NO CLUB EVENT FOR APRIL
Unfortunately there was no club event scheduled for April. We asked for ideas and a host but no one stepped up so we had to go with no event. This is the first time in a long time that we had no event.
As we always say “this is your club” if you don’t get involved we cannot survive and could have many more months without an club event planned.
We have been able to fill the rest of this years events. Check out the Club Events calendar for some new additions and dates.
As we always say “this is your club” if you don’t get involved we cannot survive and could have many more months without an club event planned.
We have been able to fill the rest of this years events. Check out the Club Events calendar for some new additions and dates.
Olympic Game Farm &
Tour of Brown Maloney’s Collection
Saturday March 23 & Sunday March 24, 2019
Overnight in Sequim
The anticipated rain held off, as it usually does in Sequim, and three couples met up at the Highway 101 Diner in Sequim for lunch and some reminiscing of past events. The jukebox at the restaurant is the tail-end of a ’57 T-bird, which we all appreciated. Vickie Willson and Bruce Eardley, Van and Lynn Victor, and Donna Weisenburg with her friend Shar all enjoyed great meals, then headed out to the Olympic Game Farm. After a quick stop in the gift shop we all got into our cars and joined the line of vehicles heading through the driving tour. A lady on her way out handed us three loaves of unused bread. How she ever made it through the park with leftover bread I’ll never understand. The tour started by driving past the prairie dog hill, llamas, yaks, zebras, bears, and the cages of predatory tigers and wolves, and the rare wild rabbit. It was obvious that the animals had seen their fair share of bread, as the leftovers were scattered along the roadway – they obviously had had their fill already. I was concerned that we, too, would have leftovers to give to another car.
As we approached the cattle crossing that lead into the meadow where the elk, small deer and bison roamed we knew we were in trouble. The open gate was being “monitored” by two sets of attendants making sure things stayed calm. One by one we drove into the meadow and were swarmed by the bison still hungry for food. I’d forgotten how large these animals can be until a full-sized bull bison stuck his head over a foot into the front window and refused to get out. He ate the last of our bread and that huge black tongue was still combing every inch of the front seat searching for more bread. I couldn’t push his head out with all my strength! It became obvious that everyone had used up most of their bread earlier in the route and left these bison still wanting more. We were all laughing hysterically as we stopped back at the gift shop to clean off the cars. Donna and Bruce both had their mirrors knocked out of alignment, and our windows and door panels were all coated with a layer of slobber but no damage, these were completely gentle creatures.
After checking into our hotel and taking short naps, we all headed to The Cedars at Dungeness for dinner, and were joined by Linda and Barry Birch. The restaurant hadn’t communicated our reservation to the hostess, but with our party being eight instead of the anticipated 16 or so, she was able to seat us fairly quickly. Our seafood dinners were absolutely amazing, and we all left overly stuffed but with large smiles on our faces.
The next morning, we enjoyed a complimentary breakfast at the hotel and followed our maps to Brown’s house. Well, those that had maps followed them. Bruce had printed one map too few so we followed his Waze navigation system which lead us onto a dead-end gravel road with the cattle field between us and Brown’s house. After a quick doubling back we joined the four couples from Saturday along with Frank, Cathy and Kyle Stubbs, Dan Del Duca, Martin and Diana Antrim, Jim and Joanne Hendry, and Phillip and mom Janice Westfall. Also present with Brown was Dan Kalinski who bought Dean and Carmen Allstrom’s grey ‘57 and brought it to share with us.
Brown and Dan opened up five buildings for our viewing. As we passed from building to building the collection continued to get more and more unbelievable, and we were all in awe of this wonderful group of cars. Brown’s garages included three classic Mercedes, two Mustangs, a ’57 T-bird that Frank restored 20 years ago, and a retro bird, a Cobra, several Ferrari’s, and way too many to list here. Each car was accompanied by a plaque containing the make, model and year of the car and in some cases the limited amount of restoration that had been done. The pictures here don’t do justice to how well maintained and beautiful these cars truly are.
Our grateful thanks go out to Brown and Dan for sharing the collection with us.
Vickie and Bruce
As we approached the cattle crossing that lead into the meadow where the elk, small deer and bison roamed we knew we were in trouble. The open gate was being “monitored” by two sets of attendants making sure things stayed calm. One by one we drove into the meadow and were swarmed by the bison still hungry for food. I’d forgotten how large these animals can be until a full-sized bull bison stuck his head over a foot into the front window and refused to get out. He ate the last of our bread and that huge black tongue was still combing every inch of the front seat searching for more bread. I couldn’t push his head out with all my strength! It became obvious that everyone had used up most of their bread earlier in the route and left these bison still wanting more. We were all laughing hysterically as we stopped back at the gift shop to clean off the cars. Donna and Bruce both had their mirrors knocked out of alignment, and our windows and door panels were all coated with a layer of slobber but no damage, these were completely gentle creatures.
After checking into our hotel and taking short naps, we all headed to The Cedars at Dungeness for dinner, and were joined by Linda and Barry Birch. The restaurant hadn’t communicated our reservation to the hostess, but with our party being eight instead of the anticipated 16 or so, she was able to seat us fairly quickly. Our seafood dinners were absolutely amazing, and we all left overly stuffed but with large smiles on our faces.
The next morning, we enjoyed a complimentary breakfast at the hotel and followed our maps to Brown’s house. Well, those that had maps followed them. Bruce had printed one map too few so we followed his Waze navigation system which lead us onto a dead-end gravel road with the cattle field between us and Brown’s house. After a quick doubling back we joined the four couples from Saturday along with Frank, Cathy and Kyle Stubbs, Dan Del Duca, Martin and Diana Antrim, Jim and Joanne Hendry, and Phillip and mom Janice Westfall. Also present with Brown was Dan Kalinski who bought Dean and Carmen Allstrom’s grey ‘57 and brought it to share with us.
Brown and Dan opened up five buildings for our viewing. As we passed from building to building the collection continued to get more and more unbelievable, and we were all in awe of this wonderful group of cars. Brown’s garages included three classic Mercedes, two Mustangs, a ’57 T-bird that Frank restored 20 years ago, and a retro bird, a Cobra, several Ferrari’s, and way too many to list here. Each car was accompanied by a plaque containing the make, model and year of the car and in some cases the limited amount of restoration that had been done. The pictures here don’t do justice to how well maintained and beautiful these cars truly are.
Our grateful thanks go out to Brown and Dan for sharing the collection with us.
Vickie and Bruce
Our Lunch Stop in Sequim
At the Game Farm
At Brown Maloney's Collection
Scenic Driving Tour to Eatonville &
Rosemarie Van Cleve’s 90th Birthday Party
Sunday Feb 24, 2019
Snowmageddon has finally moved on so we are able to celebrate Rosemarie’s 90th birthday before she turns 91.
There were 10 OCTC members in attendance at her party held in the Catholic church hall in Eatonville. Lots of other friends and family were there, all to celebrate Rosemarie’s special day.
There was a good spread of food - snacks, cookies, sandwiches, and hot spaghetti and hot mac & cheese.
Rosemarie arrived to a round of applause and then the festivities began.
Everyone took the time to say hello to her as she sat at her table.
During the festivities many family and friends spoke of the years they have known her and some of the adventures they shared and looked forward to sharing many more. A toast was given and everyone had a glass of champagne or sparkling cider. There was plenty of Birthday cake for everyone.
She really appreciated everyone showing up to share her day.
Rosemarie and her late husband Lad joined our club in February 1985 and have been active members, including hosting our annual picnic in Eatonville for many years.
We were all happy for her and for being able to celebrate her special day.
Bruce
There were 10 OCTC members in attendance at her party held in the Catholic church hall in Eatonville. Lots of other friends and family were there, all to celebrate Rosemarie’s special day.
There was a good spread of food - snacks, cookies, sandwiches, and hot spaghetti and hot mac & cheese.
Rosemarie arrived to a round of applause and then the festivities began.
Everyone took the time to say hello to her as she sat at her table.
During the festivities many family and friends spoke of the years they have known her and some of the adventures they shared and looked forward to sharing many more. A toast was given and everyone had a glass of champagne or sparkling cider. There was plenty of Birthday cake for everyone.
She really appreciated everyone showing up to share her day.
Rosemarie and her late husband Lad joined our club in February 1985 and have been active members, including hosting our annual picnic in Eatonville for many years.
We were all happy for her and for being able to celebrate her special day.
Bruce
BUSINESS MEETING and ELECTION of 2019 OFFICERS
Date: Sunday, January 27, 2019
Place: Johnny’s at Fife Restaurant
Time: 12:00 noon to 3:00 pm
Agenda: Election of officers and any other club business
January Meeting Recap
The January meeting at Johnny’s in Fife was attended by a record 41 members, including two new members. We also have a second couple who joined the club, but weren’t at the meeting. Our thanks to Morris and Gayle Krause for making the arrangements, and to the wait staff who did a great job delivering our meals quickly and correctly – with the exception of Mr. Cliff, whose meal didn’t get made by the chef. The mistake was caught quickly by our waitress, and he finished eating the same time as I did.
The meeting went by quickly, with a short discussion from International by Cathy, explaining the newest topic there, of including the new retro T-birds. The International officers have agreed to take this decision before the general membership, so watch your mail and/or emails for this important vote. We recapped the monthly events. February’s Mustang garage tour has been postponed due to a death in the family. March’s event will be to the Olympic Game Farm the weekend of March 23-24th. Also handled quickly was the election of officers.
The Allstrom award was presented to Michael Hall, who told me afterwards that he had just traded display cases with wife Bonnie since he was running out of space in his. Good timing, Mike.
Great friends, great food, fun memories. Thank you all for coming.
Vickie
The January meeting at Johnny’s in Fife was attended by a record 41 members, including two new members. We also have a second couple who joined the club, but weren’t at the meeting. Our thanks to Morris and Gayle Krause for making the arrangements, and to the wait staff who did a great job delivering our meals quickly and correctly – with the exception of Mr. Cliff, whose meal didn’t get made by the chef. The mistake was caught quickly by our waitress, and he finished eating the same time as I did.
The meeting went by quickly, with a short discussion from International by Cathy, explaining the newest topic there, of including the new retro T-birds. The International officers have agreed to take this decision before the general membership, so watch your mail and/or emails for this important vote. We recapped the monthly events. February’s Mustang garage tour has been postponed due to a death in the family. March’s event will be to the Olympic Game Farm the weekend of March 23-24th. Also handled quickly was the election of officers.
The Allstrom award was presented to Michael Hall, who told me afterwards that he had just traded display cases with wife Bonnie since he was running out of space in his. Good timing, Mike.
Great friends, great food, fun memories. Thank you all for coming.
Vickie
Our Olympic Club’s
ANNUAL HOLIDAY CHRISTMAS PARTY
WHEN: Saturday, December 15, 201
WHERE: Mitzel’s American Kitchen
22330 84th Ave. S., Kent, WA 98032
CHRISTMAS IN KENT FINDS FOOD, FRIENDSHIP AND FUN!
On Saturday afternoon, December 15, close to 40 Olympic Club members enjoyed a wonderful Christmas holiday party at Mitzel’s restaurant in Kent. We had exclusive use of their banquet room and we were able to order on our own from a customized lunch menu. Positive comments were heard about the food. It was plentiful and reasonable, and our server did a super job, especially since she was flying solo most of the time. A few problems on our final bills were directly handled with courtesy. The size of the room for our group, unfortunately, was an issue. It was cramped and a bit difficult to maneuver, particularly during our gift exchange activity. A different location with larger space for next year is worth considering.
Early arrivals had a chance to meet, greet, and mingle. It was nice to visit with everyone, including folks we haven’t seen for a while. Among these were Carmen Allstrom, Martin and Diana Antrim, Jerry and Becky Cline, Jim and Thais Evans, and Doug and Patty Wanamaker. Special thanks and recognition go to Jerry and Becky who defied the potential of snowy conditions over the pass to attend from their home in Chelan. The reindeer and sleigh that were parked outside the restaurant was likely their ride to this event. And speaking of nice rides, Nancy Burress arrived in fine style driving her beautiful classic Corvette. We all hoped she had brought this car to include it as part of our gift exchange. For some reason, she ignored our hints.
While waiting for our food orders, the group took part in guessing how many mints there were in a large glass canister. First prize was a $50 Costco gift card, and second prize was the mint-filled canister itself. Gayle Krause won first prize and Morris Krause was a close second. Good guessing, you two, and Merry Christmas! Our gift exchange is always filled with fun, frustration, and surprises. There were a number of quality items this year including a Jim Shore Christmas platter, stuffed animals and characters, smoked salmon, fine wines and brews, and a hand-crafted, framed photo collage created by member Thais Davis-Evans. How neat! Diana Antrim and Becky Cline shared the honor of having the most gifts stolen from them, and they certainly gained experience unwrapping presents. Dan DelDucca was seated nearby and adorned himself with some of the cast-off ribbons and bows. He looked pretty good as a living Christmas ornament.
