It is hard to believe that another year has already come and gone! I am excited to announce our annual reunion will be August 13th and 14th with the organizational business meeting to occur on the 14th at 1:00 pm. We have currently scheduled to attend Elder L. Aldin Porter and Elder Bruce D. Porter who we have asked to share some thoughts with us. See below for more details of the reunion.

About the time I became president, we were just recovering from a devastating crash of our previous website. With that crash went our most accurate list of organization members and their addresses. However, using a seriously out-of-date list, over the last two years we have worked to verify addresses and names. I am pleased to report that we now have an accurate mailing list of several hundred organization members. Additionally, we have also compiled an e-mail list of approximately 120 members, and that list is consistently growing. Most encouraging is the fact that several of our organization members have volunteered to assist our organization in various ways. Using that momentum, I would like to propose a few changes for your consideration (and discussion at our upcoming reunion).

It is obvious to me that e-mail and the Internet are critical to the success of our organization. By any other means, we are essentially limited to meeting once a year. With the Internet and e-mail, the discoveries and successes of one can be quickly communicated to all. The advantage is only magnified when those successes are organized and coordinated.

Because of this, I am going to recommend that our Communications Committee become the organization's primary committee with its chair person comprised of the organization's president (and the vice presidents serving as vice chairs of ad hoc subcommittees). This committee will be charged with 1) supervising the work of other committees by obtaining a brief report monthly (or as needed) from the other committee chairs, 2) sending out an e-mail each quarter with a report of the status of the various committees, and 3) helping coordinate communications between organization members and the appropriate committee or sub-committee.

One member of this committee will need to serve as a webmaster of our website, keeping it updated at least monthly with the content to be controlled by organization officers. I have so much information that has been provided for me to post on the website but have never been able to adequately learn how to do it. I am excited to have someone knowledgeable serve as webmaster and post the family histories and other information I have received.

I am also going to recommend that the family history and genealogy committee be divided. Both pieces deserve consistent attention. A family history committee could continue to search for (and help post) family histories of Sanford Porter's descendants. I suspect that there are dozens (if not hundreds) of family histories out there which, if posted to the organization website, would provide so much information to so many others. Where necessary, this committee could also organize the typing of family histories.

In comparison, the genealogical committee can help us compile an accurate descendency chart to be posted on the website. This committee would be charged with obtaining gedcom files of various lines, obtaining the contributor's verification of the accuracy of the lines submitted (in case there is a conflict with information obtained from another contributor), and importing those lines into an overall gedcom file which can be downloaded from the website. Additionally, this committee can help organize extraction efforts.

I welcome your response to these proposals. I don't pretend to know all the answers, but these proposals are ways I see that, with your input and support, we will continue to move forward at an accelerated pace. Please let me know, either by e-mail or at the reunion, of your thoughts and, just as importantly, if you are willing to assist with one of more of these committees. Steve Wright, swright@fretel.com

Please join us for the Porter Annual Reunion where we can renew family ties, share information, and enjoy some time together! The reunion is Friday, August 13th - Saturday, August 14th in Porterville. For those who would like to do some family camping, join us at Carter's Camp. There is a large grassy area for camping (tent or trailer) and a creek to play in. You can arrive anytime after 3:00 p.m. Please bring food and water for your family. Saturday at noon, bring a picnic lunch for your family (and a dish to share if you wish) and meet at the shelter behind the Morgan 5/6th Ward building located at 2700 S. Morgan Valley Drive in Porterville. We will then meet in the church cultural hall from 1:00pm - 3:00pm for family business.

Family Reunion Committee We hope that as other areas of our organization grow, participation in our family reunions will also grow. We would like to generate as much attendance as possible because we believe this will directly impact our ability to move forward the goals of our organization. Let us know what you would like to see and join us! Committee Chair: Kevan Johnson Communications Committee The focus of this committee is currently on the Porter Family website. We invite you to contact us if you are able and willing to help us in this work. As discussed above, with enough assistance, we can provide a wealth of information to descendants of Sanford Porter. Committee Chair: John Porter Family History & Genealogical Committee This committee has obtained several family histories/journals, including the journal of Nathan Tanner Porter, which will soon be added to the organization's website at www.sanfordporter.org. We welcome the opportunity to add other family histories. We are looking for a new committee chair person who can lead our efforts to obtain family histories and post those histories to the organization website. Additionally, as mentioned above, we also have the opportunity to begin compiling what will be an accurate and verified genealogical chart of Sanford Porter Sr. and his descendants available for download to all who visit the website. Committee Chair: TBD Monument & Cemetery Committee We are looking for a committee chairperson to help us continue this effort. Over the past few years the cemetery committee has made tremendous progress in identifying and placing markers on the gravesites of several family descendants. There is still need for additional assistance in compiling information on burial sites with the hope of placing still more markers in the near future. In addition to the Porterville Cemetery, this committee would like to place a new monument on the gravesite of Amy Sumner Porter who is buried in the pioneer cemetery located near the Winter Quarters, Nebraska LDS temple. Your donations will be critical to accomplishing this goal. Committee Chair: TBD Your donations are critical to moving forward the work of the Porter Family Organization. Donations can be sent to: The Porter Family Organization, 10 West 100 South Suite 600, Salt Lake City, Utah 84101. A sincere thanks to all those who have so generously donated time and money to the Porter Family Organization! The current organization leadership positions are: President - Steve Wright, 1st Vice President - Norris Porter, 2nd Vice President - Paul Porter, Treasurer - L. Deane Smith. We need your help. If you have a desire to get involved, please volunteer at the reunion or e-mail Steve Wright at swright@fretel.com.