Family Campers & RVers - FCRV, 137 Crandon Boulevard, Cheektowaga, NY (2026)

06/03/2026

FCRV Retiree Rally 2026 Royalty

By LaNelle & Leon Ishmael, King & Queen Coordinators

The Royal Court (past kings and queens) helped to serve the two meals at the rally. Also, they served at the ice cream social. On Wednesday they enjoyed a meal together along with rally hosts and co-hosts. Also, joining them were the 2026 candidates Ron and Reba Ray. Kings and Queens attending this year were Leon and LaNelle Ishmael, Dick and Kathy Buresh, Paul and Beth Standiford, Diane and Steve Hitchens, Phil and Joanne Rich and Bill and Rita Newell. The Hitchens will be taking over as coordinators for next year so if you would like to run, please contact them.

06/01/2026

Did you know the Friends of Maga ta-Hohpi are working with Family Campers & RVers - FCRV for a year of collaboration, awareness, and education? While we are organizing programs and outdoor activities for their Campvention in July, YOU can also be a part of the fun! 🎉

A special coloring page featuring the National Wildlife Refuge System mascot, Puddles the Blue Goose, and the FCRV mascot, Bizzy Beaver, can be found at the Huron Public Library, the South Dakota State Fair office, and the Huron Chamber & Visitors Bureau. Head into one of these locations to pick one up and, once complete, return it back to those locations for display. In July, we will collect all the coloring pages and proudly show them off to the participants at Campvention 2026! 🚙

Don’t forget to take a picture with your artwork and tag on social media! We can’t wait to see how you color yours! 🖼️

05/31/2026

FCRV Members in Motion>>>>>>
Participating in C.A.M.P. (Campers Activity Moving Program) activities during the recent Retiree Rally in Mineola TX

By Mark & Anne Brayman, C.A.M.P. Directors

It was wonderful to be part of this year’s winter rally, and we thank all who attended and especially those who had a hand in the planning and orchestration of the event!
FCRV members who desired some physical activity during their stay had several options to pick from. A morning walk on site drew a big group each day, and the opportunity to trace that same mile at anyone’s leisure (perpetual walk) was also appreciated and utilized.
A local bike ride in the immediate neighborhood allowed all attendees to participate in the exercise and experience.

Just to shake up the event, two “chair exercise” sessions were held inside the Civic Center and were well received and attended.

The nearby Mineola Nature Preserve offered up a couple other C.A.M.P. activities on different days. A three-mile hike and a nine-mile E-bike trek to the far reaches of the preserve were held.

We had tremendous interest in pickleball, especially with lighted courts right on site. Only problem was net replacement started with the onset of the rally so only a few lucky souls played on the early arrival days. Thanks for the interest and be prepared to play next March.

The activities we planned were only successful because of the wonderful turn out of rally attendees. We really enjoyed seeing old friends and making new ones as we participated together all week. We thank Jim Lewis for leading the local bike ride while Mark played golf (sorta haha). And thanks, also, to the smiling faces and encouraging words of all. Till we C.A.M.P. again.

MOVING FCRV FORWARD THROUGH ITS C.A.M.P. PROGRAM

Final tallies from Mineola, Texas

Morning walk: One mile
27 participants over the week with some walking only one day and others multiple days. 78 miles covered!

Perpetual walk: (same one mile path when the participant could fit it in)
6 participants covered 37 miles!

Hike at the Mineola Nature Preserve: Three-mile nature trek
11 participants covered 33 miles

Local bike ride: Three miles
6 participants traveled 18 miles total.

E-bike ride at the Mineola Nature Preserve: Nine-mile trek
4 participants covered 36 miles

Chair Exercise (video led)
Day one 12 participants
Day two 13 participants
(6 participants attended both!)
12.5 hours of aerobic exercising!!

05/29/2026

Retiree Rally 2026 Games
By Shari Weber, Games Chair

Craig & Shari Weber provided Yard Games while Carol & Ray Yates provided Table Games with helpers including Jerry Rozelle, Richard Roberts, many scorekeepers and umpires. Everyone had fun and enjoyed the games.

ACTIVITIES PROVIDED
Frog Races - 31 racers plus audience. 1st Place: Paul Standiford, Missouri. 2nd Place: Ray Yates, Georgia.

