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Room rate: $70.00 per night
Cutoff date: 24 August 2009

Branson Chamber of Commerce
Branson Tourism Ctr
Branson Landing
Map of Branson

Fun Night Flyer
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New District 8WR Vessel Examiner/Program Visitor Website Published - a Vessel Examiner/Program Visitor website has been constructed and published for District 8WR.  This website is designed to assist members holding the VE and PV certifications as well as keeping any interested members updated in the VE/PV program.  A hyperlink to the VE/PV website is located on the District 8WR Staff webpage under the Vessel Examiner/Program Visitor staff position plus in the left navigation column on this webpage under the "Other Links" category.  Click on the following hyperlink to go directly to the VE/PV website.  29jun09

Congratulations from Commander of Eighth Coast Guard District on CG Auxiliary 70th Anniversary - In her message regarding the 70th anniversary of the Coast Guard Auxiliary our new Commander of the Eighth Coast Guard District, Admiral Mary E. Landry, expressed her appreciation of the Auxiliary stating "Please accept my personal "Bravo Zulu" for a job well done."  Read Admiral Landry's entire message.  26jun09

Travel Voucher Form - The correct version of the Travel Voucher Form, number DD-1351-2 is dated March 2008.  All earlier versions are obsolete.  The PPC (Pay & Personnel Center) will no longer accept versions of the form dated prior to March 2008.  The Forms webpage of the District 8WR website contains hyperlinks to the correct version of the form.  25jun09

ICS 210 Class - Division 33 has scheduled an ICS 210 class for October 17, 2009.  The location is yet to be determined.  This event has also been published on the District 8WR Calendar webpage.  25jun09

Congratulations from President Obama on CG Auxiliary 70th Anniversary - The President of the United States, Barack H. Obama, sends his "warmest regards to the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary in celebration of your 70th anniversary of service to our Nation".  The President congratulates you "for your steadfast commitment to the highest standards of citizenship, patriotism, and community service."  Read the entire letter from the President. 25jun09

CG Auxiliary 70th Anniversary - June 23, 2009 was the 70th anniversary of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary.  Read ALCOAST 365/09 from Admiral Thad Allen, Commandant, in which he addresses this historic event.  In the 4th paragraph he states "Auxiliary performance has been nothing short of stellar, and its greatest impacts are readily reflected by Auxiliarists spirit of patriotism and dedication to the Coast Guard men and women with whom they serve.  I therefore intend to duly recognize the Auxiliary with an award of the Coast Guard Unit Commendation as part of its 70th anniversary celebration at Coast Guard Headquarters on June 23."  25jun09

From the OTO Desk -Quarterly news for ......... CWO Douglas Leavell has published his 3rd quarter 2009 news letter.  Read the newsletter in Adobe Acrobat 25jun09

 National Marina Day - a great opportunity for Auxiliary flotillas to engage in outreach of their own.  Giving VSCs, advertising upcoming PE programs, reminding boaters about America's Waterway Watch, recruiting new members, or setting up displays featuring life jacket wear and other elements of safe recreational boating are all ways that local flotillas can capitalize on the opportunities presented by National Marina Day.  Many marinas nationwide have already received "resource kits" including suggestions for partnering with the Auxiliary during this annual event.  Refer to the National Marina Day 2009 website for more details https://www.marinaassociation.org/nmd/   22jun09 

Service Dress Blue (Alpha) uniform discontinued -  The Service Dress Blue (Alpha) uniform was discontinued as a Coast Guard uniform several years ago.  In January 2009, the Auxiliary National Board approved a recommendation to discontinue its use within the Auxiliary, and the Chief Director has approved this National Board action.  Accordingly, the Service Dress Blue (Alpha) uniform is no longer authorized as an Auxiliary uniform.  This change will be included in the next update to the Coast Guard Auxiliary Manual.  11jun09

Pictures from DSAR 2009 - Pictures from DSAR 2009 have been published.  Links to pictures of the teams, activities and competition grounds are located on the DSAR 2009 webpage.  08jun09

