Home Forums Banter Gene and Nicole

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  • #19230
    Dennis Shen
    General Member

    If it was followed to the letter why was he not given the privilege of being at the meeting?  That privilege was clearly stated in the bylaw.

    #19231

    Your point is heard, however the difference with this situation is that the behaviors in question have been going on for the entire year.  Almost every Board member has had conversations or phone calls with Gene many times before the warning letter was delivered about the horses, the dogs, and other concerns.  The complaint did not come from 5 general Members, ultimately the Board received multiple verbal complaints from general membership and we all witnessed several occasions of Gene and Nicole violating our requests to stop those behaviors.  Additionally, there has been a pattern of behavior from Gene going back several years.  None of those things from the past are part of the current grounds for suspension, but you simply can’t expect any reasonable person to not consider a long history of behavior when dealing with where we are now.

    Essentially, the Board had no choice but to act immediately on behalf of the members who complained, while also having a very significant amount of evidence via pictures and video as well as first hand observations by the Board members where gene violated Club rules that we expressly asked him to abide by.  This isn’t a normal situation of Club discipline.  As Jana mentioned in a post above, aside from Insurance issues, ALL of our time as a Board this year had been consumed by Gene.

    With that said, there is a General Membership scheduled for Dec 9th via Zoom and the Board has agreed to allow Gene to address the charges.  I’m sure you will criticize the order of events in that this should have occurred prior to the disciplinary action being exercised, but the Board feels that we have been fully justified in our actions to date given the circumstances.  We specifically considered allowing Gene this opportunity because you pointed this out from the By-Laws and we will recognize it in fairness.

    #19232
    Artie Roggeband
    General Member

    Gene and Nicole, we feel your hurt and all wish things would be different.

    #19233
    Dennis Shen
    General Member

    Thanks that is all I ask.   I am sure many people will zoom in on the 9th to hear this.

    #19234
    Bille Floyd
    General Member

    Luke said :

    … Essentially, the Board had no choice but to act immediately on behalf of the members who complained, …

    I just read the letter sent to Gene , specifically the (DATE) on the letter ; Luke I’m telling you and everyone reading this :

    Ya made a BIG mistake ; you Will loose the emending lawsuit , if you do not revise the boards decision (.)  Also — It doesn’t Matter what you (Told) Gene in the past ; what matters to a court of law is what you can prove you said, in writing , (back to the date on that letter) .

    Gene waited from the date on the letter + 2 days ; before he entered CSS rented property.

    1) The horses in the landing aria ; you made your point and I doubt it will ever happen again

    2) Dogs off leash ; I have pictures of other dogs that do not belong to Gene , and they are all off leash. My point is that ya got to enforce ,”ALL” the laws to ,”Everyone” equally , or the ACLU can be asked to become involved (for free).

     

    Be careful how you deal with this ; your decision could impact all the club members in a very negative way.

    Bille

     

    #19236
    Dennis Shen
    General Member

    Bille

    Good point.  I pay close to a million in legal fee every year.  I don’t mind throwing money to support Genes case.

    #19237

    Bille,

    Do NOT threaten me or this club.  There is no grounds for any kind of lawsuit and it’s clear that you haven’t read the letter.

    #19238
    Bille Floyd
    General Member

    Emotional Luke said :

    Do NOT threaten me or this club.  There is no grounds for any kind of lawsuit and it’s clear that you haven’t read the letter.

    I have that letter in my messages , (On my cell phone) ; the date is located on the “TOP LEFT” of the letterhead , and yes I did read it in it’s entirety.

    I did NOT threaten you or any club member ; ignorance is Not bliss in this situation (.)

    Bille said :

    Be careful how you deal with this ; your decision could impact all the club members in a very negative way.

    This  can Not be construed as a threat in any way ; it is a suggestion to all club members though. Once again , if a lawsuit is ensued ; Gene could go after each and every member of this club, and not just only the club as a separate entity.

    @ Luke :

    I think about the consequences of each and every word written, so as to ensure it does not affect me , (or my friends) in a negative way.

    Bille

    #19239
    Bille Floyd
    General Member

    Dennis said :

    Bille

    Good point.  I pay close to a million in legal fee every year.  I don’t mind throwing money to support Genes case.

    I feel confident that, “Strong/Smart minds” like Jana and Linda , will prevail over the emotional ones , and this situation will be resolved to the benefit of all involved !! That is my Hope.

    Bille

    #19241

    The spite and revenge within our club are tearing apart the fabric of this wonderful group. I urge everyone to consider forgiveness, as it is far more damaging to carry this hostility than to find common ground and move forward together.

    This is a true statement.

    I believe my contributions have enhanced our air park’s safety and enjoyment for everyone.

    If some of you are wondering why Sandy doesn’t drive her Ranger up to the 750 or Regionals anymore:

    Here’s Gene being a positive influence on the school business at AJX, giving a visiting PG student lessons on forgiveness & respect:

     

    These videos are not evidence of current issues which prompted the ban, but at least one of them explains why Gene and Nicole are the only people driving pilots up to Regionals these days. Sandy’s brand new Ranger is collecting dust in storage, because she fears for her physical safety after being threatened by Gene on multiple occasions.

    This unacceptable behavior has continued for years and hasn’t been properly corrected or addressed by past board members, because they feared that they could then be at the receiving end of this frightening situation. One or two board members had a conversation with him about his behavior, but no paper trail was created.

    I was on the board in 2020 when the above incident with the student occurred. I tried to bring attention to it then and attempted to at least get a letter out warning Gene that this behavior cannot be tolerated. Unfortunately I couldn’t get enough support for action and I had the same fears as everyone else. I needed back-up and didn’t feel like I had it. I dropped the issue and we moved on.

