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The142nd meeting of Maine Chapter 89 of the
NAWCC, was held at John Martin’s Manor, in Waterville, Maine on Saturday, March
16, 2002. There was a turnout of 44 members and guests, some of which
traveled some distance to attend.
A social hour was well under way by 11:00 am, and many
folks had the opportunity to chat one-on-one, and view the items offered at
the Silent Auction and Show & Tell.
Luncheon: At 12:00 noon we all enjoyed the restaurant’s
delicious Buffet Lunch.
Business Meeting:
President Ben Crosby called the meeting to order, and
self-introductions were made. Ern
Grover, Chapter Secretary, read the Secretary’s Report on the minutes of
the January 19th, 2001 (141st) meeting, as written by
Assistant Secretary Jim Bryant. The
membership present accepted the report as read. Jim Powers, Chapter Treasurer, read the Treasurer’s Report. The membership present accepted the
report as read.
President Crosby made mention, under silent protest
by Ern Grover, that the duties of the Chapter Secretary were being
fulfilled adequately and didn’t require sharing duties as was discussed in
the January meeting.
Condolences:
President Crosby announced the sad news of the passing of Andre
Boutin, a well-loved member and faithful Chapter Treasurer for many
years. He read a card from Thelma
Boutin to the membership. His widow
and fellow Chapter 89 Member, Thelma was in attendance. We were thankful that she could make the
meeting; it honored Andre. He will
certainly be missed!! A moment of silence was held in his honor. The Chapter Secretary corresponded with
Thelma to offer condolences on behalf of the Chapter Membership. Many officers, directors and members
attended his funeral service at China, Maine. Thelma Boutin thanked the chapter members for their
thoughtfulness and support.
Under
New Business, Bill Eberly asked for
a show of hands on the beef entrée choices. Roast beef won. The
membership was reminded that this Meeting will have a “Served” lunch, at
$14.00 per person; any extra cost will be picked up by Chapter 89. The three entrees offered are as
follows: 1. Seafood Newburg; 2. Roast Beef; 3. Pasta Primavera. The Chapter will pay for the Guest
Speaker accommodations as well.
The up-coming May 18th Meeting will be held at New Meadows
Inn in West Bath, Maine, with NAWCC President Doug Cowan to offer his presentation
entitled, “Identifying and Collecting Carriage Clocks “. April 27, 2002 will mark the 33rd
anniversary of the Chapter. The
Meeting Announcement will be sent out with ample reservation time. A note from your secretary: Chapter 89 Website is up and
running. Each member with an email
address will be reminded of the upcoming meeting in addition to receiving a
written announcement by regular mail.
New Members Inducted:
Calvin (husband of Madeline or is it Natalie?) Morgan officiated in
inducting three new members to Chapter 89:
Alec Donoso of Rockport (our youngest member
and apprentice to Dennis Hillman)
Alec was really smart. He
wore his clamming boots just in case the Business Meeting got too deep.
Gary Weed of New Sharon (our handsome middle-aged member and
apprentice to Jim Bryant)
Victor
Wakefield of Limerick (our distinguished inductee and transplant from the
shores of New Jersey)
Show N Tell: Bill
Eberle held up a hefty pocket watch for everyone to admire. He passed around an enlarged picture of
a unique pocket watch for members to identify. He held onto the watch, because Cal Morgan looked too
interested. I think Madeline was
going to ask him to keep clapping his hands until Bill had the watch safely
back in his pocket.
Silent Auction: There
were no bids for the offerings on the Silent Auction table, so we proceeded
to pick the winners of the drawing.
Raffle Drawing:
Carroll Morse and Bentley Crosby took first and second cash prizes;
Sam Jones took third prize: a screw starter donated by Jim Lea.
Presentation: The Meeting was adjourned to the
Program. Dr. Mark Beever presented
slide pictures and video footage of his new friend, the tower clock at the
Odd Fellow’s Hall in Cornish, Maine.
The Geo. Stevens (Boston, Massachusetts) tower clock was fully
functional. Mark checks in on it
twice a week to oil and wind it.
The bell was made in 1852 by Henry Hooper, also of Boston. The shaky ladder offering access from
the 2nd floor requires courage of anyone wanting to offer
tender-loving care of this beauty.
As the video played, we watched the lively and unique striking
mechanism count out the hours. No
hearing aid needed. It should be
noted that Carroll Morse offered quite a bit of documentation and
assistance to Mark for this presentation.
Jim Bryant also offered some nice color photos of the outside of the
Odd Fellow’s Building.
Closing: In
spite of the drizzly day, it was a good turnout. The warm fellowship more than made up for the raw weather
awaiting us outside. Cal might
still be back at Waterville looking for Natalie or Bill Eberly’s pocket
watch.
I am a "Yuppie Baby
Boomer" and not responsible for errors or omissions. It's someone else's fault.
Again,
borrowing Jim Bryant’s line:
“And, as Red Skelton used to say in Closing,---God Bless!”
Respectfully Submitted,
Ern Grover
Chapter 89 Secretary
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