Monthly Archives: December 2018

It was early morning on Christmas Eve that Betsy McOmber passed away. Her family was there and she was in no pain so that was good. Even if the Morgan Car thing was predominantly Gene’s she was always a vibrant presence at the MOGSouth gatherings. If she wasn’t there, her absence was always noted. ‘Where was Betsy’, everyone would ask. Betsy loved her music, her Church and she loved to play the piano and sing. It really is difficult for us, as a community, and we cannot adequately express our feelings of loss. But, we still have the many wonderful memories of car meets, road trips, omelet parties, racing trophies, the house in SC, the house in FL, the family and more. These we will not forget. A true and wonderful friend to us all and she will be greatly missed.

The Obituary in The Sarasota, FL Herald-Tribune is reprinted below.

McOmber, Betsy Lane Thomas – Mar 7,1940 – Dec 24, 2018

Betsy was raised in Grosse Pointe, Michigan by her parents Byron R. and Mildred Stein Thomas.

Betsy graduated from Grosse Pointe High South in 1958 and went on to Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, MI. She graduated in 1962 with a Bachelor of Science Degree and in 1966 with a Master of Arts Degree. She was a member of Sigma Alpha Iota Musical Fraternity.

Betsy taught 3rd grade at Westwood Elementary school in Kalamazoo from 1962-1967. In 1963, she married Gene LeIsle McOmber of Allegan, MI. Their first son, Thomas Clair, was born in 1967 at which time Betsy began giving piano lessons in her home in Westwood. Two more sons were born in 1970 and 1978 – Richard Morgan and Robert Thomas.

While living in Kalamazoo, Betsy was very active in the Kalamazoo Orchestra League and also her church – 1st Church of Christ, Scientist. She enjoyed selling advertising for 5 years to the Christian Science Monitor, an international daily newspaper. Betsy loved opportunities to play piano background music for various social events and singing in Jan Berghorst’s Women’s Choral group. She greatly admired her parents’ musical talents, both of whom were professional musicians. Her mother was her first piano teacher and instilled in her a deep love of music.

In 1994, Betsy and Gene retired to beautiful Keowee Key in Salem, SC where they lived for 17 years and enjoyed sharing their deck boat with family and friends. Betsy continued her musical involvements by singing in the Key Koraliers and joining a piano group called The Piano Connection where she played solos, duets, and quartets. Betsy and Gene were both very active in the Blue Ridge Art Center and Betsy became coordinator of an art program called Picture Person involving eleven elementary schools. At the 1st Church of Christ, Scientist in Seneca, she was Keyboardist for many years.
In 2011, Betsy and Gene re-retired to Sarasota, FL to be closer to their son, Tom, his wife Melissa, and their grandson, Cole. More musical opportunities opened up for Betsy as she joined the Village Walk Singers and two piano groups – Piano Friends and Musical Friends. At Third Church of Christ, Scientist, she was the music coordinator.

Being married to a car enthusiast, Betsy was an active member of The Foothills British Car Club in SC, the Suncoast British Car Club group in Sarasota, and the Morgan Owners Group South. Betsy loved sharing her husband’s interest in cars and touring in their Morgan. Supporting Gene’s 47 years of racing a Morgan was a highlight of her life.

Betsy’s most favorite hobby was playing the piano and sharing her talent with others. She also was very devoted to writing – keeping in touch with friends and helping them through tough challenges consumed much of her time. She valued each person who came into her life. 

She also loved remodeling homes with her husband, doing yard work, entertaining, and going to concerts and plays. Sharing musical time with her grandson, Cole, in Sarasota was especially meaningful to her. Betsy’s husband, three sons, two daughter in laws, and three grandchildren made her very proud and she will be forever grateful for their loving attention to her.

Betsy was predeceased by her parents and only sibling, Terrell E. Thomas, of Mt. Dora, Fl in 2017. She is survived by her husband Gene McOmber and Thomas & Melissa (Sarasota, FL), Richard (MI) Robert & Francheska (UT) Grand children Morgayn, (NV) Cole (FL), Camilla (UT).

“A Celebration of Life” will be held at the Turtle Rock Community Ctr. (8500 Turtle Rock Blvd. Sarasota 34238) on Friday evening January 18th from 5 to 8 PM. 

An open house is to be held at the Turtle Rock Community Ctr., 8500 Turtle Rock Blvd. Sarasota 34238 on Friday evening January 18th, from 5 to 8 PM.  Please bring your British car (weather permitting) if possible. 