    In my opinion, Gene needs to publicly apologize to Sandy and Dale for trying to push them out via intimidation and threats of violence on multiple occasions. If he means it, he will do his utmost to treat both Sandy and Dale with complete respect henceforth. He will allow them to travel to Regionals unimpeded and unthreatened.

    The club has nothing to do with the business of driving. Drivers are members like anyone else who choose to provide a service. How they do it, how much they charge for it, this is none of CSS business. We should, however, address this kind of behavior as soon as it happens on our land, to make sure we have a positive atmosphere at AJX for all. We should not stand for anyone who will use these tactics on other members in order to protect their profits.

    #19242

    Hopefully there will be many more weighing in at the meeting. They aren’t very well attended by the membership until there’s a crisis and a broad perspective will reveal much about the current one.

    See you all there and please, add what you’d like here lest we overlook something relevant.

    #19246
    Artie Roggeband
    General Member

    Please don’t video me or anybody else with the only intent of publishing out of context or set up sound bites.

    #19247

    Bille,

    Read the text of the letter, all of it.  Stop focusing on the date in the top left which is the date the letter was prepared.  The letter clearly states the terms of the suspension, you are just selectively ignoring it.

    If you think there are grounds for any kind of lawsuit what so ever, you clearly have no idea how civil law works.

    #19248

    When a member is clearly and actively behaving in a manner the not consistent with CSS policy or in violation of law (violence or the threat of violence), anyone present has the express right to document the incident via video, audio, or any other media and turn over that evidence to the Board of Directors.  Period.

    #19254

    Hello everyone, it is important for me to provide some additional context on the videos that were posted. These videos portray only a portion of these events, leaving out the full story. As we all know, there are always two sides to every story. Yet these video clips seem to begin and to cut off to my disadvantage. It feels to me as though it is an attempt to portray me in a dark light and diminish my character. I do not understand why these clips (fractions of videos), one from over a years ago, are being posted if these events do not pertain to the ban. I am putting in my best and honest effort to truly listen to the concerns that are being voiced, self reflect and work to resolve this together. I love our community here, Andy Jackson holds such a special place in my heart and means so much to me. I sincerely apologize to the club members who I have upset in the past and would like nothing more than to find an amicable solution.

     

    The first video: this individual had just been to my trailer at the ranch property. I had stopped him to let him know that this was private property and that he needed to turn around and head back to the LZ. The individual in the video argued with me and proceeded up to the pond in his vehicle at full speed, sliding and burning tires and kicking up rocks. When he came back down the hill, Nicole stopped him and I was not outside at the time. He approached Nicole and pushed her. Men should never put their hands on a woman. The video does not show any of the above and begins when I approach him after this altercation with Nicole. I was, of course, upset about the events that had just transpired prior to filming. I am not proud of my choice of words and I can admit my wrong behavior in that and sincerely apologize. If you watch the video closely, you can see that I never hit him. He does, however, hit me a few times. That afternoon I had a massive heart attack.

     

    Please note: Having folks enter into the area we formerly resided at was an issue over the years during the time that we lived there. As some of you know, we previously had someone hike past our trailer one evening, was spooked by my dog and this person hit our dog so hard that it caused permanent brain damage that ultimately led to my dog’s death. I posted signs and we did our best to keep folks out of this private property area. Just before this incident, someone had ripped apart the private property signs.

     

     

    Sandy video: Nicole and I have invested ourselves greatly into our business and have always tried our best to operate in a fair manner. In this clip, what is not recorded, is that prior to filming, I had received a call to pick up a pilot at the LZ. I was at my trailer with my daughter who had just come into town. We rode quickly down to the LZ for pick up and upon arrival, Sandy was loading them. I did not see that as a fair move. Sandy and Dale invested in UTVs while I was out of commission following my heart attack and we have had our ups and downs, but I would like to work together on finding a way to resolve our differences. I apologize for my behavior that day.

     

    I am truly sorry if I have created any trouble for the club officials. I realize this is a volunteer position and dealing with this cannot be easy. I feel that we share the same dedication in making Andy Jackson a place of enjoyment for everyone. It has been my passion and a privilege to be here for over 20 years. During this time, I have always been the go to person for repairing roads with heavy equipment after storms and rough conditions, I have taken part in building/projects/water pipes, caring for the horses, at night I watch for theft/suspicious activity and much more. I understand that it is a privilege to be a part of our community and I have always enjoyed living here and being a part of AJ. In the videos, I ask you to please consider where my passion and my frustration came from. AJ is more than a flightpark to me and that is something that can be valuable for us all.

     

    Owen has been able to find a resolution for his horses. They will move into their new home next week and will no longer be an issue. Caring for the horses was part of a deal that was made for us to live on the ranch. Although as caretakers, we have built a bond with them over the past decade, we understand the concerns that arose and feel they will be happy at their new home. I have the utmost respect for Owen, he has a tremendous heart and is one hell of a man!

     

    I assure the club, I will do my best to keep the dogs off the property. With the recent move to a nearby property, amongst other things, I’ve had a lot on my plate. It’s a hardship considering the fact that we are in a temporary place and do not have fencing. We will continue to leash the dogs. Please understand that Max was raised on the LZ. If they make their way to the LZ, it’s only because that’s where they have met friendly humans in the past.

     

    This situation has inflicted an extreme financial hardship on us that we hope can be resolved quickly. We consider you all to be our friends. Thank you for your time in reading this,

     

    Gene and Nicole

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