PCEA Chapter Events
Catawba Valley Chapter
Under the leadership of Will Clayton the Catawba Valley Chapter is doing well. Their Annual Christmas
Party was held at Market on Main in December. A great time was had by all. As with most of the
Catawba Valley Chapter’s “celebrations” the really good stories must be held close to the vest. As noted
above, Will Clayton is the current Chapter President and was awarded the Catawba Valley Chapter’s
Estimator of the Year Award. A very successful gun raffle was concluded at the event with the drawing
and the lucky winner was none other than National Director, Mr. John Walker. John remarked “After
purchasing only $1,500 to $2,500 worth of raffle tickets over the years, I finally won!!!!!!!” The Catawba
Valley Chapter is very proud that they also raised and delivered $2,100 to the residents of the Sipes
Orchard Home which are currently participating in their Transitional Living Program. On January 23,
2015 The Catawba Valley Chapter also held a Virtual Shooting Competition & Membership Drive at The
Tactical Defense Academy located Hickory, NC. The event was BLAST! - Seriously, the event was
definitely a success! Randall Williams is currently pushing his National Convention Planning Committee
to ensure that we have both a successful and enjoyable event Please contact Randall Williams, Patty
Delgado, or Chris LeFevers for sponsorship information to ensure that it a success.
Columbia Chapter
Greetings from the PCEA Columbia Chapter. After a year that found their chapter searching for a new
home with the change of ownership at the downtown Clarion, they are pleased to have found new
accommodations at the Grecian Gardens Restaurant, located at 2312 Sunset Blvd in West Columbia.
Their first meeting in the new location was on Thursday, February 12. Dennis Childs was very excited
about the new location, as he could not find meatloaf anywhere in their menu. Most members have
promised to be on their best behavior so they can make a good impression with their new hosts.
Meanwhile, Columbia rolls on. They had a well-attended significant others dinner event in December at
the Palmetto Club in downtown Columbia. Their January regular meeting departed from the usual
construction-centered topics as they enjoyed a presentation by John Sherrer of Historic Columbia
Foundation. He gave an overview of that foundation’s work in preserving and presenting the history of
the city, and was loaded with facts about just about every building and landmark in Columbia.
February’s program was presented by Mike Briggs of the Central South Carolina Alliance, a nine-county
organization that recruits and provides information for new businesses considering opening up
operations in and around Columbia. They are few in numbers these days, but full of spirit and are
actively recruiting for new members to check out what they have to offer at Columbia PCEA. Join them
the next time you are in town on the 2nd Thursday.
Triangle Chapter
The Triangle Chapter has welcomed many guests this year but have yet to add many as new members.
They are also seeing more members attend the monthly. Upcoming programs will include a
representative of a fire pump supplier, the NC State Fire Marshal, and someone from NC State on
renewable energy. They hope the content of the programs will encourage guests to join their
membership. They have had several interesting programs. In December, they had a social meeting and
invited their spouses for Christmas dinner. They invited a local brewery to bring in samples of their
brews for a beer tasting. Raleigh Brewing Company in Raleigh provided the samples of beer and their
marketing director explained to the chapter and guests how each of the 8 different brews were made
and what went in each. In January, they had James Sumerell, a retired drafting teacher from Wake
County schools, come and speak about his work with Habitat for Humanity and other charities he is
involved in. He had a slide show that showed the work that he did with Jimmy Carter’s Habitat for
Humanity down in Haiti after the earthquake they had and the work that Habitat did for the inhabitants
PCEA Chapter Events
involved workers from the US, Canada, Ireland, Scotland, and Sweden. In March they had a “wine and
design” paint party, joined by their spouses, where everyone painted a picture while sampling wine.
Their next golf tournament is tentatively scheduled for May 8th at Eagle Ridge Golf Course in Raleigh,
NC. More information will be available once all the details are nailed down. They have been holding
their monthly meeting at Casa Carbone at 6019 Glenwood Avenue, Raleigh, NC 27612. Social starts at
6:30 PM. They would welcome members from other chapters to attend if you are in town. Monthly
meetings are held every third Thursday of the month.
Hampton Roads Chapter
National Director, Taylor Wyant, reports that our friends in the Hampton Roads area are looking forward
to another great year as they enter their 59th year as a Chapter! Things are running smoothly under the
leadership of President George Hughes and his cast of Officers and Directors. They had their annual
Christmas Party in December with good attendance, good food, fun, and fellowship. In February their
program topic was the massive tunnel system in Hampton Roads. The system is undergoing an update
that makes the construction community happy, and the general public not so happy. Tolls have already
been added to the current system and it appears the upgrade will be handled in the same manner. In
March they held their joint meeting with NAWIC at the Stover Library in Norfolk. They have the balance
of the year scheduled and in June will have their annual night at the ballpark at the Tidewater Tides AAA
baseball game at Norfolk’s Harbor Park. They would love to have you join them on the second
Wednesday (through May) at the Aberdeen Barn Restaurant in Virginia Beach.
Charlotte Chapter
With the holidays behind them, the Charlotte Chapter is picking up steam for the home stretch to finish
the year on a positive note! They did not meet in December so that members could spend some much
needed time with their families. The Charlotte market has kept the construction industry quite busy
lately. Past Chapter President and member Emeritus Glenn Andrews filled in as guest speaker for their
January meeting due to a cancellation. His topic was local lore; the wreck of the Old ’97. Glenn has
compiled a nice slide show leading up to and including firsthand recollections of the landmark event and
the eventual pop song (with accompaniment by their own Butch “Scoop” Yarbrough) and put Danville,
VA on the map. Great speakers are lined up for the remainder of the year and a Year End Family Fun
Knight is planned for members and guest at the Charlotte Knights baseball stadium in uptown Charlotte.
Membership recruitment remains a top priority for the Chapter. The current members are recognized
as the rock that allowed the Chapter to maintain, but they know that the future of the organization has
yet to join and they look forward to bridging the generations to ensure the Chapter holds a place among
that group.
CSRA Chapter
Member estimators in the golf capital of the world are doing well. Members again participated in the
Bell Ringers of the Red Kettle for the Salvation Army raising over $100 in support of their many
programs for the less fortunate. In December Justin Anderson with AORE (the Art of Real Estate) gave a
presentation about inflations effect on real estate investing in today’s economy. In January Jeff Taylor
with Synthetic Wall Systems presented a program on the different types of EIFS systems available and
the advantages of each. They were all saddened over the holidays by the passing of James W. Hutto, Jr,
Past Chapter President. James worked for American Concrete and was active in a variety of local
community programs and associations. His cheerfulness and infectious smile will be greatly missed. As
they move into 2015, National Director Alva Gaskin tells us they are making plans for a spring bowling
tournament, distribution of scholarship applications to local schools, and the PCEA National Convention
PCEA Chapter Events
in St. Simons Island, GA. You are welcome to join them on the 2nd Thursday of each month at 11:45 am
at Bonefish Grille at Washington Road and I-20 in West August, GA.