Last week’s meeting celebrating Veteran’s Day may very well have been the best meeting we will have all year long. With close to 100 members and guests in attendance, the Ooltewah JROTC presented the colors and Todd Gaither led us in singing “My Country Tis of Thee.”
The highlight of the meeting was the endearing and delightful Mrs. Katie Bell who kept us spellbound with 40+ years of stories including having her and (retired) 4 star General B.B. Bell’s first deployment to the U.S. Army base at Beckersville, Germany — which happened to be 6 miles from the Russian border and long before he was a general — to being a new military wife where the soldiers were prohibited from pushing baby strollers, holding an umbrella or hanging out the laundry to dry. Next were stories about General George Patton IV (“a horse’s patootie”) to General “Stormin’ Norman” Schwarzkopf (“a wonderful man”). Katie’s stories about visiting wounded soldiers in the V.A. hospital recently were especially poignant.
I found myself glancing at my watch — not because I was being cognizant of the time, but because I didn’t want Katie’s presentation to end. Thank you, again, Harry Fields, for making this special day a reality.

The always effervescent Darde Long, CEO of the Chattanooga Zoo and a few resident animals will be our featured guests at this week’s meeting.
Long gone are the chain-link fences and concrete enclosures many people over 40 years old equate with the zoo from their childhood. Jack Hanna, zookeeper and Director Emeritus of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium who is viewed as one of the most notable animal experts in the United States stated our Chattanooga Zoo is one of the top ten zoos in the nation. High accolades for sure!
Our Chattanooga Zoo is an absolute jewel in the middle of the city and offers a variety of fun and exciting educational opportunities for all ages. Programs include: School Group Field Trips, Zoo to You Outreach, Home School Programs, Snooze in the Zoo Overnights, Scout Groups, Zoo Keeper for a day, Zoo to You Outreach, Zoo Tales and many more fun events to learn about the animals and conservation efforts.
Feel free to bring your children or grandchildren to this meeting. Please be sure to RSVP with Vicki Anderson at vanderson@ebpfi.com so our caterer can have an accurate headcount. Thank you!

11/25/2015 NO MEETING. Happy Thanksgiving!