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W'11.1,1ANI
'I'1I()NI AS
Mac Campbell,
A reason to celebrate" - the Goilerich
Rotary f'lub's theme fur this, its 25th an-
niversary year - was amply
demonstrated last 'Tuesday evening at a .
gala dinner. St. George's parish hall was
transformed by the blue and gold colours
of Rotary International, soft lighting and
colourful decorations. Happy conversa-
tion was punctuated with bursts of
laughter as Rotarians and their wives
shared memories of the past quarter-
century.
President J. Howard Aitken welcomed '
the guests, some of \s'horn had wine a ,
considerable distance. Governor Elect
Arthur hothead of Forest toasted the
Queen, the President of the United States
and the Emperor of ,Japan, the latter in
honour of Rotary exchange student
Nacilni ;Vliyanu)to. Plast President Dr.
,lames Peters read the names of the
charter members now deceased. After
grace was said by the Rev. Robert Ball,
the guests enjoyed a gourmet dinner
prepared 'by the Anglican' Church
Women.
The G.l),('.I. Jazz Choir, directed by
Eleanor Robinson, provided dtlightful
after-dinner music. The smooth rendi-
tions of such oldies -but -goodies as "I've
(got You Under My Skin" and, "Seems
Like Old 'Times brought; great applause
from the apl.)reciative IU.dlenC'C.
Dr.' Torn .Jasper, Past President and
Anniversary Committee Co-chairman in-
', troduccd the head table: President
11n vnrd Aitken and his wife, Margaret;
Alllnlver'sal'y ('o -chairman Mac Campbell,
Lund his wife, .Roslyn: Herb Farrow of
London, 1962 District Governor and his
wife. (Ise: Governor Elect Arthur
Lochend and his -wife, Anne; .the.
Goderich f'lub's first president, Ed
Rowlands who carne all the way from
Surrey, B.('.: the 1962 president of the
Stratford ('lub, Mery Siberry and his wife
Connie; Gerald Whittemore, Governor of
District 633., 'Flushing, Michigan and his
wife, Betty; and Tom's own wife, Joanne,
'I'11ere were 2.1 charter members at the
t ioderich ('1i4)':5'formation on March 1,
1962. hive illy now dead, but 11 of the re-
maining 19 were at the dinner. Ann, the
widciw of "W.1 . Bill) Elliott was also -
there; happily recalling that March day
25.jears earlier. Aftera long and -
clistinguished career in.. Journalism, Bill
had retired to Goderich. Having long
. been an active Rotarian, he vas disap-
pointed to ,find no club• in the town die lov-
ed. It didn t take him• long to contact the
Stratford ("lub for help and persuade the
requisite number of potential members.
The highlight of the evening was Mac
Campbell's fasc'in'ating and comprehen-
sive slide presentation of "25 Years of
Fun and Ser'v'ice". Be scoured th'e wealth
of local Rotary archival material -
minutes, press clippings, photographs,
souvenirs - and brought memories to life
on the screen. Sighs of nostalgia and
hearty chuckles were heard as Rotarian
watched their history, enlightened by
Mac's commentary,
A reason to celebrate? The 25 -year
history of -the Goderich Rotary Club prov-
ed many reasonsto celebrate,: There was
always good fun with good friends at golf
tournaments and hockey games, tours on
• the Debbie Lynn with charter member '
Mac Campbell ancf down the mine with
charter rner•nber Bob Chapman, at the
Howard. Aitken
on®red with fellowships
(;erald,Whitte•more, (right) Governor of District 633, awarded
Paid Harris Fellowships to two charter members of the
Goderich Rotary ('lub, Malcolm (Mac) Campbell and Howard
elegant Rotary balls and the family en- •
-
joyrnent of ,Christmas, parties, and of •
course at the weekly lunch meetings at
the Hotel Bedford..
