Greetings Fellow Retreads:
 
My name is Bob McGhee
 
Effective July 1st, 2014, I will assume the position of Sunshine Region Director, replacing Jack Schardine. Let me first thank Jack and Carol Schardine for all the time and hard work they invested in our organization over the past years and say that I know I can count on his continued support of our organization. I met with Jack and Carol this past weekend and now have in my possession, all the tools and knowledge required to do the job, I hope. I know I have some very large shoes to fill.
 
To introduce myself, I am Bob McGhee. Karen, My wife of 40 years, and I moved to Florida in 1982. We have been members of the retreads since about 1996, when we bought our second Goldwing. and are currently the directors of the Treasure Coast chapter. The Goldwing faded into history, but not our love of riding with the local Retread group. In 2010, after a short leave of absence from the Retreads, A chance meeting occurred with our  riding friends at a local restaurant and our friendship was rekindled. The wife and I went out that afternoon and bought a new 2010 Harley Davidson Electra Glide Ultra Classic and we rejoined the fun of being a Retread..
 
I am a full time Law Enforcement Officer for the City of Port St. Lucie, with the rank of Sergeant. I have been with the PSLPD  for 32 years and before that, I was a Police Officer in Huntington WV for 9 years. During my time with the HPD, I was a motorcycle officer for 5 years and have been hooked on two wheel transportation ever since.  
 
At this time, my plan is to continue as Jack has in the past. I am however open to fresh ideas for the future of our organization, which includes raising the membership numbers. The Sunshine region currently has 150 members in the entire state with the largest membership in the Leesburg area. Congratulations to Bruce and Sue Garland for your successful efforts. I would also like your thoughts for a Sunshine Region or International Rally.These would be large undertakings and would require a lot of planning and assistance. On a smaller scale, I would like to bring back the Chili Run and continue the annual Duffs luncheon in Daytona, maybe making that a bi-annual affair in the spring and fall. Toy runs and fund raising events always generate good publicity. If any of our groups participate in these events, please let me know so we can publicize them in advance and perhaps draw more riders from other chapters.
 
Annual membership donations will keep our region financially sound. Annual membership donations are $15.00 for a single person or $20.00 for a couple, for a period of Jan. 1st to Dec. 31st. $2.00 from each membership donation goes to the International, the remainder stays within the region. These funds are available for Retread business expenses to each chapter.  We also have in our inventory, a very nice trailer with quite a bit of cooking equipment. These items are available to any chapter for use for Retread activities. The trailer is stored and maintained by member Robert Farris at his home in Center Hill, Fl. and I have asked him to continue in this capacity. Lastly, FLY YOUR COLORS proudly. Wear those Retread ball caps and shirts, fly the retread flag on your ride and let the public know that there are motorcyclists that are just in it for the companionship and fun of being with other people with similar interests.
 
A new membership application with my information is available for download from our webpage at www.floridaretreads.org. 
 
Please discontinue using the old applications.
 
I have created an email account specifically for Retread business, on my AOL account. You can reply to Floridaretreads@aol.com with any suggestions or call me on my cell phone, (772) 985-9640.
 
I look forward to meeting each of you and getting to know you better.
Respectfully:
 
Bob McGhee (PS, it's Scottish, not Irish)
Sunshine Retreads