(Click here to go to our website) 

Call to Order – Vice President Weldon Garrelts called the meeting to order and led in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Invocation – David Hunter – For this food, we thank Thee, Lord, for spirits high also. Let us be not the chill of Febru-weary, nor wind that March doth blow, nor april’s tears, but sunny May our faces ever show. Amen. Vittles – Salad and Toppings, Chicken Parmesan, Pasta, Mixed Vegetables, Rolls and Butter, and Cookies and Crème Pie.

Attendance – 20 members. Guests – Fonda Bowden’s husband Larry. Lions Report – None. If you are ill or know a fellow Lion who is under the weather, please call Pat Bryan at 586-4535.

Birthdays – Bob Tuchel 92 today, May 1

Lottery – Guess what!!! The $11 lottery was won by Bob Tuchel too.

Announcements – Weldon Garrelts reported he had a call from a woman who needed to borrow a wheelchair from now until the end of May for her husband.

Herb Bail reported he and other club members collected 724 used eyeglasses, 2 cell phones and 1 hearing aid during the month of April - a banner month!

Weldon thanked David Hunter for the updated membership roster and pictures. Tootsie Pop days are May 10 and 11. We still have many work shift vacancies; a sign-up sheet was passed around. Two people are needed at each location: Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, and 3 County Markets (State & Kirby) (Duncan & Kirby) and (331 East Stoughton on Campus).

Jay Hoeflinger reported $930 was collected in Sight and Sound ticket sales. The money and tickets will be turned in immediately. There is still time to participate in the Birdies for Sight.

Rich King explained how this program works. Guess how many birdies the PGA Pros will make in the golf tourney of 2013. You could win cash, a car, or one of over 500 prizes. Each guess is accompanied by a pledge to pay X the amount guessed - example a one cent pledge X a guess of 2000 birdies = a pledge of $20, which is given to the LIF by John Deer Charities. It's simple, it's fun and will help thousands of people in need of vision and hearing care in Illinois! For details and a pledge form, visit http://www.birdiesforcharity.com/

Rich also explained that the Walk for Sight, June 9, is a fundraiser of the LIF. He hopes to raise $500 in pledges from our club for the Walk and is gathering a team for our Beep Ball game vs. the Mattoon Club.

Program – Floyd “Gordie” Gordon introduced today’s guest speaker, Ted Beach, his friend since 1946.

Ted went to Champaign High School where he played basketball, coached by Harry Combs, and the team won the State Championship. Then he went to the University of Illinois (1948-51) where he played basketball coached by Harry Combs.

In 1953 he began working for Collegiate Cap & Gown (now Herff Jones). He retired as Vice President of Marketing in 1994 after 41 years.

In 1966 he became timer for University of Illinois Basketball, replacing his Dad. He has been married to Shirlie for 62 years and they have two children. Ted said if he were not here speaking to us on this beautiful day, he would be on the golf course!

Many years ago, his boss, Bill Blixen, President of Collegiate Cap & Gown and a former member of this Lions Club, told him there was a seminar offered at the UI that he might find useful. It was How to Improve Your Public Speaking.

So he went, and at the end of the seminar he had to do a 3-minute impromptu speech on a subject drawn out of a hat. The subject he drew was sex. So he talked for 3 minutes about sex. He got a plaque for the best speech.

When he got home he told his wife he got a plaque for best speech on sailing.

A few days later they saw a friend who had also attended the seminar and congratulated him on his best speech. Ted’s wife said, yes, he gave a speech on something he knew nothing about; he had only done it twice, the first time his hat fell off and the second time he got sick to his stomach!

Ted retired in 2004 as basketball timekeeper. His Dad had been scorekeeper since 1934, so from that time until 2004 there was a “Beach or a son of a Beach” on the bench at every basketball game.

He thought he would become a regular fan and sit with his family. But he didn’t like that so he took another job as host for game officials so he could sit on the sidelines again.

He talked about the many changes he has seen. Huff Gym in 1925 cost $800,000 and seated 7,000 people, and compared that to the cost for the renovation of the Assembly Hall to the State Farm Center.

Back then most of the team players were from small towns in Illinois. The 1942-1943 team, called the Whiz Kids (Andy Phillip, Ken Menke, Gene Vance, Jack Smiley and Art Mathisen), finished the season with a record 17 wins and 1 loss before three of the five starters went off to active duty in the armed forces.

Doug Mills was the coach and the Athletic Director. About that time Ted was graduating from high school. Everyone just assumed he would go to the UI and wanted to play basketball.

Doug Mills chose Harry Combs to take his UI coaching job. It was unusual for a high school coach to become head coach at a university. Harry Combs had an 85% winning record at Champaign High School and at the UI he won 3 big 10 championships in his first 5 years.

In those days there were 16 teams in the NCAA Tournament, 8 teams competing in New York and 8 in Kansas City. He remembered briefly the Illini’s blackest hour with the 1966 slush fund. It took a lot to recover from that.

Thankfully, as timekeeper he had no problems with any of the coaches. As official host for the officials he has to be at games 2 hours ahead of time. All of the officials are good guys.

He remembered several of the best moments, like 1979 Eddie Johnson’s shot, and 1981 Nick Anderson’s shot from center court, Andy Kaufman’s 1993 shot, and Deron William’s shot that tied up Arizona. He mentioned several players he would name as an all UI team and of course included Dee Brown, the face of the Illini.

Tailtwister – Tom Yaxley, today’s Tailtwister, called on Marvin Paulsen, since he sees him at the fitness center working out and must be in good shape, to carry the bucket.

He fined everyone at Bob Tuchel’s table for Bob’s birthday…

and fined Bob for having won the lottery.

Omer Benn paid because he did not return his vest before leaving the water station Saturday.

Board members who did not show up yesterday for the board meeting paid.

Kathy Struck bragged that her great niece won the state gymnastic finals and will go on to compete in Florida this June.

Rick King bragged that his son is graduating from the UI and has an offer of a graduate position at SW Oklahoma State University.

Paul Kunkel paid to say that for 35 years flowers have arrived each May 1, thanks to his son-in-law, Rich King.

Two packages of asparagus from Marvin Paulsen’s garden were auctioned at $3 each to Tom Yaxley and Sam McGrew.

And he just had to fine Dave Hunter for having shown Weldon Garrelts picture in the Chatter where the text said President Ted Gonsiorowski.

Not really very smart…

Greeter: Rich King

May 15 – To Be AnnouncedMay 22 – Jennifer RoscoeClick here osborne@bankchampaign.com to email Charlie Osborne and let him know what you would like to see in a Lions Club program some time.

Coming up

May 8 – Business Meeting – Know Your Lion

Thank you for watching

Editor

Rex Hess

Publisher

David Hunter

To email Dave with your comments, click here → hunter4000@comcast.net

To go to the our website, click here → http://www.champaignlions.org/