John Bodish, St. Joseph, MI and Cappy Gagnon, Notre Dame — 70.22% January 3
Wayne Carpenter, Chesterton and Laverne Niksch, Portage — 70.16% February 10
Phil and Sherri Kolski, Elkhart (499er game) — 70.85% February 6
John Bodish, St. Joseph, MI and Cappy Gagnon, Notre Dame — 72.03% February 25
Betty Walston, Leesburg and Jane Scott, Warsaw (299er game) — 71.25% February 26
Holly Skekloff, Fort Wayne and Kimberly Grant, Fort Wayne — 73.21% March 4
Chuck Schultz, LaPorte and Dave Miller, Long Beach — 72.50% March 20
John Teshima, Trail Creek and Alan Yngve, Dune Acres — 70.83% March 25
RISING IN THE RANKINGS
Junior Masters: Joyce Wert, Wabash; John Wirth, Portage; Beth Huffer, Warsaw; Tom Sherbondy, Rome City; Viktoria Voller, Valparaiso
Sectional Masters: Lee Baatz, Columbia City; Peggy Lyzun, South Bend; Rheba Whitlock, Marion
Regional Masters: James McDonald, Delphi; Jane Bailey, Syracuse
NABC Master: Matthew Farber, Fort Wayne
Bronze Life Master: Ilse Grove, South Bend
BRONZE LIFE MASTER
The South Bend Bridge Club is proud to announce the first major achievement of the year — Ilse Grove becoming a Bronze Life Master! In 2011 Ilse became a Life Master, and here she is — the next step upward in her bridge adventures!
Due to Ilse’s husband, Karsten, being invited to spend 1/2 to 1 year in Germany as a Humbolt fellow, the couple is spending 1/2 year in Bonn. They have done some traveling in connection with the fellowship and have been to Hanover and Munster with future visits to Bamberg and Augsburg. In May they will visit Madrid, Spain for a few days.
In between these travels, they will actually come to South Bend for a week, from March 30 to April 7th. They are looking forward to playing in the Spring Sectional. After their stay in Germany, they will spend 1 1/2 months in Denmark and then return to South Bend around mid August. Thanks to Skype, Ilse is able to keep in touch with her family, particularly her granddaughters, Jasmin (5 years old) and Scarlett (2 in May).
Ilse and Karsten play bridge in the largest club in Bonn and have won a few times. She also likes to play on OK Bridge. These extra points allowed her to become our newest Bronze Life Master. Congratulations, Ilse!
LIFE MASTER
Steve Harvey shares his story with you — I was introduced to bridge sometime around 1980 by a lady named Carolyn Clark. I went to her house on two or three different occasions to learn and play. I didn't play again until 1987 when I started playing with the parents of my future wife. They played in a couples marathon bridge league that was organized by somebody I didn't know, named Dick Sullivan. My in-laws hooked me up with a men's group in the early 90s that played party ridge once a month in Decatur. Sometime in the late 90s, I joined a men's marathon bridge league, also organized by Dick Sullivan. In 1999 Carolyn Clark invited me to play at the Fort Wayne Bridge Club which I didn't even know existed. My first session was played with Norm Getzin on 9/22/99. At that time, the youngest of my three children was only one year old.
I am the plant accountant where I work so I am a numbers guy. I have recorded every session of my duplicate bridge career in an Excel spreadsheet. Now I will bore you with some stats. I have played 432 times, 390 pairs games and 42 team games. I have had several favorite partners over the years. My first was Dick Sullivan, who I partnered with between 1999 and 2003. We played 18 times and averaged 57.0%. I could talk bridge with him all the way up to Fort Wayne and all the way back. I was surprised at how well he could remember the boards we had just played, but when we stepped out of the building after we were done, he would forget where he had parked the car.
The next of my favorite partners was Jean Miller, with whom I partnered 47 times— mostly between 2000 and 2004. I had my best score ever when we scored a 69.35% on 9/18/01. The next one was Grant Van Horne, with whom I partnered 50 times, most of them between 2004 and 2007. The first 27 times we played together, our scores for each session were all 50% or better. We won a bridge trophy together by winning the Ruth McConnell event at the bridge regional in 2006.
