POINT BLANK AT THE NYIBC
Tuesday, May 5 - 7:30 pm, Long Island Marriott
I’ve been invited to be the guest speaker at the next gathering of the New York Islanders Booster Club. The event is next Tuesday, May 5 at 7:30 pm at the Long Island Marriott in the downstairs Ampitheatre. Instead of the $5 admission usually charged if you are not a member of the NYIBC, the club asks that you bring canned goods that will then be donated to the U.S. Postal Service food drive.
It wasn’t planned this way, but May 5 happens to be the one-year anniversary of my departure after 20 years in the Islanders’ front office. I’ll do my best to share some good stories. Hope some of you can make it.
Comments.
27 Responses to “POINT BLANK AT THE NYIBC
Tuesday, May 5 - 7:30 pm, Long Island Marriott”
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How about a video recording for those of us out of state who cannot attend?
Since my first born child will be 4 days old at that point, I won’t be able to make the meeting. So video would be nice! lol
CB, I just hope YOU don’t announce..”There has been a trade”
^ Can you make that happen CB?
As a proud, long-time employee of the U.S. Postal Service, I thank the NYIBC for their thoughtfulness and generosity. Please remember to bring canned goods to the event.
Should be great. I’ll be there.
The booster club is the biggest waste of time. These are the same people who supported Pickett, the Fisherman jerseys, the Luongo trade - talk about rose colored glasses, this bunch takes the cake. And to think they have the unmitigated gall to ask $5 admission on other occasions? But I digress, this bunch supported Milbury - that’s all one needs to know about them and their agenda.
I saw the picture, and I thought it was the Sean Avery fan club meeting. My mistake.
my2cents: resist the urge to swear and try not to attack any hecklers
Why the criticism of the Booster Club? In fact they are not happy with Milbury’s legacy. They are not happy about giving away Luongo. They are as frustrated as other Isles fans.
Congrats, CB! I will not be able to make, it, but I hope it goes well and I look forward to reading the recaps.
Crazy joe davola (7): Be serious now, Joe… you just know if that was the case there would be Rangers fans there screaming “YEAHHHHH” lol!
And Chris (6): There are a lot of nice people in the booster club, and I am certain that they did not all feel the exact same way about things like Pickett, the Fisherman jerseys, the Luongo trade, MM, etc. I dont see any reason to throw a whole bunch of individuals into one category.
And Streit02 (9): They can dream ON… whatever. Toronto will never accomplish what this team has accomplished, and it obviously burns them up inside.
I can’t go given that I live in Boston.
I am planning to make the trip down for the draft party. Hopefully I get to meet some of you there. Will be my first trip to a NYI event in many years.
Can’t wait to see who we draft!!!!
maybe you can throw in a Mariusz Czerkawski story, or two
in Kelly Carter’s column today at USA TODAY, Marty Brodeur shared his travel tips and highlights, and singles out the Polish Prince for props
Q: What’s the most surprising/unexpected place you’re ever visited?
Brodeur: Warsaw. I played a game there during a hockey tour in 2004, and I didn’t expect anything of it. But the food, the people, everything was really nice. We stayed in Warsaw for a day and a half, not that long. I didn’t expect Poland to be a special stop for us. We went to Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Czech Republic. I visited 10 countries in 17 days during that tour. The people just appreciated us.
Former NHLer Mariusz Czerkawski was the host and he took care of us as well as any other host that we had.
Great day, it’s my B-day. The big 40
9 & 10, unfortunately I am old enough to have seen this crew at work on many occasion and speak from experience. Keep in mind you are all free to form your own opinion, but for me, this crew barely walk erect.
Chris,
What is their agenda?
To all of you booster club naysayers - we don’t necessarily express our opinions on all the things that have been and are wrong with draft picks, general mangagers, administration, etc. But that doesn’t mean we give a rubber stamp to everything either. As the recognized fan club of the Islander administration, we have to watch our p’s and q’s. Then again, we don’t boo the guys on the ice either. We may not like what’s happening on the ice, but unlike many of the fair weather fans, we are the most loyal. We spend big $$$ to go and cheer them on in hostile territory. Do you? We support in every way we can - in addition to raising thousands of dollars for charities and donating the money as The New York Islander Booster Club. And this gets the name of the Islanders out there in a positive way. Anyway, if you don’t like the way we run our club, join and input your ideas.
