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Greetings to all fellow captives

Strange days, indeed.

I do hope everyone is faring as well as possible during this COVID-19 crisis and that things will return to something resembling normal in the very near future. Difficult times like these make one aware of how important family and friends are, especially as we endure a forced separation from many of them.

A challenge for the hobby.

Although necessary to ensure safety, it has been sad to see the cancellation of so many great breweriana shows across the country, especially the many held during Spring that help pull us collectors together again and out of the winter doldrums. We are sad that our good friends at ABA/ECBA were forced to cancel their first combined annual meeting, but fully empathize with their reasoning. Your NABA Board believes that local chapters and shows are the lifeblood of breweriana collecting and the building blocks of the camaraderie that is such a special and valued feature of our hobby.

June 30th decision on holding our Convention.

We earnestly hope to still be able to hold our Convention in Pittsburgh beginning July 29. Your NABA Board will make the final decision and announce it to the membership on June 30th, a month prior to the planned start date. This is as late as we can delay the decision without paying hotel fees. Delaying until the 30th not only will give us more information on which to base our decision, but also, still gives our members enough time to plan travel arrangements.

Your safety is paramount.

If we do move ahead with holding the Convention, we have planned a number of new safety guidelines to accommodate social distancing and sanitation There is nothing more important to us than the well-being of our members and our decision will be guided with that imperative in mind. Convention chair Mike Michalik and his team have put together tremendous plans.

Cancellation = Full refund.

But in the unfortunate event that the Convention is canceled, full refunds will be issued to those who already have signed up early to get their free tin-over-cardboard commemorative signs.

NABA continues to grow!

Despite the pandemic, our membership continues to increase, and we welcome not only our many new members, but also our 43rd chapter, the long-established Hawkeye Chapter. Our chapter growth has almost doubled from 23 just two years ago and we hope to have 50 chapters under the NABA umbrella by year’s end.

Our best wishes to Norm Jay.

Our Director Emeritus, Norm Jay, of Glen Ellyn, IL, has been ailing. Your NABA Board of Directors sent him a beautiful signed card, hand-created by Board member Barry Travis. Norm is a past president and much beloved part of NABA, and has been a mainstay at local chapter shows in the Midwest and at our national Convention for many years. Godspeed, Norm! Now as much as ever, we wish you good health and safety during these challenging times!

The Handsome Waiter can’t “wait” until the
breweriana shows resume! Here he is with
(from left) John Ferguson, Ken Quaas,
and Joe Germino at the Blue & Gray Show
on February 13, 2020 in Herndon, VA.

John Ferguson, President - Fergkate@comcast.net

NABA is offering a special deal on dues – three years for $90 – which is $15 off the annual price of $35 per year. Just go to the “Join NABA” tab on this website to find out how to join or renew your membership!

Now as much as ever, we thank you for your membership and wish you good health and safety during these challenging times!

Spring greetings to our NABA members across the country! And I’m happy to report that there are more of you now than there have been since the late 1990s. In the past two years, our club has been rebuilt and energized. Our magazine has expanded from 40 to 64 pages. We have brought back our printed directory, by popular demand. And our last two Conventions, in Madison and Cincinnati, have set attendance records.

We’ve also had some incredible growth in chapter affiliations. In the past couple of years, we’ve almost doubled our number of chapters from 23 to 42. The most recent chapter additions since our last issue are Chesapeake Bay of Maryland, Officer Suds of Utica, NY, and Cascade from the Pacific Northwest. We are thrilled to add these great chapters and firmly believe local chapters and shows are the lifeblood of our hobby and pledge to do all we can to promote them.

      

NABA has a revitalized Board of Directors who are working hard to grow our organization and hobby. The incredible Danny Bora has re-built our website into a powerful asset to our members, with easy digital access to back issues of this magazine and all the latest news on NABA as well as breweriana shows and events across the country. Please check it out at www.nababrew.com.

What’s next? NABA members will be gathering from July 29-Aug 1 for our 49th Annual Convention in Pittsburgh—and we have some amazing events planned. We have three phenomenal home tours, a great historic and craft brewery bus tour, the Brewmaster’s dinner being conducted by a world-class beer expert, room-to-room trading, educational seminars, our exclusive auction, craft beer tastings, the annual banquet, a new Speakeasy after-party featuring live jazz music and craft cocktails, public trade show, lunch and—for those interested—a Pirates/Cardinals baseball game Saturday evening. The Convention team is led by Mike Michalik and Chris Watt with Iron City Beer as the official sponsor and Penn Brewery joining the sponsorship team. Let me put it simply: You need to be there!

