President’s Letter April 2020
We have been monitoring the COVID19 pandemic. The resort has been working with us to allow us to make the right decision about our Spring Fling 2020. It has been a hard decision because we know many people have to plan in advance to be able to make our meetings. Myrtle Beach is closed to tourists until at least April 30th and if it is pushed back any further; it would have cancelled our event anyway. We have been working with the resort about changing to a better date but that is either during the peak season rates or into the hurricane season.
With so many people being out of work during this time, we made a tough decision and pushed our meeting to August 2, 2020 in Columbia, at the Embassy Suites - Greystone. This seems to be the most central location. Also, with other states around us having similar situations, we were not sure how big a crowd to expect. Due to the social distancing restrictions, we will need to limit attendance. This is reason that we are asking you to go on the website (following the instructions using the “contact us” box on the main page) and let us know if you plan to attend. We have the ability to change room set ups depending on the size of the crowd, however the size of the room is finite and attendance numbers are important to maintaining the proper distances. Please monitor our website as things are changing rapidly.
Please be safe during these difficult times. Thank you for allowing me to serve as your president.
Ron Harbert
President’s Letter Fall 2019
Our condolences go out to the Davenport family for their loss of Dick Davenport. He was the last of the original five members that started the South Carolina Association of Opticians and the South Carolina Board of Examiners in Opticianry with LLR. The original five members were, Dick Davenport, Bill Brown, Jack Folline, Dan Gosnell Sr., and Harold Minton. Their leadership and vision have allowed our state to have one of the strongest optician’s associations in the country. We need to continue their efforts to ensure we provide education and trained opticians to meet the eye care needs of the consumer. We need new faces and ideas to keep our association moving forward.
Presidents Letter July 2019
I wanted to thank everyone for attending and participating at our “Spring Fling 2019”. We moved the date because of the holiday and commitments within the resort. Unfortunately, the move made our convention closer to graduation and exams for some of our families. Next year, we are holding the “Spring Fling 2020” once again at Ocean Creek Resort from May 1st through May 3, 2020.
Our speaker for the spectacle hours was Pete Hamlin with Essilor. He did a great job and spoke on a variety of ophthalmic topics. B W Phillips taught our contact lens hour. Keith Hayes taught our apprentice class and Grant Brown taught a two hour lensomerty class. We are fortunate to have good speakers who are willing to help teach our members so we are better equipped to take care of the needs of our patients. Congratulations to Bill Russell and Danny Gosnell for receiving our Optician of the Year award. They do a great job and they are always willing to do whatever is asked of them to make our association one of the best in the country.
Our vendors came through with support at our show, willing to be cramped into a small area and to help make the small space workable. Don’t forget to support our vendors so that they will continue to support us. Remember that for every two frames that you order, you are entered into a drawing at each table to win a chance for $50.00. The following are the vendors that supported our “Spring Fling 2019”: Aspects – Teresa Caruso, Avalone – David Spencer, Bostonian Eyewear - Mark McLeod, Dolabany – Greg Byrley, Europa Eyewear – Lisa Henry, Luxottica Retail, Modern Optical – Wendy Woods, West Groupe – Shane Cox, and Zeiss – Doug Clarkson.
We had our annual business meeting at our convention on Sunday morning. We had elections for area representatives and the following are the areas and our new representatives: Deann O’Hare won for Charleston, Wesley Scott for Columbia, Chris Enzor for Florence, Wayne Minton for Greenville, and Adrienne Jordan for Myrtle Beach. Thank you to Vickie Chamberlain, Wayne Ham, Bud Laws, and Cheryl Burgess for serving in the past. Kenneth Davenport (webmaster) and Grant Brown (newsletter) have stepped down from their positions allowing it to become one position which is now being handled by George Lee Jr. Remember that the association is for all of our members so please find a place to serve so we can have new ideas and people helping us to grow and improve. A special thanks to David Gosnell and Jennifer Lentz for moving and signing our people up in the morning as they come and pay their dues and fees. It is a stressful job, and they do it well.
Thank you all for allowing me to serve as your president. It is an honor.
Ron Harbert