' Rotary International's strong commit-
ment to service to the community and the -
'wider world .was amply shown by the
.Goderich Club. Among the many local
projects they'initiated.were the Retarded
Adults' Workshop, sparked by charter
member 1)r. Frank. Mills, the annual
symphony concerts by Orchestra London,
,"Meet the Candidates" nights at election
times, travelogue series, the formation of
Air Cadets. paper drives•, andAnow the
forthcoming creation of a stunning foun-
tain area at the waterfront.
The Goderich.Club has sponsored many
international exchange students, and con-
tributed funds to the Rotary Foundation
whose scholarships far outnumber the
better-known Rhodes scholarships and
provide educational opportunities to
students in many countries. And can, you
imagine immunizing all the world's
children by the year 2005?That's the goal
of Rotary's Polk) Plus Program.
These memories were summed, up in
-remarks from first president Ed
Rowlands, 1962's District Governor. Herb
Farrow, 1962's Stratford president Mery
Siberry and charter member Dan Mur-
phy. And then carne the stiiff of which
new memories are made -.a "first" for.
the Goderich ('lub. Gerald Whittemore,
Aitken. Howard and Mac were given a 'Medal, pin and award in •
recognition 'of their commitment to service and the. principles of
Rotary International ( photo -by-Bob Nephew) I.
The .Goderich Rotary Club recieved its
charter 25 years ago and the club's first
president was Ed Rowlands who returned
from British Cloumbia for the clubs ,an-
niversary last week.
Governor of'Di.strict 633 from.Michigan
awarded' Paul Harris Fellowships to
charter-meinbers Howard Aitken and ".
Malcolm (-Mac) Campbell.
Howard and Mac were named Paul
Harris.Fellows and given a"medal, pin -_
and award. in. recognitionby their fellow
Rotarians of their commitment to service.
and the principles of,Rotary Interna
tional. The a -ward states that it is given
"in appreciation of tangible and signifi-
cant assistance, given for the furtherance
of better understanding and friendlier
relations between the peoples of the
world". The standing ovation &iven to
these two men left no doubt that they are
worthy recipients of this high honour. It
was a proud moment and a magnificent •
ending; to the 25th AnYniversary of the
Charter Presentation Night of the
Goderich Rotary Club. ,
The climax of the 25th anniversary - . -
celebration will be the return of the
world-renowned Spitfire Band, under
Ja'ckie Rae, from Toronto. You can dance
the night a-wa'y to the big band sound at
the BAS hangar at the Goderich Airport.
on ,June 20. Jackie Rae, who'received his
• pilot's training at EFTS No. 12 at -Sky
Harbour and flew a Spitfire, brought his
band to the Sky 'Harbour Reunion two
years ago. Fans have clamoured for
• more. The, Rotary Club is happily pro-
viding this return appearance for the •
(lance of the 'year;!
Wiggly's is the
place to shop
Florida drapes a visitor in a cldak of
cartoon costumes. it.'s the flat 1 -and of
fantasy whose day-to-day life is played
out in frame -by -frame animation. It's the
state of the unreal catering to the kid in
all of us.
You don't have to go to l )isney World or
The Fpcot Center or Busch Gardens just •
go to the grocery store, !Vow really, how
serious can you take a state that feeds its.
people from a store called Piggly Wig-
gly's'? Its true. The popular chain of food
stores in Florida is called Piggly
Wiggly''s.
And if it's fast food you're after they're
all called Big Bob's or Bobby Joe's and
they're easy to find. Big- Hob or Bobby
Joe is always a 65' lawn ornament in
• dungarees and a.plaid shirt and eating a
hamburger that's the size of a Cadillac
Seville. Florida's the only state the limits
the height of buildings but not the size of
its cartoon characters.
I almost had an anxiety attack shopp-
ing at Piggly Wiggly',s which is next to
Popeye's Fried Chicken. I hod this haun-
,.ting fear that .as soon as 1 had my cart
filled up with Capt'n Crunch cereal,
Srnokey The Bear beef jerkey and Elsie
The Cow Moo Juice that a great big wolf
was going to come along an huff and puff
and blow the whole darn') place to the
ground, with me in it.
Now I know why. gull shops in Florida
are as popular as donut shops in southern
Ontario. It's got nothing to do with red-
neck America or the fun -loving; National.