Card Bingo - 56 players $25 distributed to winners.

Euchre - 9 players. We had 3 people who were new to the game, 3 people who needed to refresh, and 3 experienced players. Lots of fun learning, no prizes awarded.

Ladder Golf - 23 players plus audience. 1st Men: Bill Newell, Texas, 1st Place Women: Dorothy Clark, Colorado, 2nd Place Men: Richard Roberts, Missouri, 2nd Place Women: Teresa Clanton, Colorado.

SkipBo - 6 players, many who were new to the game. No prizes awarded.

Mexican Train 3 players. 1st Place Laura Doss from Texas, 2nd Place Rita Newell, Texas

Five Crowns - 21 players. Lowest score, Dora Lewis, Connecticut with 61 points; next lowest score - Edith Woodward, Florida with points.

Corn Hole - 18 players plus audience. 1st Place Men: Phil Keeku, Wisconsin,1st Place Women: Dorothy Clark, Colorado, 2nd Place Men: Kip Cushing, Wisconsin, 2nd Place Women: Becky Andrews, Kansas.

Bean Bag Baseball 42 players plus audience, umpires, & scorekeepers,
6 teams played in the single elimination. 1st Place Team Roger’s Rockets Roger Snyder, IL, Bill Newell, TX, Ray & Carol Yates, Georgia, Rick, Cathy, OK, & Dale, IA Huston, and Bill Zachek, WY. 2nd Place Team Becky’s Busters Becky Anderson, KS, Pam Lewis, FL, Heddy Senecek, CO, Larry Coleman, MO, Joanne Rich, SC, Brian Doss, TX, and Fred Roddam, AL.

05/27/2026

2026 Retiree Rally

Three crafts were offered by Diane Hitchens, Dora Lewis, and Joanne Rich.

05/25/2026

CIRCLE THE WAGON PET PARADE
By Donna Powell, Pet Parade Chair

Wow, did we have a great pet parade! I, Donna Powell (IL) and Lois Zuhoski (NY), enjoyed having the pet parade. The weather was wonderful, even though we had to wait a few minutes (workers were unloading materials above us onto the roof). We had 15 entries, but two families had nine dachshunds, but all the dogs and cats were fun to watch. Our judges were Bill and Rita Newell (TX), Rita said it was easier being in the parade than judging. Thanks!

The winners:
1. Theme - Teresa and Tim Clanton( CO) - DeeDee
2. Owner/pet look alike - Sandy Tolliver (MO) - Max
3. Best trick - Pat Crow (MO) - Abbey
4. Best behaved - Joanna Nutagiacomo (TX) - Elvis
5. Best of show (dog) - Becky Andrews (KS) - Bella
6 Best of show (cat) - Kip Cushing (WI) - Lad
7. Best overall- Märia Albright (TX) - Skye

We want to thank for helping with preparations and set up - Delbert Powell, Ken Andrews, Kip Cushing and whomever I might have missed. Barb Turner, thank you, for taking all the pictures of our wonderful fur babies! And most of all, thank you to all who came, watched, and cheered on the fur babies. Lois and I enjoyed everyone!

05/23/2026

FCRV International Retiree Rally 2026 Recap

By Reba Ray, Rally Treasurer

We had 57 units on grounds. We had about 10 people in a nearby motel as they no longer have campers or they weren’t able to bring their camper. We appreciate the effort they put forth to be there. There were about 127 people in attendance. About
8 vendors came.

The bad thing is that we had 15 refunds of people who weren’t able to be there because of sickness or conflicting interests.

All in all, we had a good group of people there, and we were able to get some one-on-one time together, which is rare that we are able to just sit down and visit with each other.

We had good entertainment. Tuesday we had the Juke Box Heroes. Wednesday we had Rusty Reirson; then on Friday night we had Uptown Lives. Everyone seemed to enjoy them, and there was a lot of dancing going on.

Ron & Reba Ray were crowned King & Queen, and they are looking forward to representing the Retiree Rally for 2026. Thanks to everyone who was there to support us.

The program book had good information in it. We hope it was beneficial to everyone. Thank you to everyone who sent articles in to make the booklet complete.

