- This event has passed.
2020 D12 & D14 Spring Conference Postponed
March 27, 2020 - March 29, 2020
POSTPONED!
Districts 12 and 14 Spring Conference, 27 – 29 March 2020
is postponed as a precaution due
to the Coronavirus situation
District 12 and District 14 have agreed that it is most prudent to postpone the conference. We are considering a teleconference in late April, rather than a regular gathering.
If you made a hotel reservation, cancel ASAP as a courtesy to the Fairfield Inn, New Bedford, MA,
(774) 634-2000
and no later than 48 hours in advance of your reservation date.
If you have registered for the conference, your payment will be refunded.
Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused by this cancellation.
Thank you for your understanding and support,
Valentina Bizunok, AP
D14 Administrative Officer
The new America’s Boating Club – Southeastern New England (ABC-SNE) will be created by
the merger of USPS District 12 and District 14 at the 2020 Spring Conference. The USPS HQ System will refer to the new district as D34.
USPS District 12/14 Spring Conference and Change of Watch
New Bedford Fairfield Inn and Suites
3/27 – 3/29, 2020
New Bedford Fairfield Inn and Suites
New Bedford, MA
District 12 and District 14 will once again hold their Spring Conference and Change of Watch in historic New Bedford during the weekend of 27-29 March. Saturday will be filled with Speakers, CPR/AED Training, Safety demos and training, Educational Program updates, and V/C Harry Hebb, SN with the Chief’s Message.
For those wishing to take some time to enjoy New Bedford, the Whaling Museum and New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park and Visitor Center are within walking distance.
Conference Highlights
- V/C Harry Hebb, SN, representing C/C Mary Paige Abbott.
- Guest Speaker, Andrew Wilson, US Naval War College, Newport.
- Heartsaver CPR/AED Certification Training.
- Election of Officers to the newly formed District 34 Bridge.
Report of the Nominating Committee
Quick Links:
Meals and Activities
Friday Afternoon Activities
Field trip in New Bedford –TO BE DETERMINED
Friday Night
Dinner
Pay on your own
Saturday daytime: Agenda
Registration is required. Dress: Casual
$39 includes Morning coffee/pastries and lunch
Saturday Evening:
Social/Cocktail Hour at Hotel Bar
Dinner on your own
Hotel Reservations
The Conference Hotel is the New Bedford Fairfield Inn and Suites. The hotel is offering reserved room rates of $109-$129 for America’s Boating Club members until March 10. After March 10th, rate is subject to availability of the hotel. Use the link in this section for reservations.
Plan to arrive Friday afternoon. Attend social hour and group dinner Friday
Conference events all day Saturday. TBA
Plan to stay Saturday night to attend social hour and group dinner
| Here’s the link for our group to make reservations at
Fairfield Inn & Suites New Bedford |
| Book your group rate for America’s Boating Club
You will find the information for your online reservation link below. |
| Event Summary: |
| America’s Boating Club |
| Start Date: Friday, March 27, 2020 |
| End Date: Sunday, March 29, 2020 |
| Last Day to Book: Sunday, March 10, 2020 |
| Hotel(s) offering your special group rate: |
- Fairfield Inn & Suites New Bedford for 109 USD – 129 USD per night
- Book your group rate for America’s Boating Club .
NOMINATING COMMITTEE REPORT FOR
PROPOSED DISTRICT 34
To: D/1LT Marie Ferrante – D12 Assistant Secretary
D/Lt/C Erika Kraft, AP – D14 Secretary
Madam Secretaries,
In accordance with the District 12 and 14 By-Laws, Article V1, Section 6.1 and Article III, Section 3.2.3, the District 12 and 14 Nominating Committees propose the following candidates for office to serve on the District 34 Bridge during the year 2020 – 2021.