Helene (#15), you should know by now that the Internet version of the Islander fan does nothing BUT complain. Screw those of them who have nothing better to do. That’s what I do regularly.
(6) Chris, thanks for YOUR honesty, but as a former President of this organization and one that I have been on the board of since 1991, your comments are incorrect. I can say that as an organization that tries to be a fan supporting group of the team that we enjoy so much, it is a club position, to SUPPORT this team in any way we can. Being a former and not current newsletter co-editor, and contributor to CENTER ICE for 20 years, I have NEVER seen that we supported the FISHERMAN logo, or Milbury. We allow anyone to form their OWN opinion. All we concerned ourselves was to support the men that take the ice with the name of our home displayed on the jersey. That is the most important thing. Also - the $5 charge for non-members was for people to check out the meeting. If they wanted to join up - the $5 actually then went toward the membership price. If not - the money went into the CHARITY fund, which is the thing that this organization is most proud of. We raise thousands of dollars a year for charity endeavors, and help the Islanders raise well over $50,000 a year in 50/50 sales to the Children’s Foundation. If that means that I have to support the people that we liasion to, well I guess that is fine with me. I did not like MM, but I understood the role, and what it took, in order to make the clb work. Maybe before you get YOUR Rose colored glass on Chris(#6), maybe you clean the dust off. I would be glad to debate this privately with anyone (and my e-mail is listed here).
Gary
#16 helene and #18 gary.. i dont think there’s a need to defend yourselves or the club..it’s easy for fair weather fans to bash anything and everything about this team including the official fan club.. i was a booster member years ago and even went on 2 trips with you guy’s.. expenses and priorities made me not re-join but i’m thinking of joining again.. keep up the good work booster club!!
Gary, we’ve met a few times and I think you are a good person. I am also aware of the charity work and never said anything to the contrary. But this is a tired argument and I’ve been through it far too many times and have been to MANY hearings, MET with local officials and there just comes a time where one realizes nothing changes. Just by virtue of the fact that you have to cow-tow to the organization compromises the message. I am FAR from a fair weather fan, FAR from an internet tough guy - I will leave that to the psychopaths that sit (or used to sit) in 303. I have been going to games since the start, owned season tickets and quite frankly, I tired of the nonsense years ago. The booster club, to me, has and always been the ultimate “yes” man for the Islanders. There have been myriad occasions where you and your crew could have joined in the protests but again, your association with the team makes you an extension of the problem. Save for the charity work (which you should keep up with obviously), the club is a non-issue.
i can’t believe someone is taking shots at a booster club!? get a life, dude.
OK Chris, we can agree to disagree. That is your opinion, and I respect that. And this is not the place for it. All we are trying to do with Chris, as the Booster Club, is create another forum for Islander fans to talk to CB live about our team, what is happening to the Lighthouse Project, the draft, and what will happen in the next few months. Our views about what this club does may differ (and that is fine - no one expects all to be 100% on the same fence), but we are ALL ISLANDERS (remember the slogan?) We want to get as many people as possible to attend (both members and non), so by telling people to bring some canned foods for a good purpose instead of $5, is that wrong? Let’s put down the jabs, and meet for a good cause and hear what Chris has to say…
yea poland woooot #12
Chris 6 - Wang supported Milbury too.
Gary 18 - you lost any credibility the day you defended the terrible radio situation on Islanders Country. Games can’t be heard on AM radio west of Nassau (and in many cases on LI) and you gave a pass to Dey and Wang. Not cool YES dude.
Helene 16 - Never say you’re the most loyal fans. Anyone still following this catastrophe recently is pretty loyal. Just because you have the means to go to away games doesn’t make you special. I’ve been around since the start in ‘72. Don’t even mention “loaylty” here.
I am a Booster Club Member and I support the Club. We need a core group of fans to support our LI Team in good and bad times even if some people feel that their message is “compromised”. I think all NYI fans should be Booster Club Members to uniformly show support for the team.
P.S. Does anyone know the meaning of “Booster Club” or fan club, as in other sports. Boosters or fans don’t make policy - they just come out to support their teams in good or bad times. It isn’t their place to publicly criticize team policy. Leave that to the media. And their private thoughts are not required to be on public record. They are not supposed to be “protesters” or “activists” just plain old folk to help booster team spirits.
The booster cllub has always been a support organization. No one ever dictates what a member must believe t we are free to protest any thing if we wish. The currant President and executive board and board of commetees have done an excelent Job the last 4 years. i am proud to be a member.