2005 Candidate Statements

From Bob Buchheim:

During the past two years as a Trustee, I hope that I’ve helped the club support the interests of the Members.  I would be honored to continue serving the club as Secretary, and continuing the tradition of excellence and camaraderie that marks the OCA.

From Matthew Ota:

I am running for the Board of the OCA as a Trustee candidate.  My qualifications are as follows:

 From 1979 to 1980 I was the senior advisor to the Rocket Benders (Lubbock, Texas) section of the National Association of Rocketry (NAR).  I was in charge of altitude tracking at the NARAM national model rocket meet at JSC in Houston, Texas in 1979. From 1980 to 1984 I was active in the Model Rocketry scene in Southern California, serving as either senior advisor or president in the following sections of the NAR:
Los Angeles Rocketry Society; South Bay Association of Rocketry.  In 1986, I assisted the LA Rocketry Society as it hosted the national model rocket meet at Mile Square Park in Fountain Valley, CA, manning one of the tracking stations as a volunteer. This was the last thing I did for the model rocket community.  As an officer in these various sections of the NAR, I became familiar with Roberts Rules of Order.

 From 1993 to about 1998 I was an active member of the Media Action Network for Asian Americans (MANAA) an advocacy group for promoting positive media portrayals of Asian Americans. We had monthly meetings in Little Tokyo in downtown Los Angeles. I did a lot of work researching television shows, movies and videos.

As a single person with no children, I can devote a good portion of my time to helping to make decisions that will put the club on a positive track towards the future.  I have no specific agenda for the club. I only wish to serve with the attitude of doing what is best for the membership as a whole, and I want to give back to an organization that has done so much for me as an individual.

[Note:  Matt has also been active in OCA’s Outreach program and in the Telescopes in Education program when it was on Mt. Wilson, and also participates in our GoTo SIG, Astrophysics SIG and AstroImagers SIG.]

From William Hepner:

I am running for a seat on the OCA board as a trustee.  I’ve been in OCA for 3 and a half years and have assisted in many outreach activities. I began my astronomy activities when I was a sophomore in high school assisting Warren Estes and “Doc” H. Page Baily introducing astronomy to the elementary schools and general public in the Riverside area.  I was also a student teaching assistant at Riverside College were I led field trips in geology, anthropology and astronomy. A year ago I had a small stroke which has left me with a balance problem limiting me in my outreach endeavors.  My mind is sound and I feel that by being on the board I can still contribute my knowledge and experience having dealt with the public and having worked in science nearly all of my days since high school.  I will appreciate your vote and work for you and this wonderful organization to the best of my ability.  Thank you!

From Steve Short:

I have been an OCA member for several years and have learned so much in that short period of time. You will find me at all the monthly meetings and I have helped out at a few of the outreach programs. I am active in the “GOTO” user group meetings, started attending the “Astrophysics” meetings and have recently taken over the hosting of the Black Star Canyon star parties. Please vote for me so I can help insure that our club has enough resources available to continue all the great astronomy programs that make us so proud. Thank You!