Brothers and Sisters:
Minnesota FOP Lodge 11, Brainerds Lakes Lodge, hosted the 2016 Fraternal Order of Police State Conference at Grand View Lodge. There were 12 Lodges represented with 35 members present. Jim Huffman and I were in attendance as members of East Metro Lodge #1. This year's conference was very informative and extremely productive.
Following the opening ceremony, the first order of business was the nomination and election for the vacant position of 2nd Vice President. There had been NO nominations received from the membership prior to the conference. Our current State Lodge Sgt at Arms, Pat Garcia, was nominated from the floor with a 2nd. No other nominations were presented. This created a vacancy in his position. Karol Strey, Lodge #4 was nominated from the floor with a 2nd, to the position of Sgt at Arms. No other nominations were presented. Both members were voted into their respective offices with a 'White Ballot'.
President Hagen presented a review of the current financial situation between MN FOP and North Dakota FOP. With the modest increase in State dues, the reduction of spending at the State level and the constant income from telemarketing, the debt that had been incurred by MN FOP to ND FOP has been reduced from approx. $100,000 down to approx. $42,000 in about 1 1/2 years. Our president has been negotiating with the ND FOP president since February this year for an agreement of a one time payment to eliminate this debt. After much discussion, ND FOP agreed to a payment of $30,500 to retire this debt, saving MN FOP almost $12,000. The payment was made from existing cash and reserves in the State FOP accounts. NO loans were taken from any outside source. The State FOP can now focus on the financial growth of the organization.
Attending our conference were two FOP Grand Lodge members. Pat Yoes, Natl FOP Secty, and Roger Mayberry, Natl FOP Sgt at Arms. Brother Yoes gave a report on the recent hacking of Grand Lodge computer system and gave assurances that NO financial data had been breached. He invited MN FOP to New Orleans for the 2017 Natl Conference.
Brother Mayberry presented a review of lawsuits against FOP members for a variety of reasons and encouraged everyone in the occupation to participate in a Legal Defense Plan, regardless of where it is offered. There was a detailed discussion of the Michael Griffin case and importance the FOP LDP played in the representation.
Joe Ditsch, representing the FOP LDP firm of Fowler Ditsch, gave an overview of their activity since the last State conference. There are currently 1167 FOP members enrolled in the FOP LDP. On June 14, 2016, at 1800hrs, Mike Freeman, Hennipen County Atty, will be at Chanhassan American Legion talking about the changing Grand Jury process and how that will affect the investigation of officer involved shootings.
The MN Natl Trustee presented a calendar of events for Natl Police Week in May. Members of MN FOP will be attending the ceremony and providing an escort for the widow of the slain Aitkin County officer on May 15th. Our Natl Trustee also reminded everyone of the political endorsement process that will take place in August. Each Lodge is encourage to discuss the candidates and be ready to have their respective State Trustee participate in a teleconference on the matter.
Past President Cayo announced the results of the Jersey Mike's fundraising effort. MN FOP Foundation will receive $40,608 this year. After discussion of possible donation recipients in the law enforcement community, it was decided to wait until a formal presentation of the check is made to MN FOP by Jersey Mike's sometime in June.
A note from our State President that MN has not been present at the Western States conferences due to funding constraints and will not until the State budget is in a better financial position to support our participation. We still actively communicate with the Western States leadership.
Presentations were given by Dalor Marketing on the FOP Journal, Homes for Heroes Foundation, and Backing the Blue Line. Dalor Marketing is our current publisher for our State FOP Journal and let everyone know how important it is for the membership to provide names of possible advertisers. Homes for Heroes is a nonprofit organization designed to assist law enforcement officers in search of a new home. If you are anticipating a new purchase, this organization could save you a lot of money. Backing the Blue Line is a nonprofit comprised of wives of law enforcement officers committed to providing any support needed to other wives of officers.
A discussion of future sites for the FOP State conference continued with Cragun's Resort and Madden's Resort each giving a brief presentation. After reviewing the costs for the resorts available, it was decided to stay at Grand View Lodge and enter into a 3 year contract. 2017 conference is scheduled for April 23-25. All members are encouraged to check their calendars and make an effort to attend.
The review of nominations for MN FOP Member of the Year were delayed until the July State meeting. Two written nominations were received but after the April 1st deadline
The next FOP State Lodge meeting will be held in St. Cloud on Tuesday, July 12 and the location is TBD.
Now for a review of activities outside the official business meetings. The food at the lodge was fantastic and plentiful. The accommodations were great. The hospitality room was well stocked with refreshments provided by almost every Lodge in attendance and a donation of 5 cases of Mike's Hard Lemonade product from the local distributor. The opportunity to have one on one discussions with our State Lodge officers and the Grand Lodge officers was amazing. There is so much information exchanged.
If you need any further information on the topics outlined above, please check the MN FOP State Lodge website for all officer and individual lodge reports submitted in writing.
Fraternally,
Fred Anderson, Past State FOP President.