by Staff Sgt. Roy Lynch
366th Public Affairs
10/11/2012 - MOUNTAIN HOME AIR FORCE BASE, Idaho -- The Gunfighter Club recently asked for assistance with customer support and received more than 200 replies on ways to conduct business in a better, more customer-friendly way. The new changes went into effect as of Oct. 1.
For years, the Air Force Clubs have been offering club discounts for their members. Here at Mountain Home, members have enjoyed those savings a dollar at a time when purchasing lunch at Striker's Grille, Hacker's and the club itself.
Beginning Oct. 15, club members will see a change in how discounts are given and an expansion to the number of facilities that will be involved.
"In the past, if you didn't eat lunch at the club, bowling alley or golf course, it was very difficult for you to see many benefits to your club membership," said Tommy Brooks, 366th Force Support Squadron community services flight chief. "Now you will be able to see those benefits at the swimming pool, outdoor recreation, arts & crafts and other activities as well with the new calendar of savings."
The calendar of savings offers a discount at a different facility every month, and if used fully, is a minimum $220 savings per year, per person.
"The thing some people may not understand is that the club had to pay back the other facilities for the flat rate monetary discount they were offering," said Brooks. "If the golf course gave out $500 in discounts a month, then the club would have to transfer $500 to the golf course to cover any loss it caused to that food operation."
Brooks said in the club's current financial situation, it could no longer pay those additional costs.
"Everyone should understand that as budgets are drawn down, we are left with the choice of either making money or closing our doors in FSS facilities and that includes the club," he said. "We need your support more now than ever before."
In an effort to keep the doors of the club open, FSS conducted a survey due to a 30 percent decrease in customer patronage since Jan. 1.
"Lunch sales were so far down," said Brooks. "We went to the customers and asked--what are we doing wrong and why are you not coming."
A wider variety of food and lower prices is what the customers wanted so they lowered prices for the buffet.
Buffet prices for members are now $7.75 and $8.75 for nonmembers. There is also a soup and salad option for members at $5.95 and $6.95 nonmembers.
More than just menu prices have changed, the menu itself is different.
"We will have five different themes for five different days," said Brooks. "Mondays are southern, Tuesdays are Asian, Wednesdays are Italian, Thursdays are home-style and Fridays are Mexican themed."
Each theme has different dishes that can be used.
"We are not tied into having just fried chicken on the southern theme," said Doug Rhodes, 366th FSS club manager. "If we have a theme we can rotate the foods in and out."
If you have a hail or farewell guest of honor, Brooks said the club will take care of them during any of the themed lunches. The club will be starting a barbeque to-go on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
If you have questions or would like the details of the new calendar of savings for club members, you can contact the club at 828-2105. Calendar of Savings
Friday, October 12, 2012
Monday, October 1, 2012
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| Titcomb Basin Wind River Range in Wyoming |
Reflection and Recollection
by Joshua Brown, OAP Asst Director
Back in
college, one assignment we were assigned in Recreation Leadership was to read
Aldo Leopold’s “A Sand County Almanac.” We had to pick our favorite chapter and write a
reflection essay. If you haven’t heard
of or read this book, it is an easy and interesting read. The author, Aldo Leopold, was nicknamed “Father
of Conservation,” and wrote about his experiences and encounters in the
outdoors. For this assignment, after
much debate, I chose October “Smoky Gold” describing the season transitioning
into fall, with crisp cool mornings and the smell of change in the air. The
moral of the story is to not only find joy in your journey and experiences made
in the outdoors, but develop a way to place these experiences into memory.
