Dear Club Members, Sponsors, and Friends,
This article is my last for Challenge as CVR president. My term of office ends at the end of November. I will serve as past president until the end of 2024; the related responsibilities are primarily administrative. I am delighted that an impressive slate of CVR leaders is nominated for election at the Annual Meeting, which will be a luncheon at Saint Clements Castle in Portland, Connecticut on Sunday, November 20. If elected, the nominees would serve a two-year term: 2023-2024.
SHELLEY KROHNENGOLD; DON PHELAN
Shelley Krohnengold is nominated for the office of president. Most club members know Shelley as the editor-in-chief of the print editions of Challenge for more than a decade and as a devotee of driver education. He has functioned as the club’s resident graphics and media specialist for years, creating alluring announcements and attractive programs for our events. In recognition of his essential contributions to CVR, he received the Frank Carrington Award, CVR’s most prestigious
honor, in 2017. Don Phelan complements Shelley as a nominee for executive vice president. Don served as the club treasurer for five years, from 2016 through 2020. His experience as a certified public account was an asset to the club, continuing fiscal procedures instituted by his predecessor, Dick Kretz. Don’s meticulous attention to detail and competent management of our accounts ensured uninterrupted funding of all club events and activities during his tenure as treasurer, which was a significant accomplishment when the production of print editions of Challenge was costing $60,000 per year. He is also a driver education enthusiast.
FRANK SENA; PAUL KUDRA
Frank Sena has volunteered to become club secretary. Frank was the vice president of programs in 2017 and 2018. His military training in planning and logistics was consequential in 2019 when he devoted the entire year to the reconceptualization of the CVR Emporium. He transformed the emporium from a static, inventory-intensive physical store to an internet-based, real-time inventory that provides our members a broader and timelier spectrum of apparel. He returned in 2020 as the director of programs, assisting his protégé, Jeff Coe, the vice president of programs. Frank was a recipient of the Rookie of the Year Award in 2013 and a recipient of Enthusiast of the Year Award in 2016. Paul Kudra
joins Frank on the slate of prospective officers as the nominee for vice president of autocross. Readers of my column are familiar with Paul; I wrote a feature article about him in the March 2022 issue of Challenge. He has been a board member since 1982 when, at the age of 26, he was elected secretary. His subsequent accomplishments are exceptional: editor-in-chief of Challenge, creator of Photofest, driver education instructor, club president, resident artistic director, and vice president of autocross. He is credited with transformational changes in the autocross program, including the creation of Auto-X University. He has been our autocross leader since 1989 and is currently the chair of Porsche Club of America’s national autocross program. Paul and his wife, Pam, received the Frank Carrington Award in 2013.
BOARD DEPARTURES: PHIL CAPELLA, ROGER FUNK, CHRISTINE BECKWITH
Phil Capella’s term as past president officially ends at the end of November. Phil embraced the challenges and responsibilities of club-wide leadership for more than a decade. During his tenure as president, he effected organizational improvements; notable among them was the transformation of Challenge from hard-print to digital format. Building on Jerry Charlup’s seminal format, he continued the work he began in 2010 to evolve CVR’s website, making it the club’s leading communication portal. He remains active in driver
education. Phil and his wife, Maria (a leader on her own merits), were our tourmeisters from 2010 until the pandemic. They planned and hosted spring and fall tours throughout New England, New York, and Pennsylvania. They also increased threefold the number of Coffee Runs during that time. For several years, they were lead volunteers at CVR Club Races and PCA national events, as well as members of several regional committees, ranging from anniversary celebrations to charity auctions. Both participated in autocross. Phil and Maria received Rookies of the Year Award in 2008 and Enthusiasts of the Year Award in 2017.
Approaching two decades of continuous service to the club, Roger Funk has an exceptional reputation as a leader and mentor. He has positively influenced driver education, social events, and officer succession. During his tenure as president, he led the celebration of the CVR’s 50th Anniversary in 2009, including the club’s Gala Dinner Dance at Aqua Turf, an event so festive and joyous that it could be considered, in the most positive sense, CVR’s Woodstock. Roger also coordinated the definitive publication of CVR history: Porsche Club of America / Connecticut Valley Region: 50 Years, which Bo Parker and John Karam superbly edited. During his term of office, Roger instituted
the Frank Carrington Award, of which he, himself, was a recipient in 2016. After more than ten years of chairing the CVR Nominating Committee, Roger is stepping down, but he will remain a guiding light for many of us.
Christine Beckwith was a center of calm during the last two years amid the tumultuous challenges of the pandemic. Her work as club secretary memorialized board minutes and ensured timely and comprehensive insurance coverage for all moving car events. Previously, she and her husband, Tim, were the club’s rallymeisters, planning and hosting two rallies each year from 2018 until the pandemic. Christine represents a new generation of leadership. She will be a positive influence in the club for many years.
EXPRESSIONS OF RESPECT AND GRATITUDE
As my term as president ends, I recall William Shakespeare’s ambivalence about taking leave: “I have more care to stay than will to go.” Although the last two years have been a period of unprecedented complications for the club because of the pandemic, I will miss the work to sustain CVR as an oasis where club members can enjoy a respite from professional burdens and personal responsibilities. Whatever my successes might be as president, they are attributable to board members – – the club’s elected officers and activity chairs. They stayed the course through disappointments and setbacks that often negated their vision and work. No one would have blamed them for walking away during the last two years; after all, CVR is not an essential service. Instead, they endured cancellations, state prohibitions, second-guessing, and, in some cases, their own illnesses. Their dedication has resulted in the club’s sound financial condition and a rejuvenation of activities. Although the COVID-19 Variant BA.5 continued to harass planning, the Club Race, nineteen Coffee Runs, eleven DE events, and six AutoX experiences, in addition to the Hoffman Cup, will have taken place by the end of the driving season.
Understandably some of our traditional venues for Monthly Meetings remained unavailable. Nevertheless, Jeff Coe, vice president of programs, and Frank Sena, director of programs, hosted meetings at Automobilia Auto Salon, Porsche Fairfield, Porsche Wallingford, Hoffman Porsche, and Billings Media Blasting. Caroline and Alan Davis, chairs of special events, organized special accommodations for club members at the IMSA races at Lime Rock Park, hosted a picnic at Lyman Orchards, and made arrangements for the upcoming Annual Meeting. Paul Roth, chair of the Photo Club, hosted a luncheon for photographers and scheduled comprehensive photographic coverage for virtually all of our events. With noteworthy creativity, Joe Kunecki managed the CVR Store, introducing limited-edition apparel. Mike and Rob Keller conducted another magnificent People Choice Concours. Linda Goodman, the club’s historian, continued to document club developments; Caroline Abba, editor-in-chief, increased the number of articles in Challenge. I had the opportunity to host the club’s first Cars, Caffeine, and Conversation, which took place in Falls Village. Lynn Keller produced to the delight of 250 club members Coffee with Wayne Carini at his farm in Portland. Spring and fall tours are already being planned for next year.
Throughout the difficulties of 2021 and 2022, our sponsors remained loyal. Some suffered greatly during the state shutdown but stayed partners with the club. The sponsors are listed on the CVR website and in issues of Challenge. When you seek products or services, I hope you keep them in mind.
Best wishes to you during the upcoming holidays and new year. I will miss our interactions until we meet again.
Yours truly,
