President's Page April 2009

April Fools Day might add a whimsical tone to our meeting this first Wednesday of the month. We will venture out to the Santa Fe Grill & Beverage Company at 207 Nelson Street for a nifty dinner at 6:00 and followed by our meeting upstairs at around 7:00, which should conclude no later than 9:00.

As I write this on March 20th, the sun is shining for a full 12 hours directly at the equator. That makes this the first day of Spring, although it’s a wee bit cooler here in the Ottawa Valley on the 45th latitude than at zero in Uganda or Brazil or Sumatra. But let’s take what we can get. Soon we will be complaining about the heat.

Spring brings with it, increased activity with restoration of our old vehicles. Jim Rolfe celebrates his first drive on the newly completed 1970 Jeep rolling chassis. Lorne Troutman has the new upholstery and nickel-plated rad shell installed on the Model A. Marilyn Simpson and Ralph Lemke tell me that the’55 Studebaker Starlite Coupe sports a shiny new coral and black paint job with wide whites. Upholstery is next on the long list. Brohart’s Mustang is gradually coming to life and the winter facelift on our Cadillac is complete. It has been reassembled at Mike Cuff’s after new the paint job. It’s exciting that we will have our toys ready for touring with the first one planned for May 18th.

Events for 2009 are already filling the calendar, with the Dore Bay Roast Beef Dinner on Saturday afternoon April 18th followed on May2nd with the famous Turkey Fry. Our first road trip will be a Victoria Day Tour (May 18th) and first car show will be the Father’s Day Display at Heritage Manor in Pembroke followed the next day with the Red Hatters’ Rock ‘n Roll Party at the Legion. Then we will hit the road for the 2009 Tour to The Thousand Islands on July 7-8-9.

You may notice that the tentative Ottawa-area museum tour has gone missing… I take this opportunity to say that our tour promoter Jim Rolfe is dealing with some medical issues and although he fully intends to participate as usual, he won’t be organizing his usual tours for a while. Also on the under-the-weather list, Ed Wodzak underwent bypass surgery last week in Ottawa. I had the chance to pay him a visit at the Heart Institute and he says although this was a “big one” he’s on the mend and looking forward to heading home soon. So, keep these and our other members who are dealing with health issues presently in your thoughts and prayers.

See you at the meeting - April Fools Day at Santa Fe!

Dave Lemkay