Our request asking for contributions to the Marine Corps’ Toys for Tots campaign was answered in a big way. This is a heart-felt gesture by our members, bringing happiness and joy to the needy children who receive them. We also want to extend a special thank you to our co-hosts, Michael and Bonnie, for the extra effort they put in with planning, set-up, and decorations. They are a pleasure to work with and life-long friends.
May the joy and laughter we shared at this event continue throughout the coming year.
Van and Lynn
BUSINESS AND PLANNING MEETING FOR OUR 2019 EVENTS
AND AWARDS CEREMONY
Date: Sunday, November 18, 2018
Place: Frank & Cathy Stubbs
The tradition continues to hold the Olympic Club’s annual calendar of events planning meeting at Frank & Cathy’s home. We all very much appreciate their gracious hospitality. A heart felt “Thank You” from each and every one of us.
Frank and Cathy have been busy working on new displays for their collectibles and rearranging their garages and invited anyone interested to view their collections. A large group took advantage of this opportunity before the meeting started and again after the meeting and pot luck. A truly amazing collection and a wonderful display.
Once the group finished mingling and viewing they filled the chairs downstairs when President Vickie Willson called the meeting to order. We had a full agenda to get through including a brief awards ceremony, voting on a by-law change, and making choices for next year’s calendar of events.
The CTCI International Convention will be held in Flagstaff AZ, in May and the club voted to donate $500 to their committee to help with their start up expenses. It looks like we may have about 6 cars making the trip in their T-Birds in an effort to win the Ford Johnson Memorial Trophy.
Frank awarded Longevity pins to those in attendance who had earned them. The Allstrom All-Star Award, was initiated to recognize a member who has provided some sort of special or outstanding service to our club during the past year and is voted on by the executive board. This plaque will be presented at the Christmas
party.
Chuck Birch headed up the challenging job of guiding the members through the process of filling up our Calendar of Events for the coming year. The schedule includes the possibility of a couple of overnight trips and a good variety of local events some new and some we have done in the past. There were even some left over ideas that can be used for next year’s calendar. Thanks to all members to submitted and/or volunteered to host an outing.
The meeting was adjourned so we could all enjoy another outstanding Olympic potluck. What a great variety of delicious food we all had to choose from.
Frank and Cathy have been busy working on new displays for their collectibles and rearranging their garages and invited anyone interested to view their collections. A large group took advantage of this opportunity before the meeting started and again after the meeting and pot luck. A truly amazing collection and a wonderful display.
Once the group finished mingling and viewing they filled the chairs downstairs when President Vickie Willson called the meeting to order. We had a full agenda to get through including a brief awards ceremony, voting on a by-law change, and making choices for next year’s calendar of events.
The CTCI International Convention will be held in Flagstaff AZ, in May and the club voted to donate $500 to their committee to help with their start up expenses. It looks like we may have about 6 cars making the trip in their T-Birds in an effort to win the Ford Johnson Memorial Trophy.
Frank awarded Longevity pins to those in attendance who had earned them. The Allstrom All-Star Award, was initiated to recognize a member who has provided some sort of special or outstanding service to our club during the past year and is voted on by the executive board. This plaque will be presented at the Christmas
party.
Chuck Birch headed up the challenging job of guiding the members through the process of filling up our Calendar of Events for the coming year. The schedule includes the possibility of a couple of overnight trips and a good variety of local events some new and some we have done in the past. There were even some left over ideas that can be used for next year’s calendar. Thanks to all members to submitted and/or volunteered to host an outing.
The meeting was adjourned so we could all enjoy another outstanding Olympic potluck. What a great variety of delicious food we all had to choose from.
Preliminary 2019 Event List - Dates and some hosts needed.
OCTC 2019 Events
DATE DAY EVENT LOCATION HOST
01/27/2019 Sunday Bisiness Meeting – Johnny’s at Fife Morris & Gayle Krause Election of Officers
February Garage Tours Frank Stubbs
March Olympic Game Farm Sequim WA Vickie Willson Possible Overnight with a Garage Tour
April Leavenworth Fish Leavenworth WA Chuck & Julie Birch Hatchery Possible Overnight
May Open for club event Host Needed
06/22-23/19 Sat – Sun Stanwood Car Show Stanwood WA Nancy Burress Overnight
July Saturday T-Bird Club Picnic Mt. Vernon WA Nancy Burress
August Chinook Drive to Enumclaw WA Host Needed
Enumclaw
09/27/19 Friday Oil Refinery Tour Mel & Linda Lang
October Treehouse Point Tour Fall City WA Vickie Willson
11/24/19 Sunday Business Meeting - Newcastle WA Frank & Cathy Stubbs 2020 Calendar Planning
December Christmas Party Host Needed
2019 Other T-Bird Events
05/15–19/19 Wed – Sun CTCI Regional Convention Flagstaff AZ. CTCI
05/24-30/19 Fri – Thur Kelowna Show & 3 Day Tour Kelowna BC Totem T-Bird Club
OCTC 2019 Events
DATE DAY EVENT LOCATION HOST
01/27/2019 Sunday Bisiness Meeting – Johnny’s at Fife Morris & Gayle Krause Election of Officers
February Garage Tours Frank Stubbs
March Olympic Game Farm Sequim WA Vickie Willson Possible Overnight with a Garage Tour
April Leavenworth Fish Leavenworth WA Chuck & Julie Birch Hatchery Possible Overnight
May Open for club event Host Needed
06/22-23/19 Sat – Sun Stanwood Car Show Stanwood WA Nancy Burress Overnight
July Saturday T-Bird Club Picnic Mt. Vernon WA Nancy Burress
August Chinook Drive to Enumclaw WA Host Needed
Enumclaw
09/27/19 Friday Oil Refinery Tour Mel & Linda Lang
October Treehouse Point Tour Fall City WA Vickie Willson
11/24/19 Sunday Business Meeting - Newcastle WA Frank & Cathy Stubbs 2020 Calendar Planning
December Christmas Party Host Needed
2019 Other T-Bird Events
05/15–19/19 Wed – Sun CTCI Regional Convention Flagstaff AZ. CTCI
05/24-30/19 Fri – Thur Kelowna Show & 3 Day Tour Kelowna BC Totem T-Bird Club
Minutes are posted in the "Members Only" section
NORDIC MUSEUM
October 21st, 2018, 10:00 AM
2655 NW Market St. Seattle, Wa (Ballard) 98107
The tour of the New Nordic Museum was well attended with twenty eight breaving the fog to drive to Ballard. The building itself has been written up in architectural magazines and there is a lot to see.We were fortunate to see a newly installed temporary exhibit “The Vikings Begin” with actual artifacts from the 6th and 7th century from burial grounds in Uppsala Sweden. Several members commented on seeing this talked about on television.
Pictures of descendants with Finnish immigrants and Native Americans was also on display. Upstairs there were many displays from the Museums collection. Some of the exhibits are related to Susan Hanson’s father and his contribution to the fishing industry.
After touring for two hours everyone agreed that there was a lot to see and they hoped to return some day for another look.
With the sun finally coming out, Jon gave everyone directions on how to get to the Bay Cafe at Fisherman’s terminal and we headed for one of our favorite things to do on a tour, eat. We were given a private room and the service was pretty good seeing as we only had one waitress. We did not hear any complaints about the food which is a good sign. New members Janice Westfall and her son Phill Westfall were introduced along with Donna Wisenburg’s friend Patty. Ron Perrone was there as well and he loves the ’56 T-Bird he bought from Jon. He plans on taking a three week trip next summer along route 66. Mike Hall brought a box of calendars with club cars shown which was really neat. They are selling for $15.00 and a good way for the club to raise money. They would be a great Christmas gift.
Vicky reminded all of the business meeting in November and the Christmas Party in December. Kathy suggested calling CTCI if you did not get your ballot to vote in their current elections. Janice Westfall won the birthday lotto given to one attendee. She beat our Susan Hanson by one day. Congratulations Janice.
It is always special when we connect with club members. Thanks to everyone for coming.
Jon and Susan Hanson
A good day at the museum, I had two extra orange “Viking Begins Exhibit” stickers left, so I told Lindsay at the counter to give them to some one that need them.
This made my day:
Dear Jon and Susan,
I wanted to thank you personally for your generous gift this last weekend! Jon gave me permission to gift the two extra tickets from your group to anyone I felt deserved them later in the day.
A few hours after your group left, a father and son came in to the museum. They were worried about their budget, and so chose not to go through the Viking exhibit because of the extra $5 admission. I tried to run the father’s credit card for general admission, but it was sadly declined. They looked disappointed, and started walking away.
It was just then I remembered Jon’s gift! I ran after them and told them I could get them in. They were delighted! And when I handed them the orange Viking Begins Exhibit stick er, they were so happy, they couldn’t believe it!
They ended up spending the whole afternoon in the museum, and I saw they were
completely engaged in the exhibits.
It really touched my heart that they were so grateful for your kindness, and I wanted to share with you some of the joy that you brought to them.
Thank you so very much for being such a great representative of our members, and for being so generous!
Sincerely,
Lindsay Ravensong,
Guest Services
Nordic Museum
Pictures of descendants with Finnish immigrants and Native Americans was also on display. Upstairs there were many displays from the Museums collection. Some of the exhibits are related to Susan Hanson’s father and his contribution to the fishing industry.
After touring for two hours everyone agreed that there was a lot to see and they hoped to return some day for another look.
With the sun finally coming out, Jon gave everyone directions on how to get to the Bay Cafe at Fisherman’s terminal and we headed for one of our favorite things to do on a tour, eat. We were given a private room and the service was pretty good seeing as we only had one waitress. We did not hear any complaints about the food which is a good sign. New members Janice Westfall and her son Phill Westfall were introduced along with Donna Wisenburg’s friend Patty. Ron Perrone was there as well and he loves the ’56 T-Bird he bought from Jon. He plans on taking a three week trip next summer along route 66. Mike Hall brought a box of calendars with club cars shown which was really neat. They are selling for $15.00 and a good way for the club to raise money. They would be a great Christmas gift.
Vicky reminded all of the business meeting in November and the Christmas Party in December. Kathy suggested calling CTCI if you did not get your ballot to vote in their current elections. Janice Westfall won the birthday lotto given to one attendee. She beat our Susan Hanson by one day. Congratulations Janice.
It is always special when we connect with club members. Thanks to everyone for coming.
Jon and Susan Hanson
A good day at the museum, I had two extra orange “Viking Begins Exhibit” stickers left, so I told Lindsay at the counter to give them to some one that need them.
This made my day:
Dear Jon and Susan,
I wanted to thank you personally for your generous gift this last weekend! Jon gave me permission to gift the two extra tickets from your group to anyone I felt deserved them later in the day.
A few hours after your group left, a father and son came in to the museum. They were worried about their budget, and so chose not to go through the Viking exhibit because of the extra $5 admission. I tried to run the father’s credit card for general admission, but it was sadly declined. They looked disappointed, and started walking away.
It was just then I remembered Jon’s gift! I ran after them and told them I could get them in. They were delighted! And when I handed them the orange Viking Begins Exhibit stick er, they were so happy, they couldn’t believe it!
They ended up spending the whole afternoon in the museum, and I saw they were
completely engaged in the exhibits.
It really touched my heart that they were so grateful for your kindness, and I wanted to share with you some of the joy that you brought to them.
Thank you so very much for being such a great representative of our members, and for being so generous!
Sincerely,
Lindsay Ravensong,
Guest Services
Nordic Museum
LAKE CHELAN WEEKEND CAR SHOW
SEPTEMBER 7-8, 2018
Friday - Saturday
It was a dark and stormy night – no, that’s a different story completely. It was a wonderfully sunny morning as two separate groups left Western Washington, headed for the east side. The southern group met at the Pancake House on top of Snoqualmie Pass for breakfast. Sharing tables together were Larry and Emily Muir, Jim and Joanne Hendry, Bruce Eardley and Vickie Willson, Mike and Bonnie Hall, and Ron and Beth Bunn. We were delighted to be joined by Tony and Eve Dilores in her Jeep Cherokee, towing his motorcycle behind. They were able to spend the weekend with us, and then headed south, to Arizona, directly from Chelan. The northern group consisting of Clark and Wilma Hamm, Nancy Burress and her friend, and Gary and Sherral Lane took Stevens Pass. Both groups met up at the 59’er Dinner in Cashmere. While some had an early lunch, others settled for their amazing milkshakes, even buying a few to donate to fire fighters working the local blazes. Donna Weisenburg and her friend drove over Thursday and met up with us Friday.
