Hi Vacosaurus
Sorry it took so long to respond, but getting Michelle, on the right track with 'Lexy' was important.
The conventions are fantastic, and the 2006 convention can be found in the section on Newsletters. I have that in my paperwork and will scan it in later today so You and Michelle can see for yourselves. Here's the background on the convention.
The origin dates back to May 4, 5, and 6, 1985. While I founded the club after meeting with John Lucia in September of 82 and touring the Hoover Historical Center, (I'd already been there in August of 1980, and without knowing was laying the groundwork for the club.) Upon leaving Hoover with about 5 names of others interested in vacuum cleaner collecting, I asked John, "think we should form a club?" His response was, "I doubt if anybody's interested, but write to these guys and see, It won't hurt to ask!" When I got home I did, the first person I contacted was the late Craig Long of Buffalo, New York, and he responded with a phone call that same day. "Yes, I want to be part of the club! Other letters came in with the same response, and I went to work.
At that time, I knew nothing about publishing, but drafted a short newsletter, and went with the obvious name. 'The Vacuum Cleaner Collector's Club' was intended to be a temporary title till John and I could think of a better one, but as everybody liked the V.C.C.C., it became the official name. The first newsletter went to press in December, and was mailed out on January 2, 1983 (our official starting date!") The agreement was that I'd compile, write and publish the newsletter. John and I also agreed to alternate writing a feature article for each issue. He would cover all things Hoover, and I'd cover all the other brands both electric and non electric. At this point the membership was free, and the newsletters were published every other month.
In February I realized we needed letterhead, and an official logo, so I contacted Stacy Krammes, director of the Hoover Historical Center. Her daughter, Liz, was in the process of becoming a graphic artist, and I hired Liz to draw an abstract picture of a non electric called the Baby Daisy. By March, the V.C.C.C. had logo, letterhead and about 6 members. We were on our way!
In the fall of 1984, one of our members, Mike Pupek, came to see me in Lombard, Ill, and in the course of conversation suggested a meeting of the guys in the club. My response was "nobody is going to travel cross country to see some old vacuum cleaners!" To this Mike said, "put the question in the next newsletter." I did, and the result was the first meeting in 85. At this meeting, rules were set, bylaws were drafted, and all the important business was set in place. We even had an official cake cutting ceremony.
6 weeks later, I bought a house in Naperville, Illinois, and turned a spare bedroom into the club museum. As I mentioned in a previous post, everything was perfect for our meetings, as food, lodging and so on was right at my fingertips. From 1986 to 1993 the meetings were in my home. Then in 94, the club returned to it's birthplace, The Hoover Company. In 95, we went to Allentown, Pa. to see the collection of Bob Kautzman who is 'The Vac-Hunter.'
As I had just bought a house in San Diego, California, I decided to retire, turn the club over to Tom Gasko and become a private collector again. Tom was the one who turned our 'meetings' into 'conventions' and it was Charles Richard Lester who took us into cyberspace and thus expanding the membership to outrageous proportions. It's still growing.
I'll leave it up to Tom, Charles Richard and others to take it from there, but each time I attend a convention I still have that 'pinch me' feeling. I never thought we'd achieve anything like this.
Alex Taber.
