The President's Letter   Well, it's the time of year that we all look forward to, beautiful Spring. The cold gray days of Winter are behind us, things are greening up, flowers are blooming and our birds are looking at each other with that special gleam in their eye. I realize that by the time you read this it will be Summer and it is probably a little too hot to suit you, but as this is being written it is the awakening time for new life and the start of the bird breeding season. Here in North Carolina, the transition from Winter to Spring has been remarkable smooth and orderly. Unlike last year when we had a hard freeze on Easter weekend which killed a lot of new emerging vegetation and confused the birds, this year it has warmed up gradually with no real surprises. My birds seem to be off to a good start as I am already getting eggs from some of the Firebacks which did not lay a single egg last year.   If you have animals to feed you have already noticed the increase in the cost of bird feed and the grains which we feed them. I certainly have noticed a significant increase in feed costs as well as most everything else it takes to live (fuel, electricity, insurance, human food etc.). As many of you know, I am involved in the livestock industry and I can tell you that the run-up in the cost of corn, soybeans, wheat and other grains is a serious matter and is costing livestock farmers in the U.S. very dearly.   The most disturbing aspect of the current situation is that it is not likely to change soon. All livestock producers are loosing money now and it appears that many producers will not be able to weather the economic storm we age going through. Unless the cost of the inputs to our business come down, and it does not appear that they will any time soon, the only way producers will return to profitability is for enough producers to go out of business to force up the prices of the animals they raise. Economists that I have talked with say that perhaps as many as 15% of U.S. pork producers are likely to go out of business within the next year.   Why am I talking about this situation here? Because there are some aviculturists for whom significant increases in the price of the things they need to take care of their birds is creating a financial hardship.   There are several things which can happen in this situation;   the keepers of birds may drastically reduce the number and variety of birds they keep,   they may decide that it is simply is too expensive to continue keeping their birds,   some could even cut back on the quantity or quality of the feed they are feeding. The last scenario is far worse than the first two, from an animal welfare standpoint. The current high feed cost/fuel cost situation could also result in our club loosing members. I hope this doesn't happen. Remember, if we are going to keep captive animals we have a moral obligation to take good care of them, including providing an adequate supply of nutritious food for them. If we are unwilling or unable to take good care of our animals we should not continue to keep them. Keep only what you can afford to adequately care for.   Our Spring meeting at Mel and Jackie Nunnally's place was a big success, even though we didn't have as many members attending as we have had at some past meetings. What we lacked in quantity, we made up in quality. It was perfect weather, the setting was really beautiful and those in attendance all seemed to have a great time.   As they have done in the past, Mel and Jackie Nunnally went all out to make sure we had a memorable meeting experience.   They had a huge comfortable tent, excellent food, a convenient layout and even very fancy male and female portable bathrooms. They thought of everything! Another neat aspect of the Spring meeting was the bus trip to David and Mary Campbell's home and aviary. We all enjoyed seeing their beautiful home, gardens and aviaries. Thanks David for arranging our bus transportation to your lovely place.   It is the time of year when our club looks for candidates to serve as club officers and directors for the next year. I have appointed a nominating committee whose job it is to present a slate of candidates for these leadership roles (see names of nominating committee members in the meeting minutes printed elsewhere in this issue). If you have an interest in serving in a leadership role for the club please contact one of the committee members and make them aware of your interest. If you are asked to consider becoming a nominee for a leadership role I hope you will consider it. We have always been fortunate to find members who are willing to serve in leadership roles and their service over the years has kept the club alive and stable. To all of you who are currently serving and to all who have served in the past, thank you.   Hope to see you soon at the beautiful Natural Bridge Zoo in Natural Bridge, Virginia for our July meeting. Thanks to Karl and Debbie Mogensen for their gracious invitation to hold our Summer meeting in this unique place.    Until then, I wish you good success with your birds and, as always, bring a kid to the next meeting.   Don