Friday dinner was a BBQ at the Miller’s Lake Chelan Auto Museum in Chelan which was open to anyone participating in the car show the following day. We all enjoyed the chicken and prime rib dinner and a tour of the museum’s three buildings of cars and automobilia including several one-of-a-kind vehicles. Saturday’s car show was in downtown Chelan in a city park right alongside of the river. It was a beautiful setting crowded with cars of every year, make and model. Jerry and Becky Cline, our hosts for the weekend, were able to spend some time with us but were also very busy helping to run the show. They and the local club did a wonderful job and we all enjoyed the day. Meals were available at several restaurants and sub shops within walking distance. Along with the cars there were many raffle items including bottles of the local wine and a small kayak which Nancy had her heart set on, but didn’t win. We all joked with Nancy as to exactly how she planned on getting the kayak into her ’57 bird – perhaps open the back window and stick it out through the hole??
The awards at the show were a simple “sweet sixteen” of the local club’s favorite sixteen vehicles. I’m pleased to report that our group of nine vehicles came home with two awards – Jim and Joanne Hendry in their ’53 Mercury and Nancy Burress in her ’57 T-bird. Congrats to you both.
After the show we all caravanned to Buddy’s in Manson for dinner and were able to enjoy more time with Jerry and Becky. The restaurant was a bit confused in their ordering and billing, in part due to new owners who weren’t prepared for us, but the patio that we had mostly to ourselves gave everyone a chance to chat and get a bit rowdy as a great end to a great day.
Sunday morning saw everyone heading home at their own schedule with Bruce, Vickie and the Muirs heading to the Blueberry Hills farm for breakfast and leaving there with five pies for themselves, the Halls and the Hendrys. And of course, there was a stop at the 59’er Diner again for another milkshake where Nancy and Donna showed up to join us for their late breakfast. How fun that we kept taking separate paths and running into each other.
We sadly had to bid farewell and safe journey to Tony and Eve as they headed back to Arizona. Good to see them again, and sad to say goodbye again.
What a great weekend, and thanks go out to Jerry and Becky for suggesting this event and hosting it for us. We don’t get to see them often but this once-a-year trip will surely be repeated next year, and we’ll try to see if we can get them over to the west side at least once during the next year also.
Vickie
Friday dinner was a BBQ at the Miller’s Lake Chelan Auto Museum in Chelan which was open to anyone participating in the car show the following day. We all enjoyed the chicken and prime rib dinner and a tour of the museum’s three buildings of cars and automobilia including several one-of-a-kind vehicles. Saturday’s car show was in downtown Chelan in a city park right alongside of the river. It was a beautiful setting crowded with cars of every year, make and model. Jerry and Becky Cline, our hosts for the weekend, were able to spend some time with us but were also very busy helping to run the show. They and the local club did a wonderful job and we all enjoyed the day. Meals were available at several restaurants and sub shops within walking distance. Along with the cars there were many raffle items including bottles of the local wine and a small kayak which Nancy had her heart set on, but didn’t win. We all joked with Nancy as to exactly how she planned on getting the kayak into her ’57 bird – perhaps open the back window and stick it out through the hole??
The awards at the show were a simple “sweet sixteen” of the local club’s favorite sixteen vehicles. I’m pleased to report that our group of nine vehicles came home with two awards – Jim and Joanne Hendry in their ’53 Mercury and Nancy Burress in her ’57 T-bird. Congrats to you both.
After the show we all caravanned to Buddy’s in Manson for dinner and were able to enjoy more time with Jerry and Becky. The restaurant was a bit confused in their ordering and billing, in part due to new owners who weren’t prepared for us, but the patio that we had mostly to ourselves gave everyone a chance to chat and get a bit rowdy as a great end to a great day.
Sunday morning saw everyone heading home at their own schedule with Bruce, Vickie and the Muirs heading to the Blueberry Hills farm for breakfast and leaving there with five pies for themselves, the Halls and the Hendrys. And of course, there was a stop at the 59’er Diner again for another milkshake where Nancy and Donna showed up to join us for their late breakfast. How fun that we kept taking separate paths and running into each other.
We sadly had to bid farewell and safe journey to Tony and Eve as they headed back to Arizona. Good to see them again, and sad to say goodbye again.
What a great weekend, and thanks go out to Jerry and Becky for suggesting this event and hosting it for us. We don’t get to see them often but this once-a-year trip will surely be repeated next year, and we’ll try to see if we can get them over to the west side at least once during the next year also.
Vickie
Seattle City Light
Diablo Lake & Lunch Tour
Sunday, August 26th
The day of our Diablo Tour turned out to be drizzly, but still 17 t-birders turned out for a pretty drive up Hwy 20 and across the top of the dam.
After checking in with Ranger Todd and receiving our badges, we were given an orientation. Then on to the boat dock, where we boarded the Alice Ross IV a new boat designed just for the tour. The cabin is enclosed with lots of windows and a glass roof, which was perfect for the weather. The water is a lovely aqua blue and the scenery amazing.
The ranger and his assistant shared a lot of history and facts about the dam and area. The boat docked at the power house and we were all supplied with lovely yellow hard hats for a special tour through the power house. The foreman on duty was our guide and explained how power is generated. It was quite an experience to stand at the base of Ross Dam and look straight up.
Our boat ride back to the dock for lunch was very enjoyable. We were served salad, soup, bread, pizza and cookies. Mel was able to hold a brief meeting to discuss up coming events. We then headed back down and on our separate ways home.
After checking in with Ranger Todd and receiving our badges, we were given an orientation. Then on to the boat dock, where we boarded the Alice Ross IV a new boat designed just for the tour. The cabin is enclosed with lots of windows and a glass roof, which was perfect for the weather. The water is a lovely aqua blue and the scenery amazing.
The ranger and his assistant shared a lot of history and facts about the dam and area. The boat docked at the power house and we were all supplied with lovely yellow hard hats for a special tour through the power house. The foreman on duty was our guide and explained how power is generated. It was quite an experience to stand at the base of Ross Dam and look straight up.
Our boat ride back to the dock for lunch was very enjoyable. We were served salad, soup, bread, pizza and cookies. Mel was able to hold a brief meeting to discuss up coming events. We then headed back down and on our separate ways home.
CTCI International Convention
Knoxville, Tennessee
August 15 - 19, 2018
The Smoky Mountain Classic Thunderbird Club did an excellent job hosting this event in their bright orange shirts. The hotel was located on the trolley line and only a couple blocks from downtown, so lots of options for places to eat.
The convention center was across the street accommodating the indoor concourse, vendors, the hospitality room and meeting rooms.
The first driving tour followed Thunder Road made famous by the moonshiners running their white lightening with a stop at the Bush Bean plant for lunch and a tour of the museum.
The welcome party included a buffet with barbequed sandwiches and all the fixings
.
On the second day the gals were able to attend a fashion show and luncheon up town in a high rise with a wonderful city view. The models were local club members and the clothes from Chico’s. Later that afternoon 6 bus loads of convention attendees headed to Dollywood to enjoy dinner and a very entertaining show.
Friday morning began with the indoor concourse, all the cars looked stunning under the lights and on the shinny floor. That evening we enjoyed D.J. oldies music for listening and dancing along with food truck eats.
The next morning the swap meet was a little rainy. The driving tour and lunch went along the scenic Smokey Mountains.
The grand finally was of course the awards banquet.
The two Olympic Club driven cars won awards: Stubbs green ’57, most popular display car and Hamm’s black ’55, longest distance and 1st in expanded touring.
It is always a fun time seeing all the different T-birds, doing the events, meeting with the people and friends from all over the United States and countries abroad.
Clarke & Wilma
The convention center was across the street accommodating the indoor concourse, vendors, the hospitality room and meeting rooms.
The first driving tour followed Thunder Road made famous by the moonshiners running their white lightening with a stop at the Bush Bean plant for lunch and a tour of the museum.
The welcome party included a buffet with barbequed sandwiches and all the fixings
.
On the second day the gals were able to attend a fashion show and luncheon up town in a high rise with a wonderful city view. The models were local club members and the clothes from Chico’s. Later that afternoon 6 bus loads of convention attendees headed to Dollywood to enjoy dinner and a very entertaining show.
Friday morning began with the indoor concourse, all the cars looked stunning under the lights and on the shinny floor. That evening we enjoyed D.J. oldies music for listening and dancing along with food truck eats.
The next morning the swap meet was a little rainy. The driving tour and lunch went along the scenic Smokey Mountains.
The grand finally was of course the awards banquet.
The two Olympic Club driven cars won awards: Stubbs green ’57, most popular display car and Hamm’s black ’55, longest distance and 1st in expanded touring.
It is always a fun time seeing all the different T-birds, doing the events, meeting with the people and friends from all over the United States and countries abroad.
Clarke & Wilma
39th Annual All Thunderbird Picnic
GLACIER VIEW PARK, Eatonville, WA
Saturday, July 14, 2015 Time: 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM
&
11th ANNUAL “Tour dé Picnic” Saturday July 14, 2018
We picked a perfect weather day for our tour and picnic. Abundant sunshine and comfortable temperature (a little warm for some by days end) were perfect for the driving tour to the picnic. As usual we met at Starbucks on Grady Way in Renton to begin our tour. Those meeting there included Bruce & Vickie (once again leading the tour), Dan & Fran Del Duca, Jim & Joanne Hendry, Clarke & Wilma Hamm, and Emily Muir, (Larry went to pick up Betty and will meet met us at the picnic). We left promptly at 9:00am to follow the scenic back roads through Renton, Maple Valley, Ravensdale, Cumberland, Enumclaw, and into Buckley to our first stop at Wallys. We meet up with Jamie & Dee Joswick, and Doug & Patty Wanamaker (Doug & Patty could not attend the picnic because they had to pick up people at the airport but wanted to say Hi) This is always a very important stop on our tour as we all headed for the restrooms. While waiting and talking to each other in the parking lot, many of Wally’s customers stopped to admire the T-bird gathering and take pictures. After we gathered ourselves together we headed off for more scenic roads to Eatonville for our picnic.
In Eatonville we were joined by Frank & Kyle Stubbs, Jon & Susan Hanson, Jean Cournoyer, Chuck & Julie Birch (Chuck had to leave early but Julie stayed and got a ride home with Emily in her cute Miata), Cathy Stubbs came with Carmen Allstrom. Our group was smaller than previous picnics, we always look forward to enjoying this time with as many people as possible, but it still turned out really well with a great mix of beautiful cars and a delicious variety of potluck choices. Our hosts, Rosemarie VanCleve and Morris and Gayle Krause, did their usual super job with all the pre-picnic preparations, setting it up, and having it run smoothly. Thank you for these extra efforts.
Thanks to all that attended and enjoyed the tour and picnic.
Bruce & Vickie
In Eatonville we were joined by Frank & Kyle Stubbs, Jon & Susan Hanson, Jean Cournoyer, Chuck & Julie Birch (Chuck had to leave early but Julie stayed and got a ride home with Emily in her cute Miata), Cathy Stubbs came with Carmen Allstrom. Our group was smaller than previous picnics, we always look forward to enjoying this time with as many people as possible, but it still turned out really well with a great mix of beautiful cars and a delicious variety of potluck choices. Our hosts, Rosemarie VanCleve and Morris and Gayle Krause, did their usual super job with all the pre-picnic preparations, setting it up, and having it run smoothly. Thank you for these extra efforts.
Thanks to all that attended and enjoyed the tour and picnic.
Bruce & Vickie
Driving Tour of Camano Island
&
Poker Run
Sunday June 10, 2018
We gathered at the rest area at exit 206 at 11:00am and 21 of us with five Classic Birds, one Retro Bird, and one Mustang the rest in daily drivers (it was rainy day) left around 11:30. We got on I5 North to exit 208 and followed the Pacific Hwy thru the farm land into Stanwood and out to Camano Island.
Our first stop was lunch at The Rockaway Restaurant where we picked up our guests Gary and Sherral Lane in their 64 T-bird Conv. After lunch we were dealt the first card for the poker run and started our Historic tour of some of the older buildings on the Island.
Our next stop, after a scenic drive, was at the Camano City School Built 1906. There we got the second card.
Then we headed for the next stop the South Camano Grange built 1930 and were dealt the 3rd card.
On the road again to the next stop, the Mabana school built 1916. There we got the 4th card. There the owners rang the bell in the bell tower.
From there I let Gary lead to their place in the Country Club and show us his collection of old cars. That was the surprise ending of the tour and got the 5th card.
The winning hand was 2 pair, Aces and Kings. The prize was Mothers Chrome Polish and won by Cynthia Willman.
Thanks to all who came out on a cloudy and rainy day. It was another great turnout by our OCTC members.
Mel & Linda Lang
Our first stop was lunch at The Rockaway Restaurant where we picked up our guests Gary and Sherral Lane in their 64 T-bird Conv. After lunch we were dealt the first card for the poker run and started our Historic tour of some of the older buildings on the Island.
Our next stop, after a scenic drive, was at the Camano City School Built 1906. There we got the second card.
