Founding and Early Years
of the Tellico Village Computer Users Club
In early 2001 the founding President of the Tellico Village Computer Users Club (known also as TVCUC), Bob Wilson, called a meeting of PC users and presented the idea for the club based on his experience in South Carolina before retiring to Tennessee. Bob’s objective was to provide a forum for the community’s computer users to help each other in their understanding and use of personal computers.
Early organizing meetings were held in the Rec Center meeting room that is now used by the Club for training classes. A call for a nominating committee resulted in Dee Boyer, Chuck Finn and Tom Ralph volunteering with Tom as Chairman. Their efforts, with the persuasive talent of Tom in particular, led to the first TVCUC Board. Early board members included Ron Uncapher, Chet Hokanson, Don Hill and Jay Golden who collaborated in the drafting of the first bylaws. Another board member in the early years, Victor de Groote, was instrumental in creating and maintaining the Club website. A total list of the early Club membership would include many who contributed significantly and are still active as members.
Meetings were conducted in the Rec Center meeting room, where by the middle of the first year, the room was filled to capacity. Early in 2001, meetings were moved to the upper level of the Yacht Club. Membership within the first year grew to roughly 100 and there were 11 active SIGs (Special Interest Groups) ranging in size from 7 members to 23. The two SIGs with greatest participation were Operating Systems and Photography. Many Club members were active in more than one of the SIGs.
By the end of the first year Club membership grew to 115, as reported by Ron Uncapher, who authored a monthly article in the Connection titled “The Computer Club”. Early members of the Club still retain copies of Ron’s articles as reference material as they use their computers. His articles continued through the third year of the Club’s existence.
Howard Jones became the Club’s second president in June 2002. Throughout the second and third years of the Club, meeting attendance grew to peaks of 100 – 120 with membership above 300. Ron Uncapher became the third president in June 2004 and led it through it’s fifth year. The Club continued to grow to above 400 individual members by the end of the fifth year.
When Bob Wilson and his wife Lynne, prepared to re-retire and leave the Village, it seemed only fitting that he be recognized for his efforts that got us off to such a good start. In a salute to Bob, the Club named the TAP facility in his honor, the “Robert D. Wilson Center for Excellence in Computer Technology”.
The above, prepared by Howard Jones, was extracted from archives of Ron Unchaper and Howard Jones. “It is with fond memories of the years we were privileged to work with Bob and all the others, who during the ensuing years, have made the TVCUC the success it has now become”.
November 30, 2010
Rev. Jan 17, 2014