Elections are part of the annual gathering and 2018-2020 Board of Director members John Bittermann, Paul Cervenka, Darla Long, and Mike Michalik have raised their hands for another 2-year term. We also have added Matthew Olszewski—a well-regarded hobbyist and founder of the 5000+ member Breweriana Buy Sell and Trade Facebook page—to our Board (see photo below). Your NABA officers’ terms expire this August and I am glad to report that Ken Quaas, Jim Kaiser, Dave Alsgaard, and myself are game for another two years of NABA growth. If anyone wishes further information about board participation, please email me at fergkate@ comcast.net.

Sadly, our wonderful BC editor, Lee Chichester, plans to retire soon, as of the Winter 2021 issue. But she is assisting in finding someone to help do what she does. Notice I did not say “replace” her, because that would be impossible. Lee has been instrumental in making this magazine the best in the hobby and will be hugely missed. But we are fortunate to have the editorial leadership of Ken Quaas and great staff of writers in place, so the BC should not miss a beat. Thanks Lee!

Our Handsome Waiter membership banner has been showing up everywhere these days, traveling to as many shows as possible, thanks to our great Membership Committee. The Waiter is so busy, I can’t keep up with his travels.

     

The Handsome Waiter and NABA support local breweriana shows. Above left: Board member Barry Travis and Membership Committee member Stevan Miner at the Hamm’s Beer Club show in Medina, MN, on Feb 15.

On a sour note, we have spent a good deal of time investigating the legitimacy (or lack thereof) of some suspect mirrored signs that have surfaced in the past year. I am very pleased that the national clubs worked closely to jointly investigate this situation and keep our members informed and protected. See pg. 54 of the spring issue for the investigation’s details. Make sure to sign up for the Convention and reserve your hotel room today in Pittsburgh! Rooms are going fast.

I look forward to seeing you then, if not sooner at a local chapter show.

John Ferguson, President

Fergkate@comcast.net

Don Monroe Jr. Did an excellent job promoting the hobby and the Buckeye Show.

WWII Veteran Vince Speranza describes his famous beer run for his wounded friend.

Episode 105 — Seidel Family / Norristown, PA

When Steve Seidel Senior of Norristown, Pennsylvania passed away recently he left his two adult children a 300-year-old farmhouse full of beer memorabilia and countless other pop culture items. The task of cleaning out the house and barn before selling the property was overwhelming and the kids turned to Matt and his team for help. Not only did Matt need to do an inventory of all the items in the house but he had to find a handful of cherished memorabilia that the children, Becky and Steve Jr. wanted to keep to remind them of their dad. Matt’s strategy was to divide and conquer. He searched the barn with Avi while Jaimie and Mike go through a house jammed from floor ceiling with beer collectables. There were cans, trays, bottles, posters and more. In fact, there were so many items that Matt decided to bring in some beer experts to go through everything and put a price tag on the collection. The experts found some rare items that will bring top dollar. That makes Matt happy because he knows Becky and Steve Jr. want to use some of the money they get from selling the house and everything in it to provide for their two younger half-brothers. Besides beer memorabilia, Matt and his team finds lots of other interesting things. A collection of political campaign pins, an old barber chair, a classic Corvette and something none of them had ever seen before. A bazooka. Seems that Steve Sr. was a wild man who collected lots of really cool stuff. With the house cleared out and the moving vans packed, Matt shows Becky and Steve the Legacy List items he’s found. It’s an emotional moment. The house may be sold but the kids now have a few cherished items that will remind them of their dad.

Happy New Year Everyone,

2020 has started out with  a Bang !

First , NABA is thrilled to announce that the 45-member Chesapeake Bay Chapter of Maryland has elected to come aboard as our landmark 40th chapter!  

Second, NABA is extremely happy to announce the latest addition to our Board of Directors: Matthew Olszewski of Syracuse, NY. Matt is a well- respected, knowledgeable and highly-valued member of our breweriana collecting community and has done a terrific job in his role on our Membership Committee. We are proud to have him join our stellar team to help further our efforts to build NABA, and most importantly, bring energy, knowledge, camaraderie and growth to our hobby.

NABA is proud to announce that the PBG(Pittsburgh Brewers Guild) will be a co-sponsor of our 2020 Convention in Pittsburgh. PBG represents over 30 craft breweries in the Pittsburgh area. PBG already assisted us in getting Master Cicerone, Brian Reed, to host our Brewmaster's Dinner and they will be providing the local beer for that event, as well as Hospitality . In addition, PBG will be pouring area beers at our Craft Beer Tasting prior to the Banquet. Many of you will take the time to visit Pittsburgh Breweries during your stay and the PBG website makes planning that easy. Visit https://pghbreweryguide.com/ and select what breweries that you'd like to visit and an itinerary will be mapped out for you. Pittsburgh's Beer Community is truly a family! As PBG's motto states "PITTSBURGH IS A BEER-DRINKING TOWN, & WE’RE ALL NEIGHBORS HERE."