Then we headed for the next stop the South Camano Grange built 1930 and were dealt the 3rd card.
On the road again to the next stop, the Mabana school built 1916. There we got the 4th card. There the owners rang the bell in the bell tower.
From there I let Gary lead to their place in the Country Club and show us his collection of old cars. That was the surprise ending of the tour and got the 5th card.
The winning hand was 2 pair, Aces and Kings. The prize was Mothers Chrome Polish and won by Cynthia Willman.
Thanks to all who came out on a cloudy and rainy day. It was another great turnout by our OCTC members.
Mel & Linda Lang
Tour of Mario Pipkin’s Collection and Lunch
When: Sunday May 20, 2018
We had a great day with 24 people and 10 T-Birds showing up for this event. We met at the Yankee Grill in Renton just off I405 on S. Grady. They extended their Breakfast Buffet for our enjoyment as well as their full menu for those that wanted to order.
After brunch we caravanned a short distance to the building that contains Mario Pitkin’s fabulous collection. A few years ago we visited Mario’s collection, since that visit he has moved to a larger building and added more cars. It was great to see how it has grown and how much room he has, we are sure it won't be long before it fills up. Mario gave us a tour of his cars and enjoyed telling stories about them and how they were acquired.
When we were done at Mario’s, Frank and Cathy Stubbs invited us to their place to see their collection of cars and memorabilia. They had snacks and drinks set out for us.
It was a great day spent with great people and we all celebrated National Thunderbird Appreciation Day, with the ability to Drive and Show our T-Birds!!
After brunch we caravanned a short distance to the building that contains Mario Pitkin’s fabulous collection. A few years ago we visited Mario’s collection, since that visit he has moved to a larger building and added more cars. It was great to see how it has grown and how much room he has, we are sure it won't be long before it fills up. Mario gave us a tour of his cars and enjoyed telling stories about them and how they were acquired.
When we were done at Mario’s, Frank and Cathy Stubbs invited us to their place to see their collection of cars and memorabilia. They had snacks and drinks set out for us.
It was a great day spent with great people and we all celebrated National Thunderbird Appreciation Day, with the ability to Drive and Show our T-Birds!!
Brunch at the Yankee Grill
Mario’s Collection
At Frank & Cathy Stubbs
Kelowna show & Shine
And
3 Day Tour
Kelowna & Osoyoos
British Columbia, Canada
May 25 - 30 2018
There were 6 Olympic Club members attending this years Kelowna event. The 5 Members that met at the 76 gas station in Conway WA. were Clarke & Wilma Hamm, Nancy Burress, Frank & Cathy Stubbs, Jim & Joanne Hendry, Bruce Eardley & Vickie Willson. The 6th member of our group, Jerry & Becky Klein met us in Kelowna. We had one ’55 and five ’57’s.
The weather was perfect for the entire trip. Friday was the meet & greet for participants arriving in T-Birds from 1955 through 2005. Saturday the show & shine on the grass field along the banks of Okanagan Lake featured 60 gleaming T-Birds all parked in year order. After the car show on the way back to the hotel there was an optional wine tour. The awards banquet included a slide show, raffle prizes, a 50/50 drawing and a delicious buffet. Clarke & Wilma won 2nd place in their class, Jerry & Becky Klein won 2nd place in their class and Cathy & Frank Stubbs won 1st place in their class. Congratulations to all.
Sunday the 40 cars going on the extended tour to Osoyoos enjoyed a beautiful drive to our lunch stop at Dirty Laundry Winery. Jerry & Becky’s ’57 was having some problems and then at the same time they got a call that there was a brush fire right up to their home. Thanks to Frank, Clarke and Jason (the youngest attendee from Alberta) the ’57 was soon running again and the fire was put out before getting to the Klein’s home, all is well again. Next stop Tickleberry’s Ice Cream, just as we arrived the rest of the group was leaving. On the road again, our group of 4 cars came upon a dead ’64, he had called a tow truck so we waited with him. Arriving at our hotel in time to check in and attend the buffet, which includes a Canadian golf putting contest. Our rooms at the Walnut beach Resort were condos right next to the overflowing lake.
Monday morning’s tour was to Ken Helm’s collection of old autos some rusting away and a few in running order, along with a lot of small buildings and other collections. Lunch at the golf course and an afternoon wine tour or pool time rounded out the day. At the dinner buffet more, Canadian humor and games with someone winning $50.
Tuesday our first stop was a truly amazing model railway museum set up with every imaginable tiny scene. Hope you are still reading this because the highlight of the trip was our very last stop at “Area 27”, a private 3-mile race track that included ups & downs & turns. We were told the minimum buy in for membership to this track was $30,000 and it is limited to 300 members and they now have a waiting list. The t-birds were divided into three groups and got to go out on the track following a pace car for three laps. Then anyone wanting to go “Fast” had another chance to do a few more laps. Back at the resort for dinner and games, the $50 was won by Cathy; but the conversation was all about driving on that track.
Wednesday, we crossed the border and headed our separate ways home.
HUGE thank you to our Canadian friends who work so hard to put together an outstanding event year after year.
Clarke & Wilma
The weather was perfect for the entire trip. Friday was the meet & greet for participants arriving in T-Birds from 1955 through 2005. Saturday the show & shine on the grass field along the banks of Okanagan Lake featured 60 gleaming T-Birds all parked in year order. After the car show on the way back to the hotel there was an optional wine tour. The awards banquet included a slide show, raffle prizes, a 50/50 drawing and a delicious buffet. Clarke & Wilma won 2nd place in their class, Jerry & Becky Klein won 2nd place in their class and Cathy & Frank Stubbs won 1st place in their class. Congratulations to all.
Sunday the 40 cars going on the extended tour to Osoyoos enjoyed a beautiful drive to our lunch stop at Dirty Laundry Winery. Jerry & Becky’s ’57 was having some problems and then at the same time they got a call that there was a brush fire right up to their home. Thanks to Frank, Clarke and Jason (the youngest attendee from Alberta) the ’57 was soon running again and the fire was put out before getting to the Klein’s home, all is well again. Next stop Tickleberry’s Ice Cream, just as we arrived the rest of the group was leaving. On the road again, our group of 4 cars came upon a dead ’64, he had called a tow truck so we waited with him. Arriving at our hotel in time to check in and attend the buffet, which includes a Canadian golf putting contest. Our rooms at the Walnut beach Resort were condos right next to the overflowing lake.
Monday morning’s tour was to Ken Helm’s collection of old autos some rusting away and a few in running order, along with a lot of small buildings and other collections. Lunch at the golf course and an afternoon wine tour or pool time rounded out the day. At the dinner buffet more, Canadian humor and games with someone winning $50.
Tuesday our first stop was a truly amazing model railway museum set up with every imaginable tiny scene. Hope you are still reading this because the highlight of the trip was our very last stop at “Area 27”, a private 3-mile race track that included ups & downs & turns. We were told the minimum buy in for membership to this track was $30,000 and it is limited to 300 members and they now have a waiting list. The t-birds were divided into three groups and got to go out on the track following a pace car for three laps. Then anyone wanting to go “Fast” had another chance to do a few more laps. Back at the resort for dinner and games, the $50 was won by Cathy; but the conversation was all about driving on that track.
Wednesday, we crossed the border and headed our separate ways home.
HUGE thank you to our Canadian friends who work so hard to put together an outstanding event year after year.
Clarke & Wilma
Show & Shine
Awards Banquet
Ken Helms Collection
Model Railroad
Area ‘27’ Race Track
WASHINGTON STATE PATROL ACADEMY Tour
Shelton WA 98584
When: Wednesday, April 18, 2018
WSP ACADEMY TOUR WAS SIMPLY ARRESTING!
On Wednesday, April 18, we had a group of 23 law-abiding Olympic Club members take part in our guided tour of Washington State Patrol’s training academy in Shelton. By all accounts, this was a good turn-out for a rarely scheduled mid-week event. Adding to the success, we had a nice break in the weather, allowing several of us to arrive in classic T’bird style. Our tour was conducted by WSP Sergeant Kent Hitchings who introduced us to the State Patrol’s history, and then led us through various locations and highlights at the facility. His presentation was professional, interesting, and entertaining. We visited their water safety training tank, the outdoor firing range, a firearms judgment simulator, the cadets’ dormitories, their gym for tactical training, and the 2.7 mile long emergency vehicle training course. This was a classroom day for the cadets, so we didn’t get to see any activity on this driving track. However, Sgt. Hitchings did extend an invitation to our club members if we’d like to come back in May so we can experience this track first-hand as passengers being driven by their experienced instructors. Fasten those seat belts, this sounds like a WOW factor! I’ll be contacting him to find out more specifics if enough members are interested.
A couple of our members have personal ties to WSP. Nancy Burress has a son who was recently promoted to sergeant in the State Patrol. He’s been working the Seattle area of Interstate-5. It was nice to see that Nancy drove her beautiful silver-gray ‘57 to this event. Coming all the way from Mt. Vernon, I asked how it happened she just didn’t drive a Brand-X car? She told me she doesn’t own a Brand-X car. She has only this T’bird and a 1962 Corvette. Congrats, Nancy... Nice rides! Ron Karr’s brother-in-law had been a WSP Trooper some years ago. Photographs of all the Academy’s past graduating classes are posted on the wall. Ron was able to get a copy of the photo showing his brother-in-law as part of Class No. 30. A nice momento.
It was great to visit with some folks we haven’t seen for awhile, including Mike and Cathie Ball who just got back from Arizona, Jim Evans, Phil and Cheryl McCurdy, Larry and Emily Muir, and Les Willman.
At the conclusion of our tour we gathered for a group photo that was taken by Academy staff. Bruce Eardley said he would include the photo on our club’s Facebook page and also in this issue of the newsletter. Thanks Bruce. Following the photo, we caravaned to a nearby Denny’s restaurant for lunch. We enjoyed good food, good service, and good conversation. Seated as a group, it was convenient for President Vickie Willson to hold a short meeting. She thanked those attending and highlighted our upcoming events. Lynn and I also want to thank each of you for taking time out of your weekday schedules to join us for this tour. We now look forward to seeing everyone at Mario Pitkin’s super collection next month.
Van
On Wednesday, April 18, we had a group of 23 law-abiding Olympic Club members take part in our guided tour of Washington State Patrol’s training academy in Shelton. By all accounts, this was a good turn-out for a rarely scheduled mid-week event. Adding to the success, we had a nice break in the weather, allowing several of us to arrive in classic T’bird style. Our tour was conducted by WSP Sergeant Kent Hitchings who introduced us to the State Patrol’s history, and then led us through various locations and highlights at the facility. His presentation was professional, interesting, and entertaining. We visited their water safety training tank, the outdoor firing range, a firearms judgment simulator, the cadets’ dormitories, their gym for tactical training, and the 2.7 mile long emergency vehicle training course. This was a classroom day for the cadets, so we didn’t get to see any activity on this driving track. However, Sgt. Hitchings did extend an invitation to our club members if we’d like to come back in May so we can experience this track first-hand as passengers being driven by their experienced instructors. Fasten those seat belts, this sounds like a WOW factor! I’ll be contacting him to find out more specifics if enough members are interested.
A couple of our members have personal ties to WSP. Nancy Burress has a son who was recently promoted to sergeant in the State Patrol. He’s been working the Seattle area of Interstate-5. It was nice to see that Nancy drove her beautiful silver-gray ‘57 to this event. Coming all the way from Mt. Vernon, I asked how it happened she just didn’t drive a Brand-X car? She told me she doesn’t own a Brand-X car. She has only this T’bird and a 1962 Corvette. Congrats, Nancy... Nice rides! Ron Karr’s brother-in-law had been a WSP Trooper some years ago. Photographs of all the Academy’s past graduating classes are posted on the wall. Ron was able to get a copy of the photo showing his brother-in-law as part of Class No. 30. A nice momento.
It was great to visit with some folks we haven’t seen for awhile, including Mike and Cathie Ball who just got back from Arizona, Jim Evans, Phil and Cheryl McCurdy, Larry and Emily Muir, and Les Willman.
At the conclusion of our tour we gathered for a group photo that was taken by Academy staff. Bruce Eardley said he would include the photo on our club’s Facebook page and also in this issue of the newsletter. Thanks Bruce. Following the photo, we caravaned to a nearby Denny’s restaurant for lunch. We enjoyed good food, good service, and good conversation. Seated as a group, it was convenient for President Vickie Willson to hold a short meeting. She thanked those attending and highlighted our upcoming events. Lynn and I also want to thank each of you for taking time out of your weekday schedules to join us for this tour. We now look forward to seeing everyone at Mario Pitkin’s super collection next month.