In 2008, my favorite partner was Jennifer Koorsen who was on a winning knockout team with me and John and Joe Kohne. In 2010 I joined the Cedar Creek group that plays 2 Saturday nights a month. My favorite partners to play with at Cedar Creek are Jane Shultz and Vernon Clark. Jane has me playing conventions I never played before as well as two over one. Vernon is the son of Carolyn Clark and he is a work in progress. My favorite online partner is Joe Kohne. We play occasionally at Bridgebase.com. If anyone wants to play there with me there, my player name is s_harv.
I was fortunate to get the last of the gold points I needed at the Fort Wayne Regional last September. I agreed to be a standby partner for any player who needed a partner. I would get to play for free but I was stuck with whoever they gave me. I played with a guy from Nebraska in the Gold Rush game. We came in second in the afternoon game and first in the evening game and we each received 5.19 gold points.
Of the 390 pairs games, I've had 7 below 40% and 68 above 60%. My best year was 2004 when I averaged 56.78%. I had one year below 50% which was 2007 when I averaged 48.7%. I only average playing duplicate around 30 times per year due mainly to family issues. I try to stay practiced up by playing on Bridge Base, reading the Bridge Bulletin, reading my bridge calendar at work, and reading the bridge articles in the newspaper. I hope to play more in the future.
I thank God for my abilities and my good health. I play the trumpet in my Church praise band on Sunday mornings. I have over 25 consecutive years of perfect attendance at work, and I have donated 174 pints of blood in my lifetime.
THANKS FOR FOUR YEARS OF SERVICE
South Bend Bridge Club regrets to announce that Patricia Killeen has tendered her resignation as club manager.
Tricia has held that position for four years and has given the club more than was ever expected. She has seen to the scheduling of games (including arranging special silver point games for newer players), taught beginning and intermediate bridge classes (contributing greatly to the increase of our membership), helped many players become Life Masters, made sure that get well cards were signed and sent to those in the club who weren’t feeling so well, and generally kept things moving smoothly.
Her
dedication is appreciated, and she will be greatly missed. Thanks, Trish!
IN MEMORIAM
Doris Eley of Merrillville, a past regular of our games until about two years ago, passed away on February 25.
Doris was a wonderful person —
always had a smile on her face and really enjoyed seeing people. She never
complained about the constant pain she was in. At 92 she just wore out. She was
a Silver Life Master.
HEARTS IN MOTION
Community Bridge Club in Calumet Township adopted the locally-headquartered Hearts in Motion as their charity for 2013. The mission of H.I.M. is to provide care and medical treatment for children, families, and communities through its programs and sponsorships in the U.S., and Central and South America. H.I.M. has established itself in Guatemala by consistently providing outstanding care and services since 1990.
We sponsored Rosemary from Guatemala, who was a top priority case for needing a sponsor. She lives with her single father. Sponsorship was $30 a month. What you see in the photo is part of what the money bought for her — the white shirt, plaid skirt, tights, shoes and a backpack. Our donations also bought any school supplies that Rosemary might need. Part of the money also went to feed the family. Being a sponsored child gives her priority in being seen at the medical and dental clinics, when H.I.M. visits from the U.S.
We sent Rosemary a Barbie doll at the outset. For her birthday
we sent her a Barbie wardrobe and accessories for the doll. Players generously
contributed several boxes worth of gifts for Rosemary for Christmas, such as
t-shirts, school supplies, games, candy, books, jewelry . . . and more. With the
remainder of the money the club bought Rosemary a bicycle and earmarked what was
left over to buy food for the family.
My deepest appreciation to Jo Ann Steigmeyer, reporter from
South Bend, and Mary Lou Clegg, reporter from Fort Wayne, who have faithfully
contributed news from their clubs throughout these many years.
