We finally figured out what happened to summer!

It disappeared!

As a follow-up to our last post, we now have information to share on MCI’s cookout for retirees.  Here are the arrangements:

Date?  Thursday, September 21, 2017. 

Time?  From 5pm until 8 (?) pm.

Where?  It will be held at the FOP Park just outside of Caledonia (5327 Harding Hwy E, Caledonia, OH 43314). 

Cost?  There is no cost involved, except for bringing your favorite side dish and non-alcoholic beverage.  Hot dogs, hamburgers, and appropriate accessories will be provided.

Reservations?  Absolutely!  Call Kathy Hamilton (740-382-5781, ext. 2210) by September 19^th to confirm attendance, so an appropriate amount of food can be prepared.  Spouses and/or significant others are also welcome, so make sure they are included in your reservation number.

Below are the other items from our last post that are worth jotting down.

#1 – As a result of our survey last year, our next gathering WILL BE on Tuesday, October 3^rd. 

The place?  The Marion Diner, 1565 Marion-Waldo Rd, Marion, OH 43302 (in front of the mall on route 423). 

The Time?  The “official” starting time is noon, but feel free to come when you can, and stay as long as you want.  We have their south room to ourselves, will be ordering from the menu, and can take our time.

#2 – Don’t forget the free lunch available at MCI the first Wednesday of each month for retirees.  Although started during Warden Bunting’s tenure, Warden Wainwright has confirmed that these would continue. Lunch is available in the Wander Inn, known to most of us as the Officer’s Dining Room (ODR), from 10:30am until around noon.  Did we mention it was free?

There is one last item to mention:  email addresses.  The size of our group has grown, and the cost of mailing notices has risen.  What money is donated to maintain the mailings needs to be spent wisely.  If you have access to the email address of a former co-worker, please let us know.  We promise not to sell the email addresses, or send endless requests for money.  We just want to continue the notifications in a cost-effective manner.

See you at The Diner.

Charles Daniel, President
John Mathew, Vice President

mcira43302@yahoo.com

http://mciretireesassociation.blogspot.com/

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What happened to summer?

We don’t know either.  It seems like one day we were looking forward to the Memorial Day weekend, then PRESTO!, we are at September.  We guess the old saying is correct – Time flies when you’re having fun.  And what describes fun better than being paid not to work?

Since autumn is quickly approaching, we do have some news, and a friendly reminder of some upcoming events.

#1 – As a result of our survey last year, our next gathering WILL NOT be on Tuesday, September 5^th.  Instead, it WILL be on Tuesday, October 3^rd. 

The place?  The Marion Diner, 1565 Marion-Waldo Rd, Marion, OH 43302 (in front of the mall on route 423). 

The Time?  The “official” starting time is noon, but feel free to come when you can, and stay as long as you want.  We have their south room to ourselves, will be ordering from the menu, and can take our time.

#2 – MCI will again have a cookout for all retirees.  Here are the details that we know, so far.

Where?  It will be held at the FOP Park just outside of Caledonia (5327 Harding Hwy E, Caledonia, OH 43314). 

Cost?  There is no cost involved, except for bringing your favorite side dish and non-alcoholic beverage.  Hot dogs, hamburgers, and appropriate accessories will be provided.

Time?  From 4pm until 7pm.

Date?  That is yet to be determined.  Some dates are under consideration, primarily during the second, third, and fourth weeks of September.  There are several concerns to work around, including the FOP Park schedule.  As soon as a date is selected, we will send our customary announcement.

#3 – Don’t forget the free lunch available at MCI the first Wednesday of each month for retirees.  Although started during Warden Bunting’s tenure, Warden Wainwright has confirmed that these would continue. Lunch is available in the Wander Inn, known to most of us as the Officer’s Dining Room (ODR), from 10:30am until around noon. 

There is one last item to mention:  email addresses.  The size of our group has grown, and the cost of mailing notices has risen.  What money is donated to maintain the mailings needs to be spent wisely.  If you have access to the email address of a former co-worker, please let us know.  We promise not to sell them, or send endless requests for money.  We just want to continue the notifications in a cost-effective manner.

See you at The Diner.

Charles Daniel, President
John Mathew, Vice President

mcira43302@yahoo.com

http://mciretireesassociation.blogspot.com/

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We have information to share as the calendar slowly swings toward summer.

The first is appreciation for those who were able to attend our luncheon at the Marion Diner on April 25.  Judging from the laughter and conversation, a good time was had by all.  You might recall that our next similar gathering used to be held the first Tuesday in September.  As a result of the survey taken this winter, our next luncheon will be at the Marion Diner on Tuesday, October 3^rd.  Mark your calendars now.