DSAR 2009 - Congratulations to the DSAR 2009 Champion Team, Division 16, for their outstanding performance as well as the Runner Up Team,  Division 8.  See complete DSAR 2009 results for all team events and individual awards.  A hearty "thank you" to all members who participated in DSAR 2009, in any capacity, for helping DSAR 2009 to be a very successful event.  Read details about the event.   View a picture of the Champion team.  Other pictures from the event will be published as soon as they are available.  Team member information is included on the DSAR webpage.   Updated 28may09  

Assist the CG by volunteering your cooking skills - For members who like to cook the "Chefs of the Future" (AuxCHEF) program has been designed to prepare members to assist in food preparation in Coast Guard stations, Sectors, cutters and anywhere else that the Coast Guard has personnel.  Learn more about the program and how to enroll from the AuxCHEF webpage. 25may09

USCG Publication 1 - first revision to capstone doctrine - Secretary Napolitano officially announced the first revision of the Coast Guard's capstone doctrine.  The announcement was made at the Coast Guard Academy graduation ceremony.  She stressed its importance to the Coast Guard and its applicability for the entire Department of Homeland Security.  Everyone is encouraged to read the publication.  Download the publication.  21may09

Western Rivers Publication - 2nd Edition 2009 published - The second edition for 2009 of the Western Rivers has been published.  A link to this edition plus prior editions from 2008 are available on the Western Rivers webpage. 06may09

Update on COMO Jeff Langley recovery - The Commodore had two strokes, February 18 & 19, 2009.  He spent 9 days in ICU and 2 more days waiting to go home during which he had two cranial surgeries.  He returned home March 3, 2009.  He has no paralysis or speech trouble.  Has some dizziness which is expected to leave, taste buds are working and his vision is about 95% but should get better.    He has completely quit smoking, lost 35 lbs and would like to loose another 20 lbs.  He is still on disability from work for another 60 days.  05may09

Request for articles and pictures for the Navigator Publication - Navigator Editor Judy Darby is looking for articles and pictures of national interest about the Coast Guard Auxiliary.  Articles and pictures from District 8WR may be sent directly to the Navigator, without clearance.  For Navigator guidelines go to http://auxadept.org/navigator.  3may09

Title Change of the CG Auxiliarist - Auxiliarists title of "America's Volunteer Lifesavers" has now been changed to "America's Volunteer Guardians".  This change is effective immediately.  2may09

H1N1 Flu Outbreak (Swine Flu) - Coast Guard Headquarters has set up an Internet page at http://www.uscg.mil/h1n1/ to post Coast Guard specific H1N1 Flu Outbreak information so that it can be accessed by Reservists, Auxiliary and families. 2may09

Swine Influenza Virus (SIV) update by Director of the Auxiliary -  The Office of Auxiliary and Boating Safety has published a bulletin providing an update on the Swine Influenza Virus.  The bulletin includes "What you can do" to avoid contracting the disease and gives several hyperlinks to internet sources for more information.  30apr09

Grants Handbook for 2009 - The 2009 Grants Handbook is now available.  Consult this document for sources of 2009 awards and grants.  It was prepared by the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Department of Boating.  http://auxbdept.org/pdf/GrantsHandbook2009.pdf   24apr09

OPEX on Lake Texoma - Flotilla 16-07 is having an OPEX Sept. 18, 19 & 20^th on Lake Texoma.  The OPEX  will be held at Little Glasses Resort, located between Madill and Kingston, Oklahoma. Little Glasses Resort, has camping, RV spaces and cabins available. Call Little Glasses Resort to reserve your accommodations today at 580-795-2068.  They have a store, gas dock and boat ramp.  A buffet dinner will also be available Saturday night. Make plans to attend this fun on the water experience. Need more information please call Flotilla Commander,  Helen Arnold, 580-366-4677 or 580-565-9263.   23apr09   

Pictures from Spring Conference 2009 in Peoria, IL - Pictures from District 8WR Spring Conference that was held in Peoria, IL have been published to the District website for your viewing.  There are 4 pages of pictures which are categorized by Opening Ceremony, Meeting, Commodore's Banquet and Fun Night.  There are links in the upper right corner of each page so that you can browse each category.  07apr09