Van
LeMay Family Collection Tour
Spanaway WA
Sunday 3/18/2018
Cars, Cars, and More Cars
Our March event was a tour of the LeMay Family Collection in Spanaway. The day started with an early lunch at the Black Bear Diner in Lakewood where our crowd of 37 people was so large we almost exceeded the capacity of their private dining room. It was so nice to see several members that aren’t able to attend our events regularly, including the Akers and Luhmans, and Ron Rietman. We hope to see them more often in the coming months. A brief business meeting was held to discuss a requested change to the bylaws. Please read the minutes taken by our Secretary Fran DelDuca for all of the details. The restaurant did a great job of getting our meals to us quickly and correctly despite the fact that our entire group was being handled by only one waitress with no support even to refill coffee cups and water glasses.
After the meal our 9 baby birds, DelDuca’s ’60 bird and several other vehicles caravanned over to the LeMay Family Collection site in Spanaway for our tour of the grounds at Marymount. We split into four groups in order to cover the grounds more easily, and our tour included over 500 cars and automobilia from the 1890’s forward, including the rare 1941 Tucker made famous by a recent movie documenting it’s history. I’ve heard people comment about Hot August Nights, that there’s such a thing as “too many cars to see”, and after over two hours of walking I think many of our group might have agreed to that sentiment about the LeMay collection.
Following our tour of Marymount we had an opportunity to sit amongst the cars while we rested our weary legs and enjoyed cookies provided by the club and ice cold water provided by LeMays. Then it was off to our next set of tours at Nancy LeMay’s private residence, now occupied by son Doug. Nancy’s house is described by those who know it as “a modest 5-bedroom house with a 300 car garage”. This site is where the more valuable and rare cars are kept, along with the muscle cars, fire engines and the salt/pepper shaker, model car, and doll collections. The T-birds were privileged to be able to park on the property while we toured the two-story buildings and climbed stairway after stairway to view even more amazing cars and a few large displays including a country store and a soda shop.
I think we all went home with car-overload, tired legs, and in need of a nice long nap. I sure did! Our thanks to everyone for attending. We hope you all enjoyed the day.
Vickie and Bruce
Our March event was a tour of the LeMay Family Collection in Spanaway. The day started with an early lunch at the Black Bear Diner in Lakewood where our crowd of 37 people was so large we almost exceeded the capacity of their private dining room. It was so nice to see several members that aren’t able to attend our events regularly, including the Akers and Luhmans, and Ron Rietman. We hope to see them more often in the coming months. A brief business meeting was held to discuss a requested change to the bylaws. Please read the minutes taken by our Secretary Fran DelDuca for all of the details. The restaurant did a great job of getting our meals to us quickly and correctly despite the fact that our entire group was being handled by only one waitress with no support even to refill coffee cups and water glasses.
After the meal our 9 baby birds, DelDuca’s ’60 bird and several other vehicles caravanned over to the LeMay Family Collection site in Spanaway for our tour of the grounds at Marymount. We split into four groups in order to cover the grounds more easily, and our tour included over 500 cars and automobilia from the 1890’s forward, including the rare 1941 Tucker made famous by a recent movie documenting it’s history. I’ve heard people comment about Hot August Nights, that there’s such a thing as “too many cars to see”, and after over two hours of walking I think many of our group might have agreed to that sentiment about the LeMay collection.
Following our tour of Marymount we had an opportunity to sit amongst the cars while we rested our weary legs and enjoyed cookies provided by the club and ice cold water provided by LeMays. Then it was off to our next set of tours at Nancy LeMay’s private residence, now occupied by son Doug. Nancy’s house is described by those who know it as “a modest 5-bedroom house with a 300 car garage”. This site is where the more valuable and rare cars are kept, along with the muscle cars, fire engines and the salt/pepper shaker, model car, and doll collections. The T-birds were privileged to be able to park on the property while we toured the two-story buildings and climbed stairway after stairway to view even more amazing cars and a few large displays including a country store and a soda shop.
I think we all went home with car-overload, tired legs, and in need of a nice long nap. I sure did! Our thanks to everyone for attending. We hope you all enjoyed the day.
Vickie and Bruce
Paul Allen’s Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum
Paine Field
3407 109th Street SW Everett, WA 98204
Sunday February 18, 2017
Lunch at Jimmy Mac’s Roadhouse
11731 Airport Rd. Everett WA
The planes within the Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum were created at a time when aeronautical discovery had evolved to aviation mastery. Finely crafted by distinguished design bureaus with leading technologies of the 1930s and 1940s, the main emphasis of the collection includes combat aircraft from World War II.
Examples include U.S., British, German, Russian and Japanese types, which were often pitted against each other in great air battles. These rare survivors were researched, hunted down and sometimes recovered from former battlegrounds and airfields. While a few specimens were rebuilt by previous owners, the majority on display have received restoration of the highest authenticity.
In 1998, Paul G. Allen began acquiring and preserving these iconic warriors and workhorses, many of which are the last of their kind. Allen's passion for aviation and history, and his awareness of the increasing rarity of original WWII aircraft, motivated him to restore these artifacts to the highest standard of authenticity and share them with the public.
Waking up to no power and 5 inches of snow on the Sunday we were to head out for a T-bird event to the Paul Allen Museum was not exactly in the plans. By the time we were to leave for south Everett the roads were clear and the power was back on.
A total of 23 t-birders braved the elements to enjoy a 2 ½ hour tour with a very knowledgeable docent at this marvelous museum. Two buildings full of World War II planes, tanks, vehicles, missiles, cannons and rockets were on display. Most all either flew or at least ran, and a few were the only ones still in existence. A very interesting event.
Off to lunch at Jimmy Mac’s Roadhouse. No complaints as the food came out fast with no one wondering if they had been forgotten. Oh yes, plenty of peanuts.
Clarke & Wilma
Examples include U.S., British, German, Russian and Japanese types, which were often pitted against each other in great air battles. These rare survivors were researched, hunted down and sometimes recovered from former battlegrounds and airfields. While a few specimens were rebuilt by previous owners, the majority on display have received restoration of the highest authenticity.
In 1998, Paul G. Allen began acquiring and preserving these iconic warriors and workhorses, many of which are the last of their kind. Allen's passion for aviation and history, and his awareness of the increasing rarity of original WWII aircraft, motivated him to restore these artifacts to the highest standard of authenticity and share them with the public.
Waking up to no power and 5 inches of snow on the Sunday we were to head out for a T-bird event to the Paul Allen Museum was not exactly in the plans. By the time we were to leave for south Everett the roads were clear and the power was back on.
A total of 23 t-birders braved the elements to enjoy a 2 ½ hour tour with a very knowledgeable docent at this marvelous museum. Two buildings full of World War II planes, tanks, vehicles, missiles, cannons and rockets were on display. Most all either flew or at least ran, and a few were the only ones still in existence. A very interesting event.
Off to lunch at Jimmy Mac’s Roadhouse. No complaints as the food came out fast with no one wondering if they had been forgotten. Oh yes, plenty of peanuts.
Clarke & Wilma
BUSINESS MEETING and ELECTION of 2018 OFFICERS
Date: Sunday, January 28, 2018
Place: Johnny’s at Fife Restaurant
Agenda: Election of officers and any other club business
New Year Starts With A Well-Attended Meeting
Thank you to everyone who attended our January 28th business meeting. We met at noon at one of our favorite places, Johnny’s restaurant in Fife. As we’ve come to expect, the meals we ordered were well-prepared and our lone wait-staff person was very efficient. Our appreciation to Morris and Gayle Krause for once again hosting this annual event.
As we finished up our tasty meals, President Clarke Hamm called the meeting to order. Before starting the business agenda, Clarke introduced new member Ron Perrone who recently purchased a beautiful, black ‘56 T’bird from Jon and Susan Hanson. Congratulations on the sale and on the purchase, and we extend an Olympic club welcome. We look forward to seeing you on many of our upcoming events.
The main purpose of this general meeting was to elect our officers for 2018. Clarke presented to the members a slate of candidates who volunteered to fill the open positions. Each, in turn, was elected by acclamation. Our newly-elected executive board is as follows. President: Vickie Willson; Vice President: Mel Lang; Secretary: Fran DelDucca; Treasurer: Barb Collins; and Trustees: Mike Ball, Barry Birch, Chuck Birch, and Nancy Burress. Seems if you want to be a trustee, your last name has to start with a “B.” Offering to remain in their current positions are Bruce Eardley as Newsletter Editor, Webmaster, and Membership Chair; Frank Stubbs as Historian; and Vickie Willson as our Sunshine contact. Well wishes to them all. We thank them for volunteering and for their willingness to serve our club. Sincere appreciation also goes to our outgoing Board members who aren’t filling new positions: Clarke Hamm as President, Cathy Stubbs as Secretary, Ron Karr as Treasurer, and Kyle Stubbs and Tony Dilores as Trustees.
As part of the meeting’s business, Ron Karr provided us with a written Treasurer’s report that included a detailed accounting of our income and expenses for the past year. His report also included a 2018 Proposed Budget, offering best estimates to cover recurring expenses. The accounting and proposed budget were approved as presented. Excellent work, Ron!
As this productive meeting came to a close, Jon Hanson extended well-deserved praise to Clarke for his leadership and for his willingness to take on a variety of club responsibilities. Well said and a nice finishing touch to our meeting. We look forward to seeing everyone next month at the Flying Heritage Museum in Everett.
Van
Minutes if the meeting are in the "Members Only" section
Thank you to everyone who attended our January 28th business meeting. We met at noon at one of our favorite places, Johnny’s restaurant in Fife. As we’ve come to expect, the meals we ordered were well-prepared and our lone wait-staff person was very efficient. Our appreciation to Morris and Gayle Krause for once again hosting this annual event.
As we finished up our tasty meals, President Clarke Hamm called the meeting to order. Before starting the business agenda, Clarke introduced new member Ron Perrone who recently purchased a beautiful, black ‘56 T’bird from Jon and Susan Hanson. Congratulations on the sale and on the purchase, and we extend an Olympic club welcome. We look forward to seeing you on many of our upcoming events.
The main purpose of this general meeting was to elect our officers for 2018. Clarke presented to the members a slate of candidates who volunteered to fill the open positions. Each, in turn, was elected by acclamation. Our newly-elected executive board is as follows. President: Vickie Willson; Vice President: Mel Lang; Secretary: Fran DelDucca; Treasurer: Barb Collins; and Trustees: Mike Ball, Barry Birch, Chuck Birch, and Nancy Burress. Seems if you want to be a trustee, your last name has to start with a “B.” Offering to remain in their current positions are Bruce Eardley as Newsletter Editor, Webmaster, and Membership Chair; Frank Stubbs as Historian; and Vickie Willson as our Sunshine contact. Well wishes to them all. We thank them for volunteering and for their willingness to serve our club. Sincere appreciation also goes to our outgoing Board members who aren’t filling new positions: Clarke Hamm as President, Cathy Stubbs as Secretary, Ron Karr as Treasurer, and Kyle Stubbs and Tony Dilores as Trustees.
As part of the meeting’s business, Ron Karr provided us with a written Treasurer’s report that included a detailed accounting of our income and expenses for the past year. His report also included a 2018 Proposed Budget, offering best estimates to cover recurring expenses. The accounting and proposed budget were approved as presented. Excellent work, Ron!
As this productive meeting came to a close, Jon Hanson extended well-deserved praise to Clarke for his leadership and for his willingness to take on a variety of club responsibilities. Well said and a nice finishing touch to our meeting. We look forward to seeing everyone next month at the Flying Heritage Museum in Everett.
Van
Minutes if the meeting are in the "Members Only" section
ANNUAL HOLIDAY CHRISTMAS PARTY
Sunday December 10, 2017
SANTA PUTS THE RED LION ON HIS “NAUGHTY” LIST
On Sunday afternoon, December 10th, an enthusiastic group of Olympic Club members attended our annual Christmas party in Jonah’s restaurant at the Red Lion Hotel in Bellevue. This is the same location where we held our holiday event last year. Since it had been a positive experience, we decided to sign on with them again this time. But I’m certain all who attended this year’s function would agree it was a mixed bag of good and bad.
Let’s start with the good. During a social hour of greetings and catching up, it was nice to visit with everyone. It included sharing hugs with Betty Muir and seeing Chuck Birch arrive in mid-winter in a short-sleeve Hawaiian shirt. It was fun to hear about Donna Wisenburg and Carmen Allstrom’s adventures trying to find this location, and Cliff Holland made a big hit wearing a stylish ‘56 T’bird jacket. How neat it was to see the smile on Joanne Hendry’s face when she won the drawing for a $50 Anthony’s restaurant gift card. And the good continued as Vickie Willson tried her best to explain, once again, those pesky Chinese gift-exchange rules. It was a treat to see the number of fun, entertaining, and quality gifts that people brought. Among them were two framed works of art. The first was a classic T’bird print presented by Barry Birch, and the second was an impressive photo collage of FoMoCo vehicles that was hand-crafted by our own Thais Davis-Evans. Another of our members, Jim Hendry, took special interest in this collage because some of the photos are of cars owned by him and Joanne. How neat! Dan DelDuca became the lucky winner of this unique art. And lastly, it was very good and generous of our members who brought a variety of unwrapped toys to provide needy children with some joy, hope, and happiness at Christmas.