I’d just like to mention Barb Turner for all her work in representing the Retiree Rally with all the publicity she puts out on social media. She took great photos of all the State and Provincial groups. Thank You, Barb!

We are at a good start for the 2027 Retiree Rally in Vidalia, Louisiana. We are looking forward to working with Harlan & Lori Nigh as Rally Coordinators. We hope everyone will come and join us, as it is a new place.

05/21/2026

2026 FCRV International Retiree Rally Recap

By Betty & Ken Andrews, Rally Coordinators

We are so grateful for all who came and shared in this special time of fellowship, fun, and friendship.

It truly takes a village to bring an event like this together, and we want to take a moment to say a heartfelt ‘thank you’ to each one of you who volunteered your time and talents. Every role matters. Every effort counts. You were all an important cog in the wheel that made “Circle the Wagons” come to life, and without you, this rally
would not have been possible.

A very special thank you to our amazing Co-Coordinators Harlan & Lori Nigh for the countless hours spent creating the beautiful stage and table decorations that make this rally so welcoming and memorable.

We had 57 RV’s, 127 people in attendance and 30 First Timers.

We had RV vendors, seminars, fun crafts, lots of fun games, donations to the community, yummy food, a flea market and wonderful entertainment.

Our vendors did a fabulous job educating us with seminars and providing their services. A big ‘thank you’ to: Ramblin’ Man - Brooke and Emma Chumley could not attend due to a last-minute emergency but generously donated $250 toward
our event!. Pinnacle RV Repair that installs Boogie Lights and gave a ladies seminar.; Tim Line from Tank Rangers gave us ‘Tank Tips’ for our FB posts for 8 weeks leading up to our rally. At the rally Tim gave a seminar and was available to clean 10 RV
tanks. Russell Albright shared 2 seminars, one for RV maintenance and one for the importance of weighing each tire on each axle at the same time on your RV. Russell was our RV Tech repair guy and weighed RVs at the rally, as well as donating an
extra door prize. Stacie Ann Pollard from Sky Med provided an excellent seminar and lunch. Several vendors also joined us as new FCRV members. Richard Roberts and Steve Hitchens also did an interesting Ham Radio Seminar. Fidel Acevedo of
Mineola Mobile Detail washed 13 rigs. We had a great variety of vendors, and they joined us for our events as well.

The community restaurants and an RV business, Monty Parker, and Russell Albright provided some door prizes that were a fun bonus!

Thank you for coming and joining the fun, and thank you to all the chairs and co-chairs for helping everything run smoothly!

We will see you next year in Louisiana as Harlan and Lori Nigh lead the way to the Mighty Mississippi!!

05/20/2026

Pyle House Tea
The 1893-1894 Pyle House is a Queen Anne-Style Victorian home that celebrates the Pyle Family and their meritorious careers, specifically Mamie Pyle and Gladys Pyle. Mamie Pyle was the lead Suffragist in South Dakota as president of the Universal Franchise League. Gladys Pyle was a woman of firsts in politics; first woman elected to the South Dakota Legislature, first woman to hold a constitutional office, as South Dakota Secretary of State, and the first woman elected, without previously being appointed, to the United States Congress, just to name a few.

This family took history and turned it upside-down in many ways. Come find out how with a tour of this beautiful home!

An afternoon tea is available for up to 24 people. Menu on next page. Along with a tour of the museum showcasing women who made history in South Dakota and the country.

Source: https://www.pylehouse.org/about

Register and pay using this link:
https://fcrv.org/campvention-tours/

05/19/2026

Hospitality 2026 – Where the Flock Gathers
By Daniel Tinter

Last year’s hospitality event was a resounding success! During one memorable evening at the rally, 12 groups set up tables showcasing their favorite local snacks or gifts. Members mingled across the room, introducing themselves while savoring delightful treats from different regions.

Let’s recreate that magic this year!

As you may know, this year’s Campvention theme is “Where the Flock Gathers.” Think about what elements truly bring people together.

What will draw attendees to your table? Will it be delicious food? Engaging games? A captivating Show and Tell? Eye-catching decorations? Exciting giveaways? The choice is yours!

We’ll provide the tables and/or electricity you need.

Family Campers & RVers - FCRV

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