2013 Top 100 Masterpoint Earners1. Howard Piltch, South Bend 578 2. Louis Nimnicht, Crown Point 373 3. Elaine Delaney, South Bend 315 4. Richard Mao, Mishawaka 309 5. John Chmielowiec, Michigan City 301 6. Lena Howard, Elkhart 300 7. Steven Watson, Schererville 297 8. Joseph Chin, Highland 282 9. Dave Bigler, Hobart 247 10. Irene Singleton, South Bend 242 11. Carol Osgerby, Dyer 225 12. Donald Valiska, Highland 222 13. James Kart, Fort Wayne 219 14. Kimberly Grant, Fort Wayne 217 15. John Aumiller, Fort Wayne 213 16. Tom Hallum, Mishawaka 213 17. Leroy Boser, Elkhart 201 18. Daniel Simon, South Bend 196 19. Cappy Gagnon, Notre Dame 190 20. Patricia Killeen, Mishawaka 183 21. John Killeen, Mishawaka 183 22. Frank Yoder III, Goshen 180 23. Bud Hinckley, South Bend 179 24. Sara Marcus, Granger 175 25. Patricia Valiska, Highland 175 26. Donna Simon, South Bend 174 27. Gary Chaney, Sherwood 167 28. Wayne Carpenter, Chesterton 167 29. Jo Ann Steigmeyer, Granger 165 30. Barbara Graegin, Dyer 162 31. Thomas Carpenter, Fort Wayne 157 32. Yuan Hsu, Hammond 155 33. Lee Knepper, Palmetto FL 153 34. Virginia Stipp, South Bend 152 35. Charlotte Abernethy, Griffith 152 36. Rosemary Zonker, Elkhart 151 37. Indra Gupta, Munster 151 38. Howard Schmid, Merrillville 148 39. Marian David, South Bend 148 40. Norman Szewczyk, Lansing IL 145 41. E Tim Carl, Elkhart 145 42. Charles Schultz, La Porte 143 43. Margaret Kiernan, Schererville 136 44. Gale Osgerby, Dyer 134 45. Lee Esworthy, The Villages FL 133 46. Grant Van Horne, Auburn 132 47. Elaine Thompson, South Bend 128 48. Anna Urick, Hammond 127 49. Suzanne Watson, South Bend 125 50. James O'Connell, Valparaiso 123 51. Zafar Khan, Crown Point 119 52. J. Cordas, South Bend 119 53. Trudy McKamey, Portage 116 54. Michael Clegg, Fort Wayne 111 55. Mary Lou Clegg, Fort Wayne 109 56. Richard Ellis Jr., Kokomo 106 57. Marci Meyer, Long Beach 106 58. James Feinstein, South Bend 106 59. Richard Bredemeyer, Fort Wayne 105 60. K. Koorsen, Fort Wayne 104 61. Sara Grande, Mishawaka 103 62. Richard Hastings, Bristol 101 63. Chuck Briggs, Hobart 100 64. Gregory Lyzun, South Bend 100 65. Alan Geller, Munster 97 66. Robert Adams, South Bend 97 67. June Glazer, Elkhart 97 68. Keith Meyer, Long Beach 96 69. Ruth Minish, Granger 94 70. Constance Stevens, Highland 94 71. Paul Scherer, Mishawaka 93 72. Judith Nelsen, Fort Wayne 89 73. Martha Hosinski, South Bend 89 74. Mary Adams, South Bend 88 75. Donald Wertheimer, South Bend 88 76. Douglas Scripture, Mishawaka 87 77. Ronald Peterson, Plymouth 87 78. Virginia Peterson, Plymouth 87 79. Patricia Borchert, Elkhart 85 80. Ilse Arndt Grove, South Bend 85 81. Matthew Fultz, Fort Wayne 84 82. James Davis, Kokomo 84 83. Conrad Adams II, South Bend 83 84. Kay Esworthy, The Villages FL 82 85. William Searcy, Elkhart 82 86. Joseph Shull, New Haven 82 87. Donald Ferguson, Fort Wayne 82 88. Hilda Connor, Munster 79 89. Chris Habegger, Bristol 79 90. Martie Black, Granger 78 91. John Teshima, Trail Creek 78 92. Carolyn Potasnik, Munster 76 93. Victor Papai, South Bend 75 94. Barbara Fedder, Granger 75 95. Barbara Walczak, Munster 73 96. Robert Porter, Saint John 73 97. John Kohne Jr., Fort Wayne 73 98. Suzanne Wright, Kokomo 71 99. Geoffrey Hadlock, Warsaw 69 100. Rose Ferguson, Fort Wayne 69 |