Now, let’s talk about the bad. Our contract agreement with Red Lion was very simple. It was to serve us from the same custom menu at the same prices and quality we had enjoyed the previous year. The contract was finalized in January 2017 between our club and their Group Sales Manager. She said she forwarded the information to their Catering Services Manager. In October 2017, I further confirmed our agreement by mailing to Red Lion a copy of our newsletter event notice along with a copy of the agreed custom menu. But then, at Jonah’s on the day of our event, I was dumbfounded to see the arbitrary changes that had been made to the menu without any notification. They had eliminated many of the agreed entrees, totally eliminated appetizer and dessert choices, and completely changed the prices. When I asked the waitstaff for an explanation they had no answer, and they told me no supervisors or managers were on duty because it was Sunday afternoon. Good grief! Adding to the frustration, the meals weren’t of the same quality as last year. Portions were smaller, French fries were limp, burger buns were cold, etc. Many complaints were voiced by our group. When I called Red Lion the next day, the Group Sales Manager appeared sincere in her apologies for all their missteps. She indicated the Catering Services Manager had dropped the ball. She let me know this Catering Manager had just been fired, a result of our valid complaints and prior problem incidents. So many in our club look forward to this year-end festive event. We expected better from Red Lion. As such, the Christmas party committee will be looking for a different location for next December’s event. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you.
Van
On Sunday afternoon, December 10th, an enthusiastic group of Olympic Club members attended our annual Christmas party in Jonah’s restaurant at the Red Lion Hotel in Bellevue. This is the same location where we held our holiday event last year. Since it had been a positive experience, we decided to sign on with them again this time. But I’m certain all who attended this year’s function would agree it was a mixed bag of good and bad.
Let’s start with the good. During a social hour of greetings and catching up, it was nice to visit with everyone. It included sharing hugs with Betty Muir and seeing Chuck Birch arrive in mid-winter in a short-sleeve Hawaiian shirt. It was fun to hear about Donna Wisenburg and Carmen Allstrom’s adventures trying to find this location, and Cliff Holland made a big hit wearing a stylish ‘56 T’bird jacket. How neat it was to see the smile on Joanne Hendry’s face when she won the drawing for a $50 Anthony’s restaurant gift card. And the good continued as Vickie Willson tried her best to explain, once again, those pesky Chinese gift-exchange rules. It was a treat to see the number of fun, entertaining, and quality gifts that people brought. Among them were two framed works of art. The first was a classic T’bird print presented by Barry Birch, and the second was an impressive photo collage of FoMoCo vehicles that was hand-crafted by our own Thais Davis-Evans. Another of our members, Jim Hendry, took special interest in this collage because some of the photos are of cars owned by him and Joanne. How neat! Dan DelDuca became the lucky winner of this unique art. And lastly, it was very good and generous of our members who brought a variety of unwrapped toys to provide needy children with some joy, hope, and happiness at Christmas.
Now, let’s talk about the bad. Our contract agreement with Red Lion was very simple. It was to serve us from the same custom menu at the same prices and quality we had enjoyed the previous year. The contract was finalized in January 2017 between our club and their Group Sales Manager. She said she forwarded the information to their Catering Services Manager. In October 2017, I further confirmed our agreement by mailing to Red Lion a copy of our newsletter event notice along with a copy of the agreed custom menu. But then, at Jonah’s on the day of our event, I was dumbfounded to see the arbitrary changes that had been made to the menu without any notification. They had eliminated many of the agreed entrees, totally eliminated appetizer and dessert choices, and completely changed the prices. When I asked the waitstaff for an explanation they had no answer, and they told me no supervisors or managers were on duty because it was Sunday afternoon. Good grief! Adding to the frustration, the meals weren’t of the same quality as last year. Portions were smaller, French fries were limp, burger buns were cold, etc. Many complaints were voiced by our group. When I called Red Lion the next day, the Group Sales Manager appeared sincere in her apologies for all their missteps. She indicated the Catering Services Manager had dropped the ball. She let me know this Catering Manager had just been fired, a result of our valid complaints and prior problem incidents. So many in our club look forward to this year-end festive event. We expected better from Red Lion. As such, the Christmas party committee will be looking for a different location for next December’s event. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you.
Van
BUSINESS AND PLANNING MEETING FOR OUR 2017 EVENTS
AND AWARDS CEREMONY
Date: Sunday, November 19, 2017
November 2017 Business & Events Planning Meeting
It seems to be a regular tradition to hold the Olympic Club’s annual calendar of events planning meeting at Frank & Cathy’s home. We all very much appreciate having this opportunity and their gracious hospitality. A heart felt “Thank You” from each and every one of us.
All the chairs downstairs were filled when President Clarke Hamm called the meeting to order. There were no guests or new members. In attendance was Julie Birch just 2 weeks ago having her second knee replacement and now looking forward to her rehab. Vickie spoke about Sander Macham who joined our club in 1993 along with his wife Anne. Sandy passed away this month; our condolences to Anne and their family.
The CTCI International Convention will be held in Knoxville, Tennessee this August and the club voted to donate $500 to their committee to help with their start up expenses. Cathy encouraged members to drive their T-Birds in an effort to win the Ford Johnson Memorial Trophy.
Frank awarded Longevity pins to those in attendance who had earned them. The Allstrom All-Star Award, was initiated to recognize a member who has provided some sort of special or outstanding service to our club during the past year and is voted on by the executive board. This plaque was awarded to Jim and Joanne Hendry. We all especially thank them both for having the All Thunderbird Picnic at their home for the past 2 years.
Mel Lang headed up the challenging job of guiding the members through the process of filling up our Calendar of Events for the coming year. The schedule includes 2 overnight trips and a good variety of local events some new and some we have done in the past. There were even some left over ideas that can be used for next year’s calendar. Thanks to all members to submitted and/or volunteered to host an outing.
The meeting was adjourned so we could all enjoy another outstanding Olympic potluck. What a great variety of delicious food we all had to choose from.
Wilma
It seems to be a regular tradition to hold the Olympic Club’s annual calendar of events planning meeting at Frank & Cathy’s home. We all very much appreciate having this opportunity and their gracious hospitality. A heart felt “Thank You” from each and every one of us.
All the chairs downstairs were filled when President Clarke Hamm called the meeting to order. There were no guests or new members. In attendance was Julie Birch just 2 weeks ago having her second knee replacement and now looking forward to her rehab. Vickie spoke about Sander Macham who joined our club in 1993 along with his wife Anne. Sandy passed away this month; our condolences to Anne and their family.
The CTCI International Convention will be held in Knoxville, Tennessee this August and the club voted to donate $500 to their committee to help with their start up expenses. Cathy encouraged members to drive their T-Birds in an effort to win the Ford Johnson Memorial Trophy.
Frank awarded Longevity pins to those in attendance who had earned them. The Allstrom All-Star Award, was initiated to recognize a member who has provided some sort of special or outstanding service to our club during the past year and is voted on by the executive board. This plaque was awarded to Jim and Joanne Hendry. We all especially thank them both for having the All Thunderbird Picnic at their home for the past 2 years.
Mel Lang headed up the challenging job of guiding the members through the process of filling up our Calendar of Events for the coming year. The schedule includes 2 overnight trips and a good variety of local events some new and some we have done in the past. There were even some left over ideas that can be used for next year’s calendar. Thanks to all members to submitted and/or volunteered to host an outing.
The meeting was adjourned so we could all enjoy another outstanding Olympic potluck. What a great variety of delicious food we all had to choose from.
Wilma
OLYMPIC CLASSIC THUNDERBIRD CLUB
Summary of Meeting Minutes
Sunday, November 19, 2017
The meeting was called to order by President Clarke Hamm at the home of Frank and Cathy Stubbs. There were 28 members present, and no guests or new members. A thank you was
extended to Frank and Cathy for hosting this event.
MINUTES – Minutes from the January 22, 2017, meeting were read and approved.
TREASURER’S REPORT – The OCTC bank account is in good shape. At present 2017 income Surpasses expenses, and to date the club is substantially below its 2017 budget.
COMMITTEE REPORTS – Frank Stubbs, Historian, presented the 2017 Longevity Pins as Follows:
5 years Ron and Helen Bartlett
10 years Cliff Holland (present)
Dave and Jeamme Fields
15 years Dave and Barbara VanWinkle
20 years Donna Wisenberg (present)
25 years Linda Ellefson
Jon and Susan Hansen
Ward and Sue Luhman
Brown and Sara Maloney
30 years Jim and Janet Blodgett
SUNSHINE COMMITTEE -Vickie Willson mentioned the passing of member Sandy Mecham on November 3rd and shared some highlights of his life. He served in the Navy from 1962-1992 and was an OCTC member for 24 years.
Cathy Stubbs reported that former member Kathy Cox just had a bone marrow draw and the results showed her bone marrow to be Leukemia free.
Tony and Eve Dilores are now settled in their new home in Buckeye, AZ.
Julie Birch was at the meeting and recovering nicely from her recent knee-replacement.
MEMBERSHIP – Bruce Eardley reported one new membership – Ron and Beth Bunn.
ALLSTROM ALL-STAR AWARD 2017 - Clarke gave a brief summary of the purpose of the award
And who votes on it. Mel Lang then presented to the award to the 2017 recipients, Jim and Joanne Hendry, for taking on the Thunderbird Picnic and hosting it at their home.
NEW BUSINESS – In 2018 the CTCI International Convention will be held in Knoxville, TN. It was asked if the club was going to make a contribution to the hosting club to assist them with seed money for the convention. After some discussion a motion was made and approved to donate $500.00 to the hosting club.
OLD BUSINESS –
Christmas Party – Van Victor reported that the party was good to go on Sunday, December 10th, at Johah’s Restaurant at the Holiday Inn in Bellevue. They are giving us the same generous menu as last year. We will be able to pay separately, and 18% gratuity will be added to the check. Arrival is noon with lunch at 1:00 PM. The Holiday Inn is offering a special $79.00 rate for those wishing to spend the night.
January Business Meeting & Election of Officers – The January meeting is scheduled for Sunday, January 28th, at Johnnies in Fife. OCTC currently needs to fill all the officer positions and three directors.
OTHER BUSINESS – Cliff Holland mentioned that his friend, Mario just purchased a 1960 Thunderbird and was inquiring if he could join our club. Unfortunately, club policy still requires that a person own a 1955, 56 or 57 Thunderbird in order to join OCTC.
Jutta Burks brought two brand new white jackets (never worn) of a past Olympic club jacket Styling, and offered them to anyone interested. They are a unisex style. There is still one Large available. See Cathy if interested.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS – See the updated posting of the events elsewhere in the Newsletter. Following a lengthy discussion and possible events and scheduling, the meeting was adjourned And another outstanding OCTC potluck was consumed.
Cathy Stubbs
Secretary
extended to Frank and Cathy for hosting this event.
MINUTES – Minutes from the January 22, 2017, meeting were read and approved.
TREASURER’S REPORT – The OCTC bank account is in good shape. At present 2017 income Surpasses expenses, and to date the club is substantially below its 2017 budget.
COMMITTEE REPORTS – Frank Stubbs, Historian, presented the 2017 Longevity Pins as Follows:
5 years Ron and Helen Bartlett
10 years Cliff Holland (present)
Dave and Jeamme Fields
15 years Dave and Barbara VanWinkle
20 years Donna Wisenberg (present)
25 years Linda Ellefson
Jon and Susan Hansen
Ward and Sue Luhman
Brown and Sara Maloney
30 years Jim and Janet Blodgett
SUNSHINE COMMITTEE -Vickie Willson mentioned the passing of member Sandy Mecham on November 3rd and shared some highlights of his life. He served in the Navy from 1962-1992 and was an OCTC member for 24 years.
Cathy Stubbs reported that former member Kathy Cox just had a bone marrow draw and the results showed her bone marrow to be Leukemia free.
Tony and Eve Dilores are now settled in their new home in Buckeye, AZ.
Julie Birch was at the meeting and recovering nicely from her recent knee-replacement.
MEMBERSHIP – Bruce Eardley reported one new membership – Ron and Beth Bunn.
ALLSTROM ALL-STAR AWARD 2017 - Clarke gave a brief summary of the purpose of the award
And who votes on it. Mel Lang then presented to the award to the 2017 recipients, Jim and Joanne Hendry, for taking on the Thunderbird Picnic and hosting it at their home.
NEW BUSINESS – In 2018 the CTCI International Convention will be held in Knoxville, TN. It was asked if the club was going to make a contribution to the hosting club to assist them with seed money for the convention. After some discussion a motion was made and approved to donate $500.00 to the hosting club.