The second thing to share is an update on MCI’s Correctional Employee Week activities.  This was formerly held the first week in May.  For years MCI retirees were encouraged to attend any and all activities.  As you may have guessed, changes have occurred.  We’ve been informed the Director’s Office has changed these activities to the second week of May for the entire Department.  At the institution level this disrupted the required planning, scheduling, and purchase schedules.  To simplify the process, MCI decided to focus its activities this year on current employees for all phases of the process.

What does that mean for MCI retirees (me) ? 

It means MCI retirees will not be part of the process this year.  As you can imagine, no one is in a position to discuss future arrangements, as they are still adjusting to this year’s changes.  As we receive additional information on this topic it will be posted.

There is one last item to mention:  email addresses.  We appreciate the efforts of everyone who has provided an email address for future communications.  It might not sound like much, but every little bit helps.  As mentioned before, if you have access to the email address of a former co-worker, please let us know.  We promise not to sell them, or send endless requests for money.  We just want to continue the notifications in a cost-effective manner.

Enjoy the rest of Spring.

Charles Daniel, President
John Mathew, Vice President

mcira43302@yahoo.com

http://mciretireesassociation.blogspot.com/

Hello again!  Since our last post we have two more events to list.

The first to come on the calendar is the Marion County Law Enforcement Banquet.  It is scheduled for Friday, April 21, 6pm at the Marion Correctional Institution.  The event will include entertainment, a program, and a meal at no cost for those in attendance.  To confirm attendance, please contact Kathy Hamilton at kathy.hamilton@odrc.state.oh.us, or Audrie Bender at audrie.bender@odrc.state.oh.us.  They can also be contacted by phone at 740-382-5781, extensions 2210 or 2323.

The next event to come on the calendar is the first of our luncheons.  Previously held during May, due to popular request our spring luncheon has been rescheduled for Tuesday, April 25.  We will meet at noon at The Marion Diner, 1565 Marion-Waldo Rd, Marion, OH 43302 (in front of the mall on route 423).  The “official” starting time is noon, but feel free to come when you can, and stay as long as you want.  We have their south room to ourselves, will be ordering from the menu, and can take our time.

There is one last item to mention:  email addresses.  The size of our group has grown, and the cost of mailing notices has risen.  What money is donated to maintain the mailings needs to be spent wisely.  If you have access to the email address of a former co-worker, please let us know.  We promise not to sell them, or send endless requests for money.  We just want to continue the notifications in a cost-effective manner.

See you at The Diner.

Charles Daniel, President
John Mathew, Vice President

mcira43302@yahoo.com

http://mciretireesassociation.blogspot.com/

The information below was provided by our friends at MCI.  If you are planning on attending again this year, pay particular attention to the revisions in the FAQ section at the bottom.

Charles Daniel, President
John Mathew, Secretary

MCI Ministry of Theatre

https://www.eventbrite.com/o/mci-ministry-of-theatre-6893997525 


 


Rehearsal photo from prep for Easter 2014 play, "Peter's Progress"
http://marionplays.eventbrite.com

Luncheon Schedule - Updated

Greetings!

As you might have guessed, we have closed our survey for our twice-annual luncheons.  We appreciate all the input and suggestions relating to where and when to meet, and how often.  The “short answer” to the survey has our next luncheons scheduled for:

Tuesday, April 25, at noon, at the Marion Diner

Tuesday, October 3, at noon, at the Marion Diner

The overwhelming choice was to continue meeting twice per year.  The first luncheon would be the last Tuesday of April, which this year is the 25th.  The second luncheon would be the first Tuesday in October, which this year is the 3rd.  The most popular dining place for our group proved to be the Marion Diner, 1565 Marion-Waldo Rd, Marion, OH 43302.

In general, the feeling was that both weeks we have traditionally met offered too many competing events.  The first week of May featured many MCI activities celebrating Corrections Employees.  This included the Service Awards Banquet among other activities.  The past several years MCI has invited retirees to participate in these events, which at times conflicted with our luncheons.  The luncheon usually held the day after Labor Day posed even more schedule conflicts.  It is a holiday week, during which many were traveling.  It was also the same week as the Popcorn Festival and Hardin County Fair. 

It is hoped this adjustment will permit more retirees to attend, but this isn’t the last time the topic will be raised.  We intend to revisit this after the fall luncheon.  So, if you have thoughts and suggestions, please share them.

BTW – Don’t lose track of the fact that MCI continues to invite us for a free lunch on the first Wednesday of each month.  It is hard to find a better deal.

Charles Daniel, President
John Mathew, Secretary

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