SOCIAL EVENT REPORTS
Social Reports
are to be filed by the Chairperson after each Event.
Please send your report and pictures to the
Webmaster
THE ROYAL GOWN OF PRINCESS DIANA
June 24, 2010
Two PGIslanders and their guests drove to Naples to see the exhibit of the beautiful Royal Gowns of Princess Diana at The von Leiberg Art Center in Naples , Fl.
A beautiful selection of Princess Diana’s gowns were displayed in glass cases with information as to where she wore it, who purchased it and how much was paid at auction. You could see her entire royal gown collection displayed in miniature on dolls, as well.
Also displayed were a collection of her personal Christmas cards to their friends, before and after the divorce, her jeweled crowns given to Diana by Queen Elizabeth and her own family crown.
Included in the exhibit were various photos of the past Kings, Queens and their families along with hand written notes, letters and the largest collection of perfume bottles hand painted inside with Diana’s picture at various stages of her life.
After the exhibit the group had delicious lunch at the Cricket restaurant and enjoyed browsing the shops on 5th Ave.
A fun time was had by all.
Submitted by Marie Ludvig.
Seven PGIslander women and one guest attended the SEX AND THE CITY 2 matinee at the Town Center Mall. We car-pooled from PGI, had a quick lunch, saw the movie, then discussed the gorgeous/outrageous fashions, aging characters and exotic setting while having coffee, etc. outside Starbucks.
It was fun and definitely a "girls' afternoon out".
Submitted by Debbie Seter
Solomon’s Castle Trip
June 4, 2010
Twenty one PGIslanders and Six guests visited Solomon’s castle in the heart of Florida.
The owner and builder is Howard Solomon, a sculptor and artist, using scrap to create unique pieces of art. He has a wonderful sense of humor; each piece has a name and a story that puts a smile on your face.
After the tour we had a great lunch in the Boat on the Moat Restaurant, it was fresh and tasteful.
It’s a unique place to take company.
Almut Haswell
First Annual
Islander Sea and Land Extravaganza
(I.S.L.E.) Report
April 23-25, 2010
The first annual Islander Sea and Land Extravaganza (I.S.L.E.) is in the history books and it was a great success. Talk to anyone who attended and you'll hear what a fun-filled weekend it was. One of the things that made it special was that it was both a nice destination for those arriving by boat, and it was just a short drive down for those who elected to come by car.
Friday started with a sailboat race, which suffered from little to no wind, but was followed by a wonderful evening under the pavilion, including a great BYOB happy hour featuring the musical styling's of our own Paul Elliott and a variety of delicious pizzas. No one left hungry. The evening ended with several hours of Karaoke including all the hooting, hollering, and genuine applause you might expect from a bunch of PGIslanders with a little "liquid courage" in them.
Saturday started with a Jazzercise session and a long bike ride to get the blood pumping, followed by numerous relay type games, bocce ball, a waterside ring toss, Frisbee golf, and some table-top domino games thrown in for good measure. Many players had never played the games before and performed with incredible skill (or beginner's luck, depending on whose team you were on!) It is rumored that a beer or two may have been drunk and a nap or two may have been taken.
In mid-afternoon, several sail boats slipped their lines to take quite a few passengers out for a glorious sail in the brisk winds and relatively calm seas. A marvelous BBQ dinner followed a BYOB happy hour under the pavilion. Some enjoyed chattin' and chillin' while others couldn't resist the bocce balls and grassy space calling to them.
Sunday morning had enough overcast and breeze to make strolling the docks a pleasant experience while the clues from the Nom de Bateau contest were solved and boat names recorded. Many clues were quite clever and it was a fun brain teaser while we waited for the 10am start of a delicious brunch in Portobello's. Most all the boats departed by Sun afternoon and the sailors had a nice "free" ride home with the following winds and seas.
It took quite a number of PGIslanders to make this event happen and planning has already started for next year's event. You do not want to miss it. I.S.L.E. be there and so should you!
The 2010 I.S.L.E. Committee
Survivor Punta Gorda 2010 Report
April 11, 2010
Survivor Punta Gorda 2010 started with a bang…oh, it was actually thunder. This was followed by a monsoon, but we are “survivors”. We didn't have life rafts, so as a safety precaution the event was moved to an indoor location.
Three tribes had to combine their nautical knowledge involving a compass rose, some string, and some nautical terms to accomplish their task at hand. After a little crawling on the floor blindfolded chasing after tennis balls, rolling balls into large hoops, putting together a giant puzzle, and eating worms, the Orange Tribe consisting of Bruce and Anne Whilton, Bob and Linda Glidden, Nancy Klaren, and Richard Collins was victorious. They were awarded special immunity necklaces. Other tribes were awarded a consolation immunity necklace.
A total of 20 survivors attended the event to vie for the title of Survivor. The post Survivor feast of pizza, subs, chips, and cookies was much needed.
