Master Instructor Phenry, once told me, "Everyone needs an IBC, from orange hat to MI." Can't argue with that one bit, so when I was invited to go to New Mexico for an IBC the answer was obviously YES!
Mrs. Smith picked me up from the airport on Friday and she had a special treat for me. On the way to the range, she drove me by Walter White's house (I didn't get to throw a pizza on the roof) and we got chicken at Los Pollos Hermanos (currently a Twisters). As a fan of the Breaking Bad series, that was pretty cool - thank you!
On Saturday morning, fifteen Appleseeders assembled for the weekend. The IBC began on a very high note with three new volunteers accepting Orange Hats! HUZZAH to Mr. Q, IronPatriot, and Gila!
Then we jumped into safety and the Appleseed Guidelines, and then dove into Marksmanship. During a working lunch, we spent time discussing history. The rest of the day we spent in small group exercises. Our dinner plans crashed twice, so Range Mom improvised, adapted and overcame. We grabbed food from the grocery store deli and had fellowship in the hotel's breakfast area.
We met back at the range early on Sunday morning because Range Mom had made a HUGE breakfast for us all. Keto egg casserole and french toast casserole. Nobody went hungry!
After cleanup, we jumped back into learning. Orange hats old and new, you guys were doing great! It's a joy to see Appleseeders teaching with simplicity and precision. Sunday lunch was the highlight of the weekend for me. We set aside time to do history drills. Each attendee had been assigned a topic in advance and a time limit of three minutes. It's a a fun and challenging exercise and everyone gets to learn something new about our history. I must highlight Olsalt44's history - he did yeoman's work with the history and I hope to see a Red Hat on his head in the future. (Jack, please be on the lookout for something from me in the mail. I didn't have a challenge coin for you at the IBC, but you sure earned one for your efforts.)
I am so grateful for the small group leads who worked tirelessly and invested their time to make this a wonderful event. My personal thanks to: Desert_Diver, hotairbill, Mrs. Smith, and Jerry Hall for leading the groups. Y'all were awesome!
A special shout-out to Mrs. Smith and Range Mom. Thanks for taking care of all of us and making the logistics of the weekend easy!
Everyone, thank you for attending Albuquerque 7-21. I hope to work with you again soon!
in Liberty,
MO
P.S. Since... :pics:
IronPatriot accepting a hat! Welcome!
(https://i.imgur.com/RLxnsM2.jpg)
Mr. Q accepting a hat! Welcome!
(https://i.imgur.com/7fUKhF4.jpg)
Gila accepting a hat! Welcome!
(https://i.imgur.com/joTwOdk.jpg)
The NM State Coordinator handing out service pins to Desert_Diver and captwa.
(https://i.imgur.com/g5bBNgF.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/Nu5rVE7.jpg)
Small group stuff
(https://i.imgur.com/MTaEf6X.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/19SSNN0.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/UZo2O1c.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/h0m8F7u.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/DfpyAGT.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/KQ0y9sk.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/c9JsY0Q.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/yJVtxho.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/C9yPlHz.jpg)
Graduation and Mrs. Smith handing out State Patches!
(https://i.imgur.com/8nmmVyw.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/B0WPEZ8.jpg)
And the group shot taken by Range Mom!
(https://i.imgur.com/XezmeBf.jpg)
NICE!!
Thanks MaxOrd. I don't know where you get all the energy to do all the traveling you do but all I can say is THANK YOU!
Had a great time at IBC ,learned a lot. Maximum Ordinate ,thankyou for the coin and accolades. Range Mom thankyou for all the great food . and tongue in cheek no thankyou for the extra pounds i gained..mrs Smith ,and O L thankyou for the taxi service . and to all the other attendees , thankyou for the comradery. looking forward to seeing any and all of you at the next appleseed event we attend.