Unit 154 Lifetime Top MP Holders1. Howard Piltch, South Bend 21,359 2. John Aumiller, Fort Wayne 9529 3. Rita Duncan, Somerset 7492 4. John Chmielowiec, Michigan City 6369 5. James Davis, Kokomo 6307 6. Frank Yoder III, Goshen 5696 7. Richard Ellis Jr., Kokomo 5607 8. Irene Singleton, South Bend 5525 9. James Feinstein, South Bend 5452 10. Joseph Chin, Highland 5373 11. Lee Esworthy, The Villages FL 5183 12. Wesley Adamczyk, Deerfield IL 5078 13. Howard Schmid, Merrillville 4825 14. Elaine Delaney, South Bend 4371 15. Rosemary Zonker, Elkhart 4273 16. Tom Hallum, Mishawaka 4081 17. Carol Osgerby, Dyer 3978 18. Rony Adelsman, South Bend 3644 19. J. Cordas, South Bend 3601 20. Joseph Shull, New Haven 3543 21. Lena Howard, Elkhart 3434 22. John Killeen, Mishawaka 3349 23. Steven Watson, Schererville 3279 24. James O'Connell, Valparaiso 3262 25. Sara Marcus, Granger 3039 26. Teen Robertson, Mishawaka 3029 27. Marian David, South Bend 2998 28. Jack Spring, Fort Wayne 2983 29. Virginia Stipp, South Bend 2957 30. Barbara Graegin, Dyer 2932 31. Daniel Simon, South Bend 2901 32. Bud Hinckley, South Bend 2895 33. Byron Parshall, Mishawaka 2877 34. Donna Simon, South Bend 2787 35. Patricia Killeen, Mishawaka 2689 36. Leroy Boser, Elkhart 2653 37. Lee Knepper, Palmetto FL 2591 38. Richard Mao, Mishawaka 2561 39. Suzanne Watson, South Bend 2456 40. Marilyn Weisbach, Fort Wayne 2433 41. Louis Nimnicht, Crown Point 2404 42. Charlotte Davis, Kokomo 2398 43. Norman Szewczyk, Lansing IL 2371 44. Chris Grande, Mishawaka 2357 45. Paul Scherer, Mishawaka 2330 46. Michael Clegg, Fort Wayne 2199 47. Jo Ann Steigmeyer, Granger 2156 48. Albert Guilford, Angola 2130 49. Donald Ferguson, Fort Wayne 2102 50. Opal Jost, South Bend 2078 51. Judith Nelsen, Fort Wayne 2076 52. Cappy Gagnon, Notre Dame 2058 53. K. Koorsen, Fort Wayne 1982 54. Rose Ferguson, Fort Wayne 1970 55. Mary Lou Clegg, Fort Wayne 1959 56. Kay Esworthy, The Villages FL 1934 57. June Glazer, Elkhart 1910 58. Louise Tickfer, South Bend 1878 59. Virginia Peterson, Plymouth 1831 60. Ronald Peterson, Plymouth 1829 61. Joan Smith, Fort Wayne 1810 62. George Rutkowski, Fort Wayne 1801 63. Robert Adams, South Bend 1792 64. Donald Wertheimer, South Bend 1706 65. William Searcy, Elkhart 1697 66. Daniel Spain, Portage 1653 67. Sara Grande, Mishawaka 1634 68. Marilyn Crank, Kokomo 1629 69. Gary Chaney, Sherwood OH 1627 70. Patricia Love, Fort Wayne 1606 71. Bob Hawley, Peru 1599 72. F. A. Binder Jr., South Bend 1568 73. Charles Schultz, La Porte 1490 74. Thomas Carpenter, Fort Wayne 1489 75. Matthew Fultz, Fort Wayne 1481 76. Dave Bigler, Hobart 1467 77. Timothy Delaney, South Bend 1462 78. Mrs. B. A. Seitz, New Haven 1458 79. Richard Klitzke, South Bend 1403 80. Gilbert Fox, Auburn 1395 81. Sandy Craft, Fort Wayne 1363 82. Manuel Silverman, Fort Wayne 1337 83. Victor Papai, South Bend 1320 84. Hugh Metzger, Tempe AZ 1261 85. Barbara Walczak, Munster 1233 86. Patricia Valiska, Highland 1222 87. Chuck Briggs, Hobart 1214 88. Patricia Borchert, Elkhart 1192 89. Ruth Minish, Granger 1165 90. Donald Valiska, Highland 1159 91. Constance Stevens, Highland 1155 92. Michael Bonahoom, Fort Wayne 1148 93. Barbara Medlock, Granger 1146 94. Lois Ganser, Mishawaka 1123 95. Janice Custer, Chesterton 1111 96. Carl Minick, Huntertown 1097 97. Richard Hastings, Bristol 1096 98. Pete Smith, Fort Wayne 1076 99. Raj Kohli, Granger 1067 100. Thomas Rossow, South Bend 1056 |