OLD BUSINESS –
Christmas Party – Van Victor reported that the party was good to go on Sunday, December 10th, at Johah’s Restaurant at the Holiday Inn in Bellevue. They are giving us the same generous menu as last year. We will be able to pay separately, and 18% gratuity will be added to the check. Arrival is noon with lunch at 1:00 PM. The Holiday Inn is offering a special $79.00 rate for those wishing to spend the night.
January Business Meeting & Election of Officers – The January meeting is scheduled for Sunday, January 28th, at Johnnies in Fife. OCTC currently needs to fill all the officer positions and three directors.
OTHER BUSINESS – Cliff Holland mentioned that his friend, Mario just purchased a 1960 Thunderbird and was inquiring if he could join our club. Unfortunately, club policy still requires that a person own a 1955, 56 or 57 Thunderbird in order to join OCTC.
Jutta Burks brought two brand new white jackets (never worn) of a past Olympic club jacket Styling, and offered them to anyone interested. They are a unisex style. There is still one Large available. See Cathy if interested.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS – See the updated posting of the events elsewhere in the Newsletter. Following a lengthy discussion and possible events and scheduling, the meeting was adjourned And another outstanding OCTC potluck was consumed.
Cathy Stubbs
Secretary
BOEING MUSUEM OF FLIGHT
& LUNCH AT RANDY’S RESTRUANT
SUNDAY OCT 15, 2017
This was a new event. The original event, Boeing Field Tour, was not available on weekends.
About the Museum
The Museum of Flight is the largest independent, non-profit air and space museum in the world! With over 175 aircraft and spacecraft, tens of thousands of artifacts, millions of rare photographs, dozen of exhibits and experiences and a world-class library, the Museum and its people bring mankind's incredible history of flight to life.
In 1964 a small group of aviation enthusiasts realized that important and historic artifacts representing the evolution of flight were being lost or destroyed at an incredible rate. To aid in the preservation of these artifacts, the Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation was established with the goal of saving significant aircraft and related artifacts to educate the public about their importance.
It soon became clear that a place to store and exhibit these artifacts was needed, and in 1965 the first official Museum of Flight exhibits were put on display in a 10,000 square-foot space at the Seattle Center, the location of the 1962 World’s Fair.
The concept for The Museum of Flight complex began to take in 1975 when the Port of Seattle leased the land on which the Boeing Red Barn now sits to the Museum for 99 years. The Red Barn, the birthplace of The Boeing Company, was saved from demolition in its original location on the Duwamish River and floated by river barge to its current location. The Red Barn was restored in 1983 and became the first permanent location for The Museum of Flight.
The Red Barn was eventually joined by the Great Gallery in 1987, the Library and Archives Building in 2002 and the J. Elroy McCaw Personal Courage Wing and Airpark in 2004. The Museum of Flight continues to expand our exhibits, our experiences and our educational programs—paying homage to the history of flight and inspiring the entertainment and education of generations to come.
Our visit to the museum
We had a beautiful fall day on Oct 15 for our T-Bird event. 20 people met at Randy's Diner at 11:30 for brunch or lunch or anything from their 24 hour menu! We had good food and good service and good company. It was nice to see some members who we don’t see very
often such as Eddie Akers and Russell Jones, we hope to see them at more of our events.
We then mounted up, drove one block to the Museum of Flight and spent several hours wandering through the museum checking out all the amazing exhibits! Everyone was free to go and see whatever they wanted and at their own pace. It would take several days to see all the Museum has to offer, but was good fun.
Thanks to all that joined us to make this event a success
Fran & Dan DelDuca
About the Museum
The Museum of Flight is the largest independent, non-profit air and space museum in the world! With over 175 aircraft and spacecraft, tens of thousands of artifacts, millions of rare photographs, dozen of exhibits and experiences and a world-class library, the Museum and its people bring mankind's incredible history of flight to life.
In 1964 a small group of aviation enthusiasts realized that important and historic artifacts representing the evolution of flight were being lost or destroyed at an incredible rate. To aid in the preservation of these artifacts, the Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation was established with the goal of saving significant aircraft and related artifacts to educate the public about their importance.
It soon became clear that a place to store and exhibit these artifacts was needed, and in 1965 the first official Museum of Flight exhibits were put on display in a 10,000 square-foot space at the Seattle Center, the location of the 1962 World’s Fair.
The concept for The Museum of Flight complex began to take in 1975 when the Port of Seattle leased the land on which the Boeing Red Barn now sits to the Museum for 99 years. The Red Barn, the birthplace of The Boeing Company, was saved from demolition in its original location on the Duwamish River and floated by river barge to its current location. The Red Barn was restored in 1983 and became the first permanent location for The Museum of Flight.
The Red Barn was eventually joined by the Great Gallery in 1987, the Library and Archives Building in 2002 and the J. Elroy McCaw Personal Courage Wing and Airpark in 2004. The Museum of Flight continues to expand our exhibits, our experiences and our educational programs—paying homage to the history of flight and inspiring the entertainment and education of generations to come.
Our visit to the museum
We had a beautiful fall day on Oct 15 for our T-Bird event. 20 people met at Randy's Diner at 11:30 for brunch or lunch or anything from their 24 hour menu! We had good food and good service and good company. It was nice to see some members who we don’t see very
often such as Eddie Akers and Russell Jones, we hope to see them at more of our events.
We then mounted up, drove one block to the Museum of Flight and spent several hours wandering through the museum checking out all the amazing exhibits! Everyone was free to go and see whatever they wanted and at their own pace. It would take several days to see all the Museum has to offer, but was good fun.
Thanks to all that joined us to make this event a success
Fran & Dan DelDuca
LAKE CHELAN WEEKEND
&
CAR SHOW
September 8-10, 2017
On Friday morning it was a small group – Hendry’s, Stubbs’, VanWinkle’s – leaving our meeting place at the Country Pride Restaurant in Northbend. After a rest stop under smoky skies in Cle Elum, we made our way over scenic, but smoky Blewit Pass to our lunch stop at the 59iner Diner in Cashmere. There we met up with the Hamm’s and Hanson’s along with two couples from the Hamm’s club out of Stanwood. The Diner set our group up for lunch in their mock-up fifties kitchen where we dined on our fifties favorites which among other things included a wide variety of flavorful hand-dipped milk shakes. And yes, Jon, Frank and I have made your version of the root beer shakes, and even at home they were ummmm-good.
After lunch some of the group took a quick stroll through Apple Annie’s Antiques, and then it was back on the road to Chelan. We arrived at the Lakeside Lodge and Suites with plenty of time to have a bit of social time on the grass by the pool. Shortly after we all arrived Donna Wisenberg and her friend, Pat pulled in. Our younger, working member, Kyle Stubbs arrived in Mom’s green ’57 later in the evening.
Everyone who was attending the Lake Chelan Car Show on Saturday were invited to
a barbecue Friday evening at the location of Leo Miller’s car and memorabilia collection. The members of the Chelan car club had us collector cars parked in the lot out front and from there up and down the street. They call it a barbecue, but we really dined on slow cooked prime rib with all the trimmings, and various pies and cookies for dessert. While there we were entertained with live music and lots of opportunities to purchase raffle and 50/50 tickets.
Saturday morning following an early breakfast at Lakeside Lodge, we left the hotel together to attend the Chelan Car Show. It was held on grass in a very nice park between the lake and Downtown- a great place for a car show. Even though we are the Olympic Classic Thunderbird Club our group of cars included two T-Birds, ’57 Ford Convertible, ’57 Ford Retractable, and a ’67 Ford seven litre convertible. We were at the park early, but the day seemed to go by fast as there was a lot to do with all the cars to look at, music to listen to, more raffle and 50/50 tickets to buy and downtown
right there for our shopping and dining pleasures. At the end of the day the awards were handed out with the Hendry’s receiving a Sweet 16 Award of which there were sixteen given in no particular order.
While we were all hanging around car show festivities with our cars both Friday and Saturday, Donna and Pat were out having a grand time exploring the all around the Lake Chelan area. They had the good fortune to enjoy goodies at Blue Berry Hill Farm, along with visiting wineries, a Karaoke Bar in Manson, and the casino. When we got back to the hotel on Saturday, they were having a swim.
That evening all of us including our weekend organizer’s and hosts, Jerry and Becky Cline, drove to Manson to enjoy food, beverages and friendship at Buddy’s where the locals hang out away from us tourists – HA!
Sunday morning has us all up for breakfast and homeward bound. We want to thank Jerry and Becky for suggesting and planning this wonderful weekend for us.
Cathy Stubbs
After lunch some of the group took a quick stroll through Apple Annie’s Antiques, and then it was back on the road to Chelan. We arrived at the Lakeside Lodge and Suites with plenty of time to have a bit of social time on the grass by the pool. Shortly after we all arrived Donna Wisenberg and her friend, Pat pulled in. Our younger, working member, Kyle Stubbs arrived in Mom’s green ’57 later in the evening.
Everyone who was attending the Lake Chelan Car Show on Saturday were invited to
a barbecue Friday evening at the location of Leo Miller’s car and memorabilia collection. The members of the Chelan car club had us collector cars parked in the lot out front and from there up and down the street. They call it a barbecue, but we really dined on slow cooked prime rib with all the trimmings, and various pies and cookies for dessert. While there we were entertained with live music and lots of opportunities to purchase raffle and 50/50 tickets.
Saturday morning following an early breakfast at Lakeside Lodge, we left the hotel together to attend the Chelan Car Show. It was held on grass in a very nice park between the lake and Downtown- a great place for a car show. Even though we are the Olympic Classic Thunderbird Club our group of cars included two T-Birds, ’57 Ford Convertible, ’57 Ford Retractable, and a ’67 Ford seven litre convertible. We were at the park early, but the day seemed to go by fast as there was a lot to do with all the cars to look at, music to listen to, more raffle and 50/50 tickets to buy and downtown
right there for our shopping and dining pleasures. At the end of the day the awards were handed out with the Hendry’s receiving a Sweet 16 Award of which there were sixteen given in no particular order.
While we were all hanging around car show festivities with our cars both Friday and Saturday, Donna and Pat were out having a grand time exploring the all around the Lake Chelan area. They had the good fortune to enjoy goodies at Blue Berry Hill Farm, along with visiting wineries, a Karaoke Bar in Manson, and the casino. When we got back to the hotel on Saturday, they were having a swim.
That evening all of us including our weekend organizer’s and hosts, Jerry and Becky Cline, drove to Manson to enjoy food, beverages and friendship at Buddy’s where the locals hang out away from us tourists – HA!
Sunday morning has us all up for breakfast and homeward bound. We want to thank Jerry and Becky for suggesting and planning this wonderful weekend for us.
Cathy Stubbs
ANNUAL PICNIC (POT LUCK)
&
GARAGE TOUR
JIM & JOANNE HENDRY & TODD GUNDMUNDSON
SUNDAY AUGUST 20, 2017
Our 38th annual Olympic Club picnic on Sunday, August 20, was held on the spacious grounds at Jim and Joanne Hendry’s home in Issaquah. It was an absolutely perfect setting with a great mix of beautiful cars, super people, delicious food, and nice weather. It truly made for a fun gathering among fellow car enthusiasts. Members from our Olympic Club were joined by folks from the Ford Retractable Club and a number of Ford-connected classic car owners. Thirty + cars were on display that included classic ‘birds, square ‘birds, Skyliner retractable, Rancheros, Mercuries, Mustangs, and a ‘55 Crown Victoria. . In addition to these, we had the opportunity to look at two neat “garage tour” collections of cars. One collection belongs to Jim and Joanne, while the second is owned by Todd Gundmundson who lives just a short distance away. Wow! Talk about a feast for the eyes getting to see all these cool cars at our event.
Now let’s talk about another type of feast. A wonderful potluck that included salads, desserts, and all the trimmings. An Olympic Club thank you also goes to Vickie Willson who provided us with a number of tasty fruit pies to enjoy for dessert. It was a great treat, with or without alamode. Yum!
This was a very well-attended event with over 50 people taking part. A special appreciation to our hosts, Jim and Joanne, for all the work they put in to make this outing such a success. It was also nice to visit with folks we haven’t seen at a club event for some time, including Betty Muir with Larry & Emily, Morris and Gayle Krause, Todd Gundmundson, Dan and Fran DelDuca and Phil & Cheryl McCurdy.
Thanks to everyone,
Jim & Joanne
Looking forward to next month’s event, Lake Chelan Weekend & Car Show on
September 8 - 10, 2017.
Also we wish safe travels to the group doing Route 66 for the month of September. The group consists of Tony & Eve Dilores, Bruce Eardley & Vickie Willson, Michael & Cathie Ball, Les & Cynthia Willman, Ron Karr & Barb Collins, Chuck Birch, and Larry & Emily Muir.