Having
a photographic memory would be an excellent way to remember your trips and
adventures, but not many of us have this unique ability. I encourage you to
take a small pad of paper and pencil to jot down experiences while out on a
trip. Take pictures, LOTS of pictures,
because you never get all the shots you want. I am eating my own words on these
last two; I forgot my log book on my last two backpacking trips and only took a
few pictures to submit to memory. Taking note and photos can enable you to
escape mentally back to a place that is sometimes easily forgotten. Being able
to take that mental road trip back to an epic trip or hunt is pretty amazing. So
I challenge you, on your next excursion into the outdoors take some notes and lots
of pictures. Write a reflection of your trip and create a hard copy memory that
yourself and others may enjoy. If you wish, share those stories in the comments section below.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Hunting Dogs Safety
Hunting Dogs Safety
With hunting season upon us, it’s important to make sure hunting dogs are ready for action. Prepare your dog for the season by visiting your veterinarian for a wellness check and ensure your pet’s vaccinations are up-to-date. Also, be sure that your dog is on a monthly dewormer such as HEARTGARD® Plus or Interceptor® as they can very easily pick up worms in the wild and transfer them to your family members. Below we’ve listed some things to look out for and some tips on how you can keep your dog healthy this fall. If you have any questions, please contact the Mountain Home AFB Veterinary Treatment Facility at 828-2221. Our knowledgeable staff can address your questions or schedule an appointment for your dog.
Poisoning:
Lead Shot/Bullets: Aside from the trauma caused by gunshot wounds, the lead found in pellets and bullets may lead to lead poisoning if left in the body. If your dog is shot, seek veterinary care immediately. If the bullet fragments or pellets cannot be removed, check blood levels regularly to ensure that chronic lead poisoning doesn’t occur. Signs of lead toxicity include behavioral changes, gastrointestinal signs (vomiting, diarrhea), and neurologic problems (including walking drunk, seizuring, and blindness).
Clay Pigeons: Pigeons contain coal tar and heavy metals such as lead, zinc, copper, and nickel, and can result in toxicity if ingested. If you have a “mouthy” hunting dog known to ingest toys or rocks, beware. Make sure they’re not eating scattered pieces of clay pigeons, as poisoning can result in liver, brain, and kidney damage
Mushrooms: Because hunting dogs are exposed to the great outdoors, they’re more likely to ingest a mushroom in the field. While most mushrooms are generally non-toxic, certain types can be very dangerous. One of the most dangerous found throughout the United States is the plain looking Amanita phalloides or death cap mushroom. Because proper identification of mushrooms is extremely difficult, consider all ingestions of unidentified mushrooms as toxic until proven otherwise. Depending on the type of mushroom ingested, symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, depression, tremors, and seizures, with ingestion usually leading to liver and kidney damage.
Safety tips:
· Hunting dogs are more likely to run through barbed wire or lacerate themselves by running through dense brush. Therefore, it’s important to keep your dog in a blaze orange chest protector vest. This will protect vital organs from injury and can also save on expensive vet bills. You may also want to consider training them to wear booties in order to protect their pads. An alternate to that is by toughening their pads in advance with a product such as Pad-Tough, which the Base Veterinary Treatment Facility routinely stocks.
· An excited hunting dog that is not wearing an electronic shock collar, can take off after a scent, possibly leading to hours of searching for your companion. Make sure identification tags are well secured onto your dog’s collar in addition to having them microchipped to ensure a happy reunion.
· Rarely, a genetic abnormality in Labrador retrievers, called “hunting dog hypoglycemia,” can result in an acute drop in blood sugar resulting in the collapse of a normally active dog. Making time for frequent water and snack breaks throughout the day is important.
· Heat stroke is always a big risk early in the hunting season. Excited dogs combined with higher air temperatures can increase chances of heat exhaustion. Keeping a canine first aid kit handy along with a thermometer is important in case of an emergency. If you notice your dog constantly panting, make sure to take frequent water breaks and water dips in ponds without blue-green algae. When in doubt, always play it safe and give your dog a break to cool off.
· Make sure to scope out the area where you are hunting. Have the phone number for a local veterinarian, emergency veterinarian, and Pet Poison Helpline programmed into your phone in the event of an emergency.
· Ensure your dog is vaccinated against Leptospirosis. Leptospirosis is a bacterial disease which can be spread in animal urine. It can be in streams or stagnant water. It spreads to animals upon ingestion of the contaminated water or by direct contact with the urine. It is a zoonotic disease meaning that it can also be spread to humans as well.
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