We met at Berkeley’s Tilden Park on Sunday, June 12 for a fun
picnic with a higher turn-out than in recent years of more than sixty Great
Bookies. The weather was sunny
with a bright blue sky and a cool breeze to keep everyone comfortable. The food, as usual was great and Grill
Chef Brent Browning, pictured at right, was kept busy.
Brian
Mahoney, Treasurer, presented detailed financial information to be examined by
anyone present who wished to do so.
The organization is in solid financial shape.
Jim Hall
introduced Duncan Calvert. Duncan
is the 17 year old son of Rob Calvert, who is the son of Bob Calvert. Bob and his wife Carol were
participants for many years. They
still live in North Berkeley. So
far as we know, Duncan, in participating in today’s discussion of The Things
They Carried, is
the first third generation participant in our council’s book discussions.
Jim Cooke
drew attention to a front page article with pictures in today’s Marin
Independent Journal featuring GBSF leader Roy Harvey, past Treasurer and
longtime participant. Roy is
absent because he is in the famous Dipsea race, from Mill Valley over Mt.
Tamalpais to Stinson Beach. According
to the article, Roy, 85, is to be awarded the title “Dipsea Demon,” as the
oldest participant, running in the event for his 30th time. Roy and his wife Jimmie first met at
our Asilomar Spring Conference and married about a decade ago.
As
outgoing president, Jim Hall expressed appreciation for all in GBSF who helped
to make his term successful. Events this year were well attended. The three mini-retreats were at or near
capacity, as was poetry weekend.
Three new discussion groups were launched in San Francisco and one each
in El Cerrito and Berkeley. The
Berkeley group, led by Carol Hochberg, is our first devoted exclusively to
poetry.
Election
of Officers: Jim
introduced Rick
White, nominations chair, who announced the slate of officers of GBSF for the
coming year approved by the Executive Committee. They are Marge Johnson, president; Rob Calvert, vice
president, Brian Mahoney, treasurer;
Rick White, secretary. Jim called for further nominations of
which none were offered. He then
called for a vote on the slate of candidates. Approval was unanimous.
Meet
Marge Johnson: It's been said that
if you want something done, ask a busy person. So here's Marge Johnson, our new
president. Marge is fairly new to
the Executive Committee, but by no means new to Great Books. She is a regular
at Asilomar and the Long Novel Weekend, attending with her husband Rudy, long
active as a discussion leader. She and Rudy met at Stanford and have been
married 53 years. Marge first
taught handicapped children, then became a real estate broker. She retired from
that in 2000 and has since devoted her time to travel, "our favorite
pastime"—she and Rudy have traveled widely—to cultural activities, and to
their three grandsons. When Marge and Rudy are not attending the theatre or the
symphony, or going to and from the airport to visit family, they volunteer at
city functions and tutor foreign students. Marge is eager to be of service in her role as president and seeks the assistance and counsel
of everyone who can help her make this "the best year ever."
As her
first act of office, Marge Johnson thanked Laura Bushman for managing this
picnic and announced that Laura has agreed to do it again next year. Marge praised Jan Vargo for the
excellent large print name tags provided.
She said that since so many participants took effective responsibility
for carrying out the Council’s activities, she had been told “there would be
nothing to the job” of president.
She requested of the group that during her term she receive any praise
that was to be offered and that any questions go to Jim.
We
adjourned the meeting and Laura convened four groups to discuss The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien. This book, about men who served in Viet
Nam, brought out some widely divergent opinions. Most agreed that war could play havoc with some people’s
mental stability, but, while concurring, some thought that after awhile people
should “just get over it” and get on with their lives. Is this award winning book history,
memoir, or fiction? Does it
matter?
For a
different treatment of similar subject matter you might consider attending our
Great Books in Wine Country event on October 2, 2011 where we will discuss The
Man in the Gray Flannel Suit by Sloan Wilson in the morning and view the movie adaptation in
the afternoon. There is still time
to register, click here.
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