Now let’s talk about another type of feast. A wonderful potluck that included salads, desserts, and all the trimmings. An Olympic Club thank you also goes to Vickie Willson who provided us with a number of tasty fruit pies to enjoy for dessert. It was a great treat, with or without alamode. Yum!
This was a very well-attended event with over 50 people taking part. A special appreciation to our hosts, Jim and Joanne, for all the work they put in to make this outing such a success. It was also nice to visit with folks we haven’t seen at a club event for some time, including Betty Muir with Larry & Emily, Morris and Gayle Krause, Todd Gundmundson, Dan and Fran DelDuca and Phil & Cheryl McCurdy.
Thanks to everyone,
Jim & Joanne
Looking forward to next month’s event, Lake Chelan Weekend & Car Show on
September 8 - 10, 2017.
Also we wish safe travels to the group doing Route 66 for the month of September. The group consists of Tony & Eve Dilores, Bruce Eardley & Vickie Willson, Michael & Cathie Ball, Les & Cynthia Willman, Ron Karr & Barb Collins, Chuck Birch, and Larry & Emily Muir.
CTCI REGION 1 CONVENTION
AUGUST 2 - 6 2017
CTCI REGION 1 CONVENTION WAS AN EAST COAST TREAT
Congratulations to the New Jersey Open Road Thunderbird Club for hosting a truly wonderful regional event. It was held August 2 – 6, 2017, at the Hanover Marriott in Whippany, New Jersey. This is the fifth CTCI convention hosted by this club, and their experience really shows. From the Welcome Party to the farewell good-byes, everything was well planned and well executed. Some of the highlights included a tour of New York City, a narrated boat cruise around Manhattan Island, and a visit to the 9/11 Memorial-Museum. The majestic tribute that now embraces the location of that 2001 horrible tragedy is both emotional and inspiring. If you have the opportunity, it’s a destination not to be missed.
There were over 350 T’bird enthusiasts at the convention, arriving from all parts of the United States, Canada, Sweden, and New Zealand. Our Olympic Club was represented by Bruce Eardley and Vickie Willson, Clarke and Wilma Hamm, Frank and Cathy Stubbs, Kyle Stubbs, Dave and Barb VanWinkle, and Van and Lynn Victor. On Friday morning, the Concours d’Elegance featured over 100 classic Thunderbirds for judging in Concours and Touring classes, and in Display. My gosh, the heart still thumps as I walk through and admire the beauty of these absolutely exceptional motorcars.
Clarke and Wilma drove their gleaming black ‘55 all the way from Camano Island, but were edged out of the longest driven award by folks from Oregon and even California. Wow! However, they did win Second Place among all entered in their Touring class. Good job! After the convention, their trip back to Washington will take them on a Canadian driving tour of all 10 Provincial capitals. Quite the ride. Frank and Cathy had their rare Phase 1 F-bird on display at the convention, but it was the result of an interesting path to get here. Back in May, they had driven this car cross-country for an “E” and “F” Code re-union that was held at the Ford Nationals in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Then they stored the car back east to have it for the New Jersey convention. After that, would come the return trip back home to Newcastle. Kudos to the Hamm's and to the Stubbs’s. They are among OCTC’s longest standing members and yet remain so dedicated to promoting our Thunderbird hobby. Ford and Nell Johnson would be proud.
A planned driving tour to locations of interest around the greater Whippany area also included a “Poker Run” in which participants received a playing card at five different sites. “Mr. Lucky,” Bruce Eardley and Vickie Willson had the second best hand and received a nice prize. Congrats, you two!
The theme for this convention was titled, “Follow the Open Road.” I’m not disputing that New Jersey likely has its share of open roads, but the rental car Lynn and I used sure didn’t find many of them. Instead, we found more than our share of traffic jams, confusing clover-leaf off-ramps, and congested roundabout intersections. Whew! We offer this advice to out-of-state drivers without GPS... “Forget aboudit!” But the convention was well worth a little traffic frustration. Hats off to the New Jersey Open Road Thunderbird Club for hosting such a successful event. A good time with good people.
Van
Congratulations to the New Jersey Open Road Thunderbird Club for hosting a truly wonderful regional event. It was held August 2 – 6, 2017, at the Hanover Marriott in Whippany, New Jersey. This is the fifth CTCI convention hosted by this club, and their experience really shows. From the Welcome Party to the farewell good-byes, everything was well planned and well executed. Some of the highlights included a tour of New York City, a narrated boat cruise around Manhattan Island, and a visit to the 9/11 Memorial-Museum. The majestic tribute that now embraces the location of that 2001 horrible tragedy is both emotional and inspiring. If you have the opportunity, it’s a destination not to be missed.
There were over 350 T’bird enthusiasts at the convention, arriving from all parts of the United States, Canada, Sweden, and New Zealand. Our Olympic Club was represented by Bruce Eardley and Vickie Willson, Clarke and Wilma Hamm, Frank and Cathy Stubbs, Kyle Stubbs, Dave and Barb VanWinkle, and Van and Lynn Victor. On Friday morning, the Concours d’Elegance featured over 100 classic Thunderbirds for judging in Concours and Touring classes, and in Display. My gosh, the heart still thumps as I walk through and admire the beauty of these absolutely exceptional motorcars.
Clarke and Wilma drove their gleaming black ‘55 all the way from Camano Island, but were edged out of the longest driven award by folks from Oregon and even California. Wow! However, they did win Second Place among all entered in their Touring class. Good job! After the convention, their trip back to Washington will take them on a Canadian driving tour of all 10 Provincial capitals. Quite the ride. Frank and Cathy had their rare Phase 1 F-bird on display at the convention, but it was the result of an interesting path to get here. Back in May, they had driven this car cross-country for an “E” and “F” Code re-union that was held at the Ford Nationals in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Then they stored the car back east to have it for the New Jersey convention. After that, would come the return trip back home to Newcastle. Kudos to the Hamm's and to the Stubbs’s. They are among OCTC’s longest standing members and yet remain so dedicated to promoting our Thunderbird hobby. Ford and Nell Johnson would be proud.
A planned driving tour to locations of interest around the greater Whippany area also included a “Poker Run” in which participants received a playing card at five different sites. “Mr. Lucky,” Bruce Eardley and Vickie Willson had the second best hand and received a nice prize. Congrats, you two!
The theme for this convention was titled, “Follow the Open Road.” I’m not disputing that New Jersey likely has its share of open roads, but the rental car Lynn and I used sure didn’t find many of them. Instead, we found more than our share of traffic jams, confusing clover-leaf off-ramps, and congested roundabout intersections. Whew! We offer this advice to out-of-state drivers without GPS... “Forget aboudit!” But the convention was well worth a little traffic frustration. Hats off to the New Jersey Open Road Thunderbird Club for hosting such a successful event. A good time with good people.
Van
BIRDS & PONIES
ROAD TRIP TO RAYMOND WA
SUNDAY JULY 16, 2017
On Sunday July 16th, a bit over five years since our prior visit, Vickie Willson and Bruce Eardley hosted our July event to the Northwest Carriage Museum in Raymond, Washington. This was a joint event between Olympic Classic Thunderbird Club and Mustangs West. From our tally, which may be a bit off because we were so overwhelmed looking at the cars that we forgot to count them, we had 44 people attend including 6 T-birds, 10 newer Mustangs, 3 classic Mustangs, a Ford Retractable, a newer Mercedes and Ron Karr and Barb Collins heading south to visit family after the event in Barb’s truck.
The morning started for the T-bird club at a well-used meeting place of Starbucks in Renton. From there it was about an hours’ drive to Tumwater Falls Park where we met up with the Mustang West club, who were already waiting for our arrival. The entire group had an hour to check out the other club’s vehicles and wander about the park admiring the waterfalls and rapids in this beautiful 15 acres country-like setting in Tumwater. The weather was beautiful – warm and sunny. Many of the cars, both T-birds and Mustangs, spent the day with their tops down enjoying the feel of the wind creating a cooling draft of air.
From there we drove about 40 minutes through the tree-lined roadway to Montesano for a quick opportunity to top off the gas tanks and spend a bit more time talking with each other, then another half hour to Slaters Diner in Raymond. Slater’s is a wonderful 50’s style dinner with walls covered by old signs and even a menu from the 50’s. We all agreed that the prices on the old menu were great, but Slaters was a bit reluctant to give us our meals at that pricing. Jim Hendry, a connoisseur of clam chowder, declared his bowl was one of the best he’s had.
Lunch was followed by our feature event, a tour of the Northwest Carriage Museum. This wonderful facility, a best kept secret, is filled with a variety of beautifully restored horse drawn carriages that range from coaches to Hansom cabs. They’ve expanded the museum with an additional room since the T-bird club’s last visit five years ago and now includes a fully recreated 1890’s chuck wagon that has won many awards for its authenticity. As beautiful as the vehicles are, the experience was truly brought to life by our tour
guide who offered informative explanations about each of the displays. Recognizing our keen interest in cars, he even brought to our attention that such terms as “Landau top” and “Brougham” were originally applied to carriages and then carried forward to our modern day cars. His knowledge of the vehicles and their history was impressive. Also on sight was the farmer’s market filled with a wide variety of hand-made craft items and the maritime museum. The maritime museum was initially closed when we tested the doors but we were able to locate the owner with keys and a great docent who opened it up for our viewing and gave a personal tour to several of our group members. Unfortunately many people had already headed home so weren’t able to partake of this fascinating place.
Following a longtime tradition for Olympic club members, Vickie and Bruce made sure our last stop of the day was to the Dairy Queen in Raymond for a quick treat of ice cream before beginning the long trek home. For those heading north, the drive home included heavy traffic and the construction on I-5 in the Tacoma area which I can only describe as torturous. Good thing we had stopped for a snack before heading out, as many of us didn’t reach home until long after dinner.
Everyone agreed that the event was something different and fun - getting our two clubs together. There were several who spoke about arranging another joint event next year, possibly the originally discussed over-night trip around the Olympic Peninsula.
Our thanks to everyone who came. Without you the trip just wouldn’t have been as much fun, and especially to the Mustangs West club for joining us. We enjoyed checking out your cars and sharing many conversations with your wonderful members.
Vickie and Bruce
The morning started for the T-bird club at a well-used meeting place of Starbucks in Renton. From there it was about an hours’ drive to Tumwater Falls Park where we met up with the Mustang West club, who were already waiting for our arrival. The entire group had an hour to check out the other club’s vehicles and wander about the park admiring the waterfalls and rapids in this beautiful 15 acres country-like setting in Tumwater. The weather was beautiful – warm and sunny. Many of the cars, both T-birds and Mustangs, spent the day with their tops down enjoying the feel of the wind creating a cooling draft of air.
From there we drove about 40 minutes through the tree-lined roadway to Montesano for a quick opportunity to top off the gas tanks and spend a bit more time talking with each other, then another half hour to Slaters Diner in Raymond. Slater’s is a wonderful 50’s style dinner with walls covered by old signs and even a menu from the 50’s. We all agreed that the prices on the old menu were great, but Slaters was a bit reluctant to give us our meals at that pricing. Jim Hendry, a connoisseur of clam chowder, declared his bowl was one of the best he’s had.
Lunch was followed by our feature event, a tour of the Northwest Carriage Museum. This wonderful facility, a best kept secret, is filled with a variety of beautifully restored horse drawn carriages that range from coaches to Hansom cabs. They’ve expanded the museum with an additional room since the T-bird club’s last visit five years ago and now includes a fully recreated 1890’s chuck wagon that has won many awards for its authenticity. As beautiful as the vehicles are, the experience was truly brought to life by our tour
guide who offered informative explanations about each of the displays. Recognizing our keen interest in cars, he even brought to our attention that such terms as “Landau top” and “Brougham” were originally applied to carriages and then carried forward to our modern day cars. His knowledge of the vehicles and their history was impressive. Also on sight was the farmer’s market filled with a wide variety of hand-made craft items and the maritime museum. The maritime museum was initially closed when we tested the doors but we were able to locate the owner with keys and a great docent who opened it up for our viewing and gave a personal tour to several of our group members. Unfortunately many people had already headed home so weren’t able to partake of this fascinating place.
Following a longtime tradition for Olympic club members, Vickie and Bruce made sure our last stop of the day was to the Dairy Queen in Raymond for a quick treat of ice cream before beginning the long trek home. For those heading north, the drive home included heavy traffic and the construction on I-5 in the Tacoma area which I can only describe as torturous. Good thing we had stopped for a snack before heading out, as many of us didn’t reach home until long after dinner.
Everyone agreed that the event was something different and fun - getting our two clubs together. There were several who spoke about arranging another joint event next year, possibly the originally discussed over-night trip around the Olympic Peninsula.
Our thanks to everyone who came. Without you the trip just wouldn’t have been as much fun, and especially to the Mustangs West club for joining us. We enjoyed checking out your cars and sharing many conversations with your wonderful members.
Vickie and Bruce