Please mark your calendars and plan to come to the:

GOODWILL PIN AWARDED

Bill Searcy’s last act as President of Unit 154 was to award the Aileen Osofsky Goodwill pin to Rose Ferguson of Fort Wayne. 

He says:

   “My highlight at the annual meeting was the presentation of the Unit Goodwill Award to Rose. She has taught hundreds of players and exemplified goodwill in our Unit for more than 50 years and is most deserving of this recognition. Thank you, Rose, for all you have done for the players' enjoyment of our game. The committee looks for people who promote kindness and the love of the game." 
 

70% + GAMES

Bill Hahn, Hobart & Wayne Hiser, Hobart (299ers):  76.00%  5/23

Steve Watson, Schererville & Lou Nimnicht, Crown Point:  70.14%  5/26

Gini Stipp, South Bend & John Bodish, St. Joe MI:  72.49%  6/2

Dan Spain, Portage & Lou Nimnicht, Crown Point:  70.19%  6/8

Bud Hinckley & Howard Piltch, South Bend:  71.48%  6/19    

Kevin Miller, Goshen & Phillip Kolski, Elkhart:  70.51%  6/19    

Bud Hinckley, South Bend & Chris Habegger, Bristol:  71.73%  6/24    

Jim Feinstein, South Bend & Sara Marcus, Granger:  71.06%  6/30

Joan Smith & Sandy Craft, Fort Wayne: 70.83%  7/1

Lou Nimnicht, Crown Point & Steve Watson, Schererville:  70.72%  7/8

David Cotterman & Dick Stanley, Kokomo:  70%  7/14

Elaine DeLaney & Jimmy Cordas, South Bend:  70.80%  7/14

June Glazer & Rosemary Zonker, Elkhart:  70.56%  7/20

RISING IN THE RANKS:

JUNIOR MASTER:

   Barbara Bolesch, Chesterton; George Bolesch, Chesterton; Vernon Clark, Decatur; Robert Lewis, Granger

CLUB MASTER:

   Ahnee Conner, Fort Wayne; Beth Huffer, Warsaw; Kathy Klaer, Mishawaka; Patricia Manning, Michigan City; Tami McNally, South Bend; Roger Skurski, South Bend; Victoria Voller, Valparaiso

SECTIONAL MASTER:

   Alice Giedemann, Valparaiso; June Reisinger, Hobart

REGIONAL MASTER:

   Loren Jackemeyer, Fremont; Karen Nagy, South Bend 

LIFE MASTER & BRONZE LIFE MASTER

Peggy Kiernan of Schererville has done it! She achieved Life Master status on June 26, 2015 at the Crystal Lake Regional, earning that 0.3 gold point that gave her the requisite 25 gold points needed for this distinction. Since she has more than 500 masterpoints, she also was awarded a Bronze Life Master certificate. In fact, she has about 930 mp — not that far away from Silver Life Master.

Peggy writes: I learned the game of bridge from my parents. I played in college and then at break/lunch when employed. Later, while raising my children, I played in many duplicate bridge clubs, and occasionally at the Unity Church in Hammond. In March of 2002 Joe Chin introduced me to the South Suburban Bridge Club — and the rest is history.

Many thanks to the following — Judy, Esther and Ed (rest his soul), Hilda, George, Joe, and of course, my teammates — Gale, Anna and Charlie for their help in my search for the gold — to Carol, Joe, Dave, Brian, George and Tom for sharing their knowledge and the love of the game — and to all my partners and opponents throughout the years, who have afforded me the opportunity to learn and play a good game. I cherish the friendships that have evolved. "May the wind be always at your back." Peace!

Many of Peggy's partners have sent their congratulations on her achievement — lauding her for her tenacity, the pleasure she brings to her teammates, her persistence and positive attitude, the fact that she is never critical and that she always works to improve her game, her sense of humor "with a twinkle in her eye", her fun personality, making the most of the hand she is dealt, being someone who finds something good in each new day, being an easy-to-get-along-with partner, and even for being a stylish dresser and a compatible roommate.