ICS 210 or 300 Compliance Deadline Date Extension - The Coast Guard Office of Incident Management & Preparedness has just granted an extension of the deadline date for completing the ICS 210 course.  The new date of compliance is 01 April 2010.  This course or the full ICS 300 course is required for Auxiliary Single Unit Resource Leaders such as coxswains, PWC operators, pilots (Aircraft Commander, First Pilot and Co-Pilot), certain members in the Trident Program or any other team/task force leader determined by a Coast Guard Unit Commander to have a need.  Though the compliance date has been extended, all members in need of completing the course are encouraged to complete the course as soon as possible.  26mar09 

DSAR 2009 District 8WR - District 8WR is scheduled to host DSAR 2009 at Lake Dardanelle, AR on May 22 and 23, 2009.  For complete information browse the Event Schedule MS Word - Adobe Acrobat and Competition Specifics MS Word - Adobe Acrobat. 26mar09

Boy Scouts of America Memorandum of Agreement - On 23 February 2009, the USCG Auxiliary signed a Memorandum of Agreement to begin partner liaison with Boy Scouts of America. The Boating Department is developing an implementation strategy to make this a meaningful agreement between our two organizations. The MOA can be downloaded in the Boating Department Document Library under Partners, or downloaded directly (as a PDF) here:

http://auxbdept.org/
http://auxbdept.org/documents.php
http://auxbdept.org/pdf/BSAUSCGAuxMOA23Feb09.pdf  24mar09

Respect and Professionalism - Read the message from VADM R. J. Papp, Jr., Commander, Coast Guard Atlantic Area reinforcing the need for "respect and professionalism". 17mar09

State of the Coast Guard 2009 Address - Admiral Thad W. Allen delivered his third State of the Coast Guard address at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. on March 3, 2009.  Read the complete transcript or view a video. 6mar09

Results of Coast Guard Uniform Board 43 - The results of Coast Guard Uniform Board 43 are summarized in ALCOAST 074/09 which can be viewed at the Coast Guard General Message web site: http://www.uscg.mil/announcements/.  04feb09

Western Rivers Publication - The first issue of the year, 2009-1, of the Western Rivers publication has been published to the District website.  The link to the publication is on the Western Rivers Publication webpage. 02feb09

District 8WR 8 Hour TCT 2009 Schedule - the Team Coordination Training (TCT) 8 hour class schedule is available on the TCT Schedule webpage which includes dates, location, contact information and facilitator.  The link to the TCT Schedule webpage is available in the Navigation column on the left side of this webpage under the category "District Services".  22jan09

2009 Instructor Workshop - the hyperlink to the mandatory Instructors Workshop is located on the E-training - E-testing webpage.  04jan09

2009 Operations and 1 Hour TCT Workshops - the hyperlinks to the 2009 Operations and 1 Hour TCT workshops are located on the E-training - E-testing webpage.  29dec08

Vessel Examiner & Program Visitor 2009 Workshops - the hyperlink to the 2009 VE & PV workshops is located on the E-training - E-testing webpage.  These workshops are not mandatory; they are intended to be used to train new, and to refresh existing, program visitors and vessel examiners.  27dec08

PFD Panda Suit being made available by DirAux through ANSC - DirAux has made available to the Divisions of District 8WR a PFD Panda suit through ANSC.  ANSC will issue the suit upon request of the Division Commander in support of any specific events.  Once the event is complete, the suit must be returned so that it will be available to the next division who may have requested it.  The suit may be checked out a total of ten days.  If the division fails to return the suit within this time frame they will forfeit future use of the suit.

