Thursday, January 09, 2014

Bulletin: January 2014


LOSS OF A MEMBER: By the last meeting we were already aware of the condition of long-time member, Frank Tripoli. After I had already gone to print with the January BPMS Bulletin the news came in that he passed away on December 31, 2013. His patient, clever, friendly and wise presence will be missed. See a full obituary by Frank C. HERE.




THE 
MINUTES

by Bobby Pokorny

December was a jam-packed meeting full of awards and treats. We had 26 members and 2 guests who brought in 16 models for the theme contest.

December Meeting



SLOPPY SECONDS THEME: It finally arrived. You merely had to complete a model that was intended for a previous theme contest. A second chance for the procrastinators and for those projects that just didn’t have enough time to get done. The winners were:

GOLD                 Joe Bergman     Dracula
SILVER               Tim Greeman   Israeli Sherman
BRONZE           Frank Colucci Mig-21R
HM                       Kosta Lukyanov  Frogmen
                                Angelo Takos  Pink Panther
                                Ray Whitton   Rocket
                                Phil Benson      Mercedes
America!             Joe Bergman     Gemini Capsule
Incomplete       Ray Keegan      Planet Express
Bogey                   Ed Johnson       He-178
Hat Trick           Russ Holcomb                Enterprises
Grand Slam      Joe Bergman     Speeder Trooper

Jimmy and I were pleased with the turn out. Thanks for entering our theme contest! Thank you Jimmy for the idea and being a co-sponsor!   

Holiday desserts: Members brought in a fine array of tasty treats. Thanks for that!  

AWARDS: The members voted and the winners are:

AIR
1                     Seamus Boughe
2                    Frank Tripoli
3                     Tomasz Kalata
HM       Frank Colucci
                Kosta Lukyanov
                Kamila Lukyanova

ARMOR
1                     Tim Greeman
2                    Frank Tripoli
3                     Tomasz Kalata
Ed Johnson
HM       Bob Epley
                Howel Serkin
                Ray Whitton

FIGURE
1                     Joe Bergman
2                    Ted Fazio
3                     Bob Pokorny
HM       Guy Ferrara
                Tim Greeman
                Bill Murphy

Science Fiction
1                     Ray Keegan
2                    Gordon Cheung
3                     Joe Bergman

SEA
1                     Charlie Nelson
2                    Kosta Lukyanov
3                     Ed Johnson
HM       Phil Benson

Miscellaneous
1                     Phil Benson
2                    Joe Bergman
3                     Bob Epley
HM       Tim Greeman
                Kamila Lukyanova
                Ray Whitton



Most Popular
1Q          Tomasz Kalata                ARCO DH6A
Tie         Bob Pokorny                   Cthulhu

2Q         Phil Benson                      Prince Admiral Barge

3Q          Charlie Nelson                HMS Eskimo

4Q         Seamus Boughe    Submarine Spitfire Mk IIA

***TOP GUN***
JOE BERGMAN



Holiday Dinner: Good food, good friends, good times! This year we met at NORA’S PARK BENCH CAFÉ in Brooklyn on December 14th. There may be pics on the photo blog now!

THE NEXT THEME: Asia Invasion, details HERE

TROOP SUPPORT: With Hugh in retirement Jimmy Tissot volunteered to take over the role as Wounded Warrior Project liaison. He’s gotten reports regarding what models and supplies would be most useful. He was recently advised of a hub to ship to closer to home, so that’s good. As always, donations of any models and supplies are welcome.

PHOTO ROSTER: Hugh can provide the files and write up the process I use in PowerPoint and PhotoManager to put the pages together. Can anyone take this job over? Hello? Anyone? Contact Bobby or Jeff at the meeting.


On the agenda: January


2014 Model Pledge: Looks like we got this working right now! Bring in an unbuilt model between January and APRIL 2014 to declare as your pledge model. Please have it finished for OCTOBER 2014, for a display. After October you may bring back your pledge for the November meeting for the last contest of the year. For your efforts you get an additional FIVE Super Raffle tickets for completing your pledge! Sweet! Easy enough!



KIT SALE: Bring kits to sell and you might want to have some cash on you too. There’s no tab at this bar!  

RAFFLE: We may have a monthly raffle with an assortment of items depending on time. 

Meeting Date:
January 17, 2014

Same Time
Same place

Saturday, January 04, 2014

Frank Tripoli 1939-2013



 
Frank Tripoli

1939-2013

The Brooklyn Plastic Modelers lost a valued friend and guiding member with the passing of Frank Tripoli on New Year’s Eve. Frank joined the Brooklyn club soon after it started over 40 years ago. He remained the warm, welcoming face of BPMS to every new member, and he was a respected advisor to successive club officers. His calm, genuine, and generous way set a tone that helped sustain our club with its wide mix of modeling interests and temperaments. Frank truly enjoyed building models, and he could express honest opinions about our hobby and our club without causing anger or hurt feelings. 

Frank served two terms as BPMS President. He was a key player in our 1975 regional convention, special exhibitions aboard the USS Intrepid and at Floyd Bennett Field, and numerous club functions. He sponsored special theme contests, conducted modeling clinics, and provided a friendly, consistent presence at nearly every club meeting. 

As a modeler, Frank preferred 48th-scale aircraft, most notably WWII fighters. He later took to 48th scale armor and did his share of science fiction and other specialty projects to support BPMS theme contests.  Frank always built for enjoyment, and he enjoyed talking to people about modeling. He experimented with each new tool and technique – resin and photo-etched parts, canopy masks, single- and double-action airbrushes, etc. and shared what did and did not work with honesty and humor.  

Frank was a lifelong Brooklynite. He grew up in Bensonhurst not far from our long-time meeting place at the Marcy Photo Studio and lived much of his life near Marine Park with his wife Clara, daughter Laura, and son James. As a respected New York City English teacher, Frank spent most of his years of service at Lafayette High School. He once acknowledged some students tested even his legendary patience, but he believed sincerely in the value of his work.  He earned two Master’s Degrees in English and Library Sciences. 

Retirement gave Frank and Clara the time to travel extensively. Together, they explored Western Europe, the newly-open Eastern Bloc, and parts of South America including the Patagonia region of Argentina and Chile. They also returned every summer to their friends on the familiar Florida Gulf Coast. At home, Frank took special delight in his grand-daughters Nicolette and Jamie. According to his wife of 47 years, his favorite modeling project was usually the latest one on the workbench. 

Frank Tripoli touched all of us in the Brooklyn Club, and he gave us a model of how we should all treat one another.  We’ll miss him.
by Frank Colucci