BRONZE LIFE MASTER

Karsten Grove

The Grove clan has done it again.  Karsten has joined his wife, Ilse, in the ranks of a Bronze Life Master.  Our heartiest congratulations to Karsten for another notch in his Bridge Belt.

Karsten had to get his final points in Europe where he spent the past several years on a fellowship. His time at bridge was curtailed, but he and Ilse found a bridge club in Bonn Germany, where they won frequently, They also played online to get the points needed to become a Bronze LM.

Look for Karsten and Ilse. They will be playing at the SBBC and we’ll be glad to have them with us again. We’re looking forward to more kudos for the Grove partnership.
 

SILVER LIFE MASTER:  Grant VanHorne, Auburn

PRO-AM WINNERS

Our semi-annual Pro-Am Swiss Team Event, held on Thursday night  in South Bend, May 28th, was a great success! There were 16 tables, rivaling most sectional swiss team attendance, of life masters or players with more than 500 points partnering with non-life master players with fewer than 500 points. 

The winners were: Martie Black, Dennis David, Marian David & Joan Tobler. We send our congratulations! In addition, a hearty thank you to the Directors, Bill Searcy (also our hot dog chef) and  Bob Knoblock, for running the event so smoothly.

Father Bill Blum

We would like to congratulate Father Bill Blum on the occasion of his fiftieth anniversary of ordination as a Holy Cross priest. 

A ceremony celebrating his Jubilee was held at Notre Dame with a special Mass at the Basilica. Interestingly, he claims that he was shy, quiet and introverted as he was growing up.  Hard to believe that’s our Bill.

ANOTHER ACHIEVEMENT

The South Bend Bridge Club was delighted to honor our newest member of the 90’s Club, Bud Parshall. 

Bud turned the magic age of 90 on June 11th, and the club honored him with a certificate to Barnes & Noble. 

It turns out that Bud is a voracious reader and will make good use of the gift.  Of course, there was a cake with many wishes from all the members.
 

FRIENDS WHO WILL BE MISSED

Judith Grossnickle
   November 30, 1937 - May 16, 2015   

Too many of our friends are leaving us. A sad addition to this list is Judy Grossnickle, who passed away in May. Judy was interested in many activities including Chet Waggoner Little League and discovering family history through the science of genealogy.  She brightened the club, playing with the 399ers, often with her favorite partner, Julie Nelson. 

We send our condolences to Bob, her husband of 56 years, and to her family. We will miss her smile.


Callix E. Miller. Jr.
   March 27, 1924 - April 26, 2015   

April brought the unwelcome news that Callix “Cal” Miller passed away. Although Cal hadn’t been playing for some time due to ill health, he was a force when he was “around”. Besides his many personal achievements in the architectural field, he gave many a bridge player grief with his astute plays and defense. 

A member of ACBL for over 60 years, Cal was an accredited director and instructor, carrying the rank of Silver Life Master. We send our deepest sympathy to the family.

Robert C. Adams II
  July 25, 1968 - June 28, 2015

Our Bridge Club has been blessed with having the Adams family -- Conrad, Mary and Bob (Dad, Mom & son) -- as members for many  years. Sadly, Bob Chandler Adams, II, Ph.D, 46, passed away Sunday, June 28th in his residence following a lengthy illness surrounded by his loving family. Bob was born July 25, 1968 and lived most of his life in the South Bend/Granger area. On November 29, 1997 in Bloomington IN he married Allison C. Garner, who survives along with his children, Conrad R. Adams, III, Katie M. Adams and Jillian E. Adams, all at home. 

Bob was an outstanding bridge player who didn't play as often as he would have liked since he was still working. We will miss his competitiveness, his presence and his smile. We send our deepest sympathy to the family.