2013 WINNERS -- UNIT 154 RACES
|
♠ Mini-McKenney 0 - 5 mp William Flanagan, Granger -- 67.74 Camille Cooper, Kokomo -- 45.31 Vicki McIntire, South Bend -- 30.69
5 - 20 mp Beth Rader, Valparaiso -- 29.86 Joan Fahey, South Bend -- 24.97 Daryl Fraley, Crown Point -- 22.76
20 - 50 mp Wayne Hiser, Hobart -- 47.07 Carol Miller, Valparaiso -- 46.24 Nancy Conison, Charlotte, NC -- 32.66
50 - 100 mp Lois Edelstein, Schererville -- 57.03 Dolores Marshall, Portage -- 55.03 JoEllen DePaepe, South Bend -- 47.79
100 - 200 mp James Kart, Fort Wayne -- 218.88 Yuan Hsu, Hammond -- 155.13 Gale Osgerby, Dyer -- 134.36
200 - 300 mp Charlotte Abernethy, Griffith -- 151.83 Anna Urick, Hammond -- 126.97 Robert Porter, Saint John -- 72.96
300 - 500 mp Indra Gupta, Munster -- 150.94 E. Tim Carl, Elkhart -- 145.04 Elaine Thompson, South Bend -- 128.11
500 - 1000 mp Donald Valiska, Highland -- 221.61 Kimberly Grant, Fort Wayne -- 216.80 Wayne Carpenter, Chesterton -- 166.70
1000 - 2500 mp Louis Nimnicht, Crown Point -- 373.05 Richard Mao, Mishawaka -- 309.21 Dave Bigler, Hobart -- 246.73
2500 - 5000 mp Elaine Delaney, South Bend -- 314.69 Lena Howard, Elkhart -- 299.55 Steve Watson, Schererville -- 296.67
5000 - 7500 mp John Chmielowiec, Michigan City -- 301.25 Joseph Chin, Highland -- 281.56 Irene Singleton, South Bend -- 241.67
7500 - 10,000 mp John Aumiller, Fort Wayne -- 213.17
10,000 + mp Howard Piltch, South Bend -- 577.85 |
♣ Ace of Clubs 0 - 5 mp William Flanagan, Granger -- 56.44 Vicki McIntire, South Bend -- 30.69 Camille Cooper, Kokomo -- 27.47
5 - 20 mp Beth Rader, Valparaiso -- 26.54 Joan Fahey, South Bend -- 23.42 Keiko Storin, South Bend -- 17.40
20 - 50 mp Wayne Hiser, Hobart -- 40.42 Carol Miller, Valparaiso -- 32.47 Nancy Conison, Charlotte, NC -- 30.30
50 - 100 mp Lois Edelstein, Schererville -- 51.24 Dolores Marshall, Portage -- 44.84 Judy Selund, Ogden Dunes -- 32.17
100 - 200 mp Yuan Hsu, Hammond -- 121.98 James Kart, Fort Wayne -- 117.64 Zafar Khan, Crown Point -- 93.84
200 - 300 mp Charlotte Abernethy, Griffith -- 90.34 Anna Urick, Hammond -- 79.04 Robert Porter, Saint John -- 61.16
300 - 500 mp Indra Gupta, Munster -- 118.92 E. Tim Carl, Elkhart -- 118.04 Elaine Thompson, South Bend -- 117.52
500 - 1000 mp Donald Valiska, Highland -- 167.04 Wayne Carpenter, Chesterton -- 129.58 Margaret Kiernan, Schererville -- 93.82
1000 - 2500 mp Dave Bigler, Hobart -- 179.39 Louis Nimnicht, Crown Point -- 159.57 Cappy Gagnon, Notre Dame -- 156.83
2500 - 5000 mp Elaine Delaney, South Bend -- 286.05 Patricia Killeen, Mishawaka -- 171.36 John Killeen, Mishawaka -- 171.08
5000 - 7500 mp Joseph Chin, Highland -- 204.41 Irene Singleton, South Bend -- 183.63 John Chmielowiec, Michigan City -- 153.62
7500 - 10,000 mp John Aumiller, Fort Wayne -- 125.75
10,000 + mp Howard Piltch, South Bend -- 19.12 |