Commander………………………….………D/C Donald Stone, AP (D12-CR)
Executive Officer…………………..……….OPEN
Education Officer……..……….……..……OPEN
Administrative Officer…………….…….D/Lt/C Valentina Bizunok, AP (D14-CC)
Secretary………………………………..……..P/D/C Richard Terry, SN (D12-GBH)
Treasurer………………………………..…….STF/C Barbara Herrmann SN-IN (D12-CR)
Assistant Administrative Officer.……Cdr John Rossi, AP (D14-BB)
Assistant Treasurer……………………….P/C Alex Bizunok, AP (D14-CC)
Nominating Committee (1Yr)…………P/R/C Ray Farrow, JN (D12-B-M)
Nominating Committee (1Yr)…………OPEN
Nominating Committee (1Yr)…………OPEN
Audit Committee (1Yr)…………………..P/C George Kyte, SN (D12-GBH)
Audit Committee (1Yr)…………………..P/C Don Vonada, JN (D12-CR)
Rules Committee (1Yr)…………………..OPEN
Rules Committee (1Yr)…………………..OPEN
Respectively submitted,
Proposed D34 Merge Nominating Committee Chair D12 P/R/C Kathleen Lambert, AP
Proposed D34 Merge Nominating Committee Chair D14 Cdr John Crawford, SN
Guest Speaker
Andrew R. Wilson, Ph.D.
John A. van Beuren Chair of Asia-Pacific Studies
United States Naval War College
THE TREASURE FLEETS OF THE GREAT MING: THE VOYAGES OF ZHENG HE
Between 1405 and 1433, China’s Ming Dynasty sent Admiral Zheng He on seven voyages into the South China Sea and across the Indian Ocean. Zheng’s fleets traveled as far as the Horn of Africa and included up to 250 ships and 27,000 personnel. Within the vast armada were several dozen “treasure ships,” the largest wooden ships ever constructed, stocked with all manner of gifts for foreign leaders willing to accept Ming hegemony. It was a staggering feat of technological acumen and Imperial ambition. In this lecture we first explore the factors that motivated and allowed the Ming to go to sea so aggressively and so ostentatiously. Second, the ways in which Chinese emissaries interacted with foreign powers reveals a lot about how the Ming saw its place in the world. We will also look at the abrupt end of the voyages and the implications of Imperial China’s retreat from the sea. Along the way we will address some of the biggest controversies surrounding Zheng He, including Gavin Menzies’ theory that a contingent of the Ming fleet circumnavigated the globe in 1421 and made stops in Rhode Island where the Chinese mariners built Newport’s “Viking” Tower. Finally, we will discuss how these voyages are viewed in contemporary China and how the People’s Republic of China has tried to use Zheng He as a parable for China’s “peaceful” rise and for its return to the sea. ____________________________________________________________________
Andrew R. Wilson is Professor of Strategy and Policy at the United States Naval War College in Newport, RI, the world’s oldest and most prestigious center for senior military education. An old “China Hand,” Andrew received his Bachelor of Arts in East Asian Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and earned a Ph.D. in History and East Asian Languages from Harvard University with a specialization in the history of Pre-Modern and Modern China. His dissertation dealt with the Chinese merchant community in the Colonial Philippines.
Professor Wilson has published numerous articles and books on Chinese maritime history, the Chinese diaspora, Chinese military history and the history of maritime East Asia. Professor Wilson’s research interests are not limited to history. He has also written on Chinese strategic culture, contemporary Asian security, Chinese politics and Chinese military modernization. In addition, he is an expert on strategic thought and formerly served as the Naval War College’s Philip A. Crowl Professor of Comparative Strategy.
Before joining the Naval War College faculty in 1998, Professor Wilson taught introductory and advanced courses in Chinese history and the history of the Chinese diaspora at Harvard and at Wellesley College. He has also taught at Salve Regina University and at the University of Rhode Island’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI). His courses at OLLI include Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, In the Footsteps of Genghis Khan, The Treasure Fleets of the Great Ming and A History of Modern China. An award-winning educator and dynamic lecturer, Professor Wilson has spoken at numerous military colleges and civilian universities across the United States and around the world, has been featured on the History Channel and National Public Radio, and has been a guest lecturer for One Day University, Scientific American, The New York Times Journeys and National Geographic. Professor Wilson is also an inveterate traveler and fanatical foodie. He has lived in China, Taiwan and the Philippines and makes annual trips to Asia, frequently accompanied by students and faculty from the Naval War College.
Professor Wilson’s books include Ambition and Identity: Chinese Merchant-Elites in Colonial Manila, 1885-1916; The Chinese in the Caribbean; China’s Future Nuclear Submarine Force; and the forthcoming The Acme of Skill: Strategic Theory from Antiquity to the Information Age. He has also taught for the Great Courses: with lecture series on The Art of War; Masters of War: History’s Greatest Strategic Thinkers; and Understanding Imperial China: Dynasties, Lives and Cultures.■