Rifle Association. It's got, nothing to do,
with the fact that .in Florida -when the -
banks close, a lot of people just hold up a'
7 -Eleven- or a liquor, store to tide' them
•
over until Monday,, ,
No, the gun shops ..are •there, to help
Floridians keep the Big Bad, Wolf away
from'the door, to keep Black Beard The
Pirate from coming ashore and W. -keep
that cwazy wabbit outta,da garden" as
Elmer Fudd used to say. , • °_'•
It was therefore nervous..laughter the '
check out lady heard, as I scanned the
headlines of one of those popular tabloids
they sell at Piggly: Wiggly's and even
grocery stores that don't owe their
namesakes to Mother,Goose. ' _ I. •
• "It's true," she said, nodding her.head
up and down a little to vigorously, "It's
all true you know." - ..
Right.• The headline read (I swear
"Man With Four. Arras Makes Fortune.
As Deodorant 'fester." I had to read it
twice, once for each set of pits. - '
I suppose inquiring minds want to
know, What 'I want to know' is if trained
professionals are using the latest scan-
ners to,,look into inquiring minds.
A lot of North Americans and Cana-.
dians,read those tabs. But in Florida they
Seem to be the standard of journalistic
excellence. After one week you're con-
vinced Florida's largest exports are
oranges and reality.
Florida people are gullible. 'I''hese peo-
ple are so gullible that when Ronald
Reagan says he forgets, they attribute it
to a poor memory. They're the kind of
people who would take Brian Mulroney
at his word.
."Man With Four Arms Makes Fortune
As Deodorant Tester", that wastheban-
er headline. The main headline was
"After 32 Kids ... Tired Morn Sterilizes
leeping Hubby ... Enough is enough, she
ays" There were photographs of:the
ir.ed niom and the cuniched hubby at,
oth ends of the headline. Oddly enough,
e was smiling but she was not. She look -
d tired. She looked like she had been up
11 night quietly sterilizing a light
leeper.
Below the main headline were three
ubheads. "Fatty stuck in hot tub 12
ours loses 50 11)5." "New blood test can
ell if you are dishonest." I quit laughing
n the third: "Left alone three days cat
ings up a $2,000 phone bill," I quit
aughing because my cat, Malcolm, was
ome all alone and Ferdinand Marcos
as 'lonely and depressed in Hawaii arid
either one of than have ever been up to
rich good.
Florida makes you think that way. If
Ts billed as comic relief and -dressed -up
as a barnyard animal, they interupt nor -
al broadcasting and bring it to you as a
utletin across the bottom of your televi-
sion set. In this state you have a better
hance of finding somebody under the
age of 60 than something that makes
sense.
If you ever have to testify in 0 court of
law in Florida the judge asks you to place
your right hand on the National Enquirer
and swear "to tell the truth, the whole
truth and nothing but the truth, so help
me Goofy."
Florida just can't seem to make up its
mind whether it wants to he a real state
or a 60,000 square mile amusement park
with roller coasters replacing highways.
Each time I go there it,, looks less like a
southerr. peninsula and more like a Jules
Verne ride. I couldn't put my fingers on
Florida's state song but i'll bet it con-
tains the words: "Wham! Pow! Bap! and
Zap!" I'm sure the state bird is Tweety.
I suppose in the end it doesn't much
matter - shopping at Piggly Wiggly, get-
ting your news from papers that claim
cancer can be cured by a watermelon
diet, voting Mickey and Minnie "Most in-
fluential Couple .of 1987." Maybe it's me
but 1 can't get comfortable in a place
where common mode of transportation is
on the back of Shama The Killer Whale.
But after all, Walt Disney would have
wanted it this ;vy.
Lions convention '87
roars through town
Lions District 'Governor Cord Rim-
mer (above r-ight) rode at the head of
the Lions District Convention Parade
in Goderich Saturday, April 11. Lower
right, a group of Lions considers a
resolution during the business portion
of the convention. Left, one of several
clowns which delighted parade wat-
chers. (photos by Patrick Raftis )
l