I would first like to reply to the concerns of Mr. Demorest and others about the scheduling of Enfilade '96 for Memorial Day weekend. As many of you already know, last year's Enfilade was held on Memorial Day weekend. This occurred because the date we had originally scheduled it for turned out to be Mother's Day weekend. This mistake was not realized until only a few short months before the convention.

We tried our best to reschedule for another weekend in May, but the only one available was Memorial Day. We felt that turnout would be better on Memorial Day weekend than Mother's Day, so Memorial Day was chosen. The attendance was about the same as in previous years, with some new gamers showing up from out of state and a few new vendors. During the convention we asked people their opinion on the choice of weekends. The response was generally positive.

I personally felt it was a good weekend for all, but I also realized that we would lose some people like Mr. Demorest who would be honoring our fallen veterans with reenactments. May is a month that is full of events and observances for both Americans and Canadians. Scheduling of any weekend in May is sure to upset someone.

There is also the cost of Enfilade to consider. When I took over as convention director ftom Mike Pierce, I was able to work out a 3-year deal with the hotel that would keep the price down for all of us.

After the mix-up last year, the hotel offered to schedule future Enfilades on Memorial Day Weekend to keep the price down for a longer period, which we felt would benefit the majority of people. We now have the option of leaving Enfilade on Memorial Day weekend or moving to another date, which would involve a considerable price increase. This could put Enfilade out of business altogether. The board members and the convention staff do not want to stick attendees with an increase in admission to the convention. This would possibly drive people away and take money away from the organization to operate throughout the year.

The choice of date was not made without serious thought, and was not made to intentionally omit anyone. I hope Mr. Demorest can reconsider his decision to quit NHMGS. Members of NHMGS should feel free to respond or make suggestions concerning Enfilade.

Now on to other things. When I decided to run for president of NHMGS I wanted to bring all the local gaming clubs together. Bob Seagle, VP for Northern Washington and I decided to have a tournament in which local clubs would compete at Enfilade every year. Of course there would be a nice trophy for the winner. Well, we sent out a little flyer in October asking members what they would like to do.

Only one questionnaire was retumed (thanks, Mark). This was rather disheartening, as it was hoped that more members would have responded. People are always asking "What do I get if I join NHMGS?" I had hoped the tournament would encourage some people to join or remain members by promoting a little friendly competition between the local clubs. I hope the membership will reconsider the idea of a tournament and respond to the questionnaire or contact Bob directly.

The annual auction which helps us get Enfilade going is scheduled for February 10 and 11 at the Bear Room above the Coast Guard Museum in Seattle. The times are 9 a. m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and 9 a. m. to 5 p. m. Sunday. We have changed the auction to Sunday morning as people have voiced an interest in keeping all of Saturday open for gaming. This year at the auction we will try to speed things up by having $5 increments on the larger items instead of the usual $1 increments. In the past using $1 increments on the larger and more popular items (for example, large, well- painted units of 25mm. figures) caused things to drag on endlessly. Start cleaning out your unwanted lead for the auction! There will be plenty of people willing to spend their cash on your unwanted items, and you may even find a few things to relieve you of your spare cash.

Finally, start planning your games for Enfilade '96 early. I look forward to seeing you all at the auction, so plan to be there. It should be a lot of fun.