mount Penn, the group headed to the Cornwall tower, one of the few Blaw Knox design towers remaining in the state. The final stop of the tour was at the Old Sled Works in Duncannon, Jimmy Rosen's reincarnation of the turn-of-the century Lightning Guider sled factory. The Old Sled Works is a real mix; a flea market, antique mart, crafts showcase, gift and candle center, nostalgic carnival and arcade, historical museum, original soda fountain, and ....... a 100-foot Aermotor tower. When the nearby Route 22 construction forced the removal of the Susquehanna Water Gap tower near Dauphin, Rosen bought and moved the tower to its present Duncannon location. Although there is little evidence that the tower was ever a "fire lookout", it certainly does have a view!

With the group having dwindled in size throughout the day, the few returning to Morgantown reconvened for dinner at a local restaurant. Later, a few returned to French Creek for the cleanup of the conference facility; the first decade of the FFLA was now history!