Submitted by
Lynn Olzacki
Reunion Party Report
March 27, 2010
This was billed as the party you did not want to miss and 37 members and one out of town guest heeded the call and fully participated in this fun night of nostalgia.
The seed of an idea for the party was planted by Sue Linehan but the members of the planning team, Rob Linehan, Donna and Paul Willsey, Angela Duffy and Mary Rommel shaped and grew that seed until the plan was ready for the members who signed on as participating guests.
Though it was not required to provide one, everyone came up with a picture taken of themselves in high school and got it to Sue and Rob prior to the event. No one else got to see the pictures ahead of time. They were displayed with numbers to identify them. When guests arrived, they had until dinner was served, about 45 minutes, to look at the pictures and try to match them to the guests. Many gave up early but others were marking names until the last second. The best part of this was to get to know each other better. When you really stop to look someone in the eye and connect the name to the face, if you didn't know them well before, you have a way of finding a bond that will pay off in friendship over time. Everyone agreed that the least changed of the group is Bob Glidden. He was easy but others were not so clear! In the picture gallery, you will see his high school picture and those of others in a way that you will recognize.
The results of the picture competition were determined on the honor system and while some only recognized the picture of themselves and their spouse, others did very well. It was much more difficult than anyone expected. Finally the top three winners were Karen Clark with 20, Debbie Setter with 21 and Duane Ising with 26. They each received a gift certificate for a movie night.
We enjoyed pictures of times gone by which brought back lots of memories. The group was seated by date of graduation so more likely you were sitting with others who shared your historical experience. That often split up couples and the number of men and women at a particular table may have been unbalanced, but people enjoyed socializing with others they may not have known well before this evening. While most tables had mixed years, there was one table of 6, all from 1958, which was our most common year.
The longer term graduates were dismissed to the buffet first because we all know how old people like to eat early!! The food was catered by the Burnt Store Grill. It was not only reasonable, but comments were very positive.
After the meal and lots of stories going around, we watched a film of jitter bugging that was from that era. We all commented on their energy and tiny waists on the girls! Some stories were shared. We found out that Terry Clark drove the school bus for his school during his Junior and Senior year in High School. Bob Taylor shared the story of meeting and courting his wife of nearly 50 years, Sue, during his senior year of High School.
Bob and Sue Taylor also won an ward for having one of the most unusual school mascots, The Cake Eaters. When you see Sue and Bob, ask them about it. Joanne Collins was a close second with her school mascot, the Might Mites. She didn't know why they were named that but has since sent a web site so we can find out. http://bergenfieldalumni.com/news-archive/mighty_mites.html
To increase our appetite for dinner, everyone participated in a game played with chairs. We all sat in a circle. Comments about things in high school were mentioned and if that pertained to you, you would move a certain number of seats to the left or right as instructed. Of course not everyone moved, so you may sit on an empty chair or on someone's lap. I think the record of people on one chair was 5. It was a laugh filled time but more than that we got to learn something about the people who moved for each statement. For example, we found out who got academic scholarships, who were the jocks, who had been sent to the principals office, who played hooky, who still knows the words to their school song, etc. The game ended with a call to desert.
Desert was make your own Ice Cream Sunday. The ice cream was still pretty hard to scoop so we called in the jock, Zack Olzacki, still fitting in to his well decorated letter sweater, and a former professional ice cream scooper, Bob Glidden to help out. Because the ice cream started out hard, this time the line started with the hard body younger graduates because by the time the older graduates got there the ice cream would be soft enough for them to eat. With all the toppings of choice, people seemed to get in the spirit of enjoying desert.
By the way, the people at the older graduate table were very good about taking the teasing they got. In fact you will see in the picture gallery that Richard found there were rewards for being the oldest graduate, 1949. In addition to the attention, he, and our youngest graduate, Duane Ising, 1975, received movie certificates.
Though the evening was ending, it was clear people wished to linger and visit. As some would leave from the tables, those left combined at another table for more conversation.
It was a night of real participation, getting to know each other better and laughing a lot. Of course, like most PGIslander events, we also enjoyed the food.
I would like to thank the hard work of the committee for the planning and the work of executing the event. Special thanks to Joanie Lang for helping with pictures, Kathi Crump for bringing some memorabelia used for decorations, and to all the participants for providing their high school pictures and being such enthusiastic participants. When one plans a party it is always gratifying for people to accept your invitation and come prepared to make the event a real opportunity for a great night of friends and fun. A party is only as good as the guests and this party was GREAT!
Go to the picture gallery and view pictures from the event including some adds actually used from not
that long ago (at least it doesn't feel that long ago!) You may also like to check out another web site.
It is information we didn't have time to share at the party but gives a brief idea of what happened in the
world for each year in the past. You can see what happened the year you graduated.
http://history1900s.about.com/od/timelines/tp/1900timeline.htm
Just click on the year you are interested in.
Submitted by
Sue Linehan