The suit is the property of the Director's Office who will enforce the rules for its use.  If there are circumstances beyond the members control that keep them from returning the suit on time, or the division wishes to keep it for another event and there is no one on the waiting list, the request will be referred to Mr. Leavell for consideration.  Requests should be made with enough time for a decision, no last minute requests.  22dec08 

Personnel Security Form SF-86 for Direct Operational (DO) Revised - Forms SF-86 and SF-86A were revised July 2008.  Effective 01 January 2009 only the July 2008 forms will be accepted when application is made for a Personnel Security Direct Operational (DO) determination.  Links to the revised forms are available on the District 8WR Securities Issues/Forms webpage under the Direct Operational (DO) section.  20dec08 

New flotilla chartered in Division 33, District 8WR -  A new Flotilla, 33-6, was chartered in Division 33 on November 22, 2008 in Des Moines Iowa.  Jim Berry was elected the Flotilla Commander and Pat Jesse the Vice Flotilla Commander for 2009. The ceremony was attended by CMDR Campbell, COMO Gumb, COMO elect Dan Maresh, Ron Longnecker RCO-W, Steve Bernstein D-CAPT N elect, Katey Bernstein DCMDR-9 elect, Robert Smetka D-COS elect, and Emily Coffin, Army Corps of Engineers.  Members of 33-6 were joined by members of Division 33 from Lincoln and Omaha Nebraska. Welcome and Congratulations to all members of 33-6.  25nov08  View pictures of the chartering event - added 26nov08

Consolidation of DSO-PV & DSO-VE positions in District 8WR -

New flotilla chartered in Division 1, District 8WR - Flotilla 1-11 was chartered in Ogallala, NE on November 15, 2008.  The new Flotilla Commander is Roger Rankin and the Flotilla Vice Commander is Les Foran.  The ceremony was attended by CDR Campbell, COMO Gumb and Ron Longnecker, RCO-W.  In addition, Herb Angell, BLA for the State of Nebraska, Buck Bassett, Mayor of the City of Ogallala and Scott Eveland, Boating Safety Officer for the State of Nebraska attended the celebration.  They were joined by members of Division 1 from as far away as Colorado Springs, CO, Grand Junction, CO and Casper, WY.  Welcome and congratulations to all members of Flotilla 1-11.  16nov08  View pictures from the chartering event - added 24nov08

Western Rivers Publication - Issue 2008-4 of the Western Rivers publication has been published to the District website.  The link to the publication is on the Western Rivers Publication webpage.  31oct08

Female Overblouse Dress Shirt available - The Female Overblouse Dress Shirt is available for ordering through the
Coast Guard Uniform Distribution Center (UDC).  It is authorized as optional wear for Auxiliary females as an alternative to the light blue dress shirt worn with the Tropical Blue uniform only.  Further information, particularly
concerning the placement of accoutrements on the shirt, can be found in ALCOAST 531/08 at the Coast Guard general message web site: http://www.uscg.mil/announcements/  31oct08

Academy for Division Commander and Flotilla Commander 2009 officers - The Division Commander (DCDR) Academy is scheduled for  7-9 November 2008 and the Flotilla Commander Academy  5-7 December 2008 both at the Drury Inn (Union Station), St. Louis, MO.   Invitational letters from CDR Campbell containing full details regarding location, travel, timetables, who may attend under reimbursable vs. non-reimbursable orders, uniform of the day, etc. have been published and are available for download DCDR letter or FC letter  Members who receive approval to attend the academy under reimbursable orders must complete the Travel Request Worksheet.  15oct08

District 8WR Sew-on Patch - District 8WR has designed a promotional sew-on patch that may be purchased for $5.00 from the District 8WR Materials Store.  The patch is 4.75 inches in diameter.  It is listed on the District Materials Store Promotional webpage. View a picture of the patch. 3oct08

Flotilla 3-13 50th Anniversary Celebration Invitation - You are cordially invited to attend Flotilla 3-13's 50th Anniversary celebration on Saturday, November 8, 2008.   View the complete details via MS Word or Adobe Acrobat.  1oct08

Opportunities for Auxiliarists to support Sector Upper Mississippi River (UMR) - learn more about the many opportunities just established for Auxiliarists to support Sector UMR - establishment of State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) teams at each of the SEOC's in Sector Upper Mississippi River's Area of Responsibility (MS Word or Adobe Acrobat PDF) and members to volunteer to participate in Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPC) meetings along the Upper Mississippi, Illinois and Missouri rivers (MS Word or Adobe Acrobat PDF).  These documents provide opportunity details and qualification requirements. 29sep08