Suggested Hotels: Comfort Suites Sarasota Siesta Key: 5690 Honore Ave. Sarasota, FL 34233 (941)554-4475, Holiday Inn Express and Suites Sarasota: 5730 Gantt Rd. Sarasota, FL 34233 (941)925-0631 

Memorials to: Gator Wilderness Camp School, 44930 Farabee Rd
Punta Gorda, FL 33982  http://www.gatorwildernesscamp.com/

[2018 was a great year!!  Let’s see if we can make 2019 even better!! 

Happy Holidays to you and yours.  Mark, Andrea and the rest of the MOGSouth team.] 

“Twas the night before Christmas and out in the shed
Sat a tired old Morgan, It’s battery near dead,
Its wings were rusted and the doors wont close
The seats and carpets look like old Renault’s.
The tyres had dry rot, the fuel tank was leaking,
And a turn of the wheel sent the tie-rods a-creaking

So I put on my coat with a weight in my heart
And went to the shed to get it to start.
The engine turned over– there arose such a clatter!
And I knew from the sound it was water-pump chatter.
From under the dashboard there came a bright flash,
The wiring harness had just turned to ash!!

I’ve had it with this Morgan I finally swore.
Enough is too much, I can’t take anymore:
When what to my red teary eyes should appear,
But a little old bloke–(Hell I need a beer).
“Cheers” he said grinning from ear to ear,
“You need my help, I’m an engineer”.

“This one can be saved, there’s no need to grieve,
All you need is faith; You gotta believe”
A hammer, some duct tape, get me more tools!!
When you work on these cars, just make up the rules,
We’ll get her cranked over, and no way will she stall
But stand over there with your back to the wall”

A cough and a sputter, the cacophony was stunning!
I couldn’t believe it the damn thing was running.
The ghost winked at me, and said kicking a tyre.
“What ever you do: Don’t touch this wire!!”

The old bloke then vanished amongst sneezes and snorts
But when the smoke cleared he had left me some parts!!

So I opened the shed door and let the top down,
Put pedal to metal and went out on the town,
And I thought to myself as I missed second gear,

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR

 

Reprint Courtesy of Barry Marshall of Talk Morgan.   

[This report came from MOGSouth member Don Moodie.  Others in MOGSouth participated and from all reports, the event was a wonderful time for all! Mark]

In addition to the various Concours, Cars and Coffees and Noggins, there was another, I’d say significant, Morgan activity which also took place this year.

The Morgan Northwest Passage Road Trip in September 2018

I thought the club might be interested in how it began and how it played out.

The initial announcement was broadcast over a year ago on August 31^st of 2017 to a select list of club members. Those who had participated in the 1000 mile Pub Crawl around The Chesapeake were given early notice of this much more ambitious road trip. Apparently taking part in that earlier circumnavigation put a tick mark by certain names, identifying them as likely candidates for a trip all the way to the Pacific Northwest. During the Summer word of the trip became more widely known and additional club members decided to join in on the adventure. Eventually we had eleven cars signed up, including seven Morgans, one Lotus, one Jaguar, one MGB and a Ford Edge chase car.

The germ of the idea came from Bob McKenna and Gary Kneisley. In the months between the first suggestion and the actual departure there was much planning and re-planning to be done.  Bob and Gary put in countless hours refining the itinerary, planning the route and lining up hotels while Reg Hahn and Bill Button contributed valuable tweaks to the route.

By the time we were about to head out on the road, Bill Button had also compiled what he called The Bedside Reader. It contained day by day descriptions of the areas we would be driving through and the history of each. It was an outstanding addition to our understanding and appreciation of what we were experiencing.

In broad terms the plan was to reconnoiter in Cincinnati right after Labor Day 2018. From there we would make a kind of “forced march” to Rapid City, South Dakota. The pace and distance covered each of those early days was a reflection of the fact that a lot of the middle of the country is comparatively uninteresting. But Mount Rushmore, South Dakota, and for some of us The Badlands, were the beginning of the major sites for this trip. From Rushmore we continued on to the furthest point in the lower forty eight before turning left and going South through Oregon and California.

But while we were still heading West from Rushmore, we passed through Needles, Crazy Horse National Monument, Deadwood, The Little Big Horn Battle Field, Cody, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park and Cascades National Park. At that point we were two weeks into the trip. We boarded the ferry over to Port Townsend, Washington and Olympic National Park. Being the furthest possible Northwestern point it was the justification for calling this The Northwest Passage Road Trip.

From there, driving down through Oregon and Northern California we passed through Crater Lake and Lassen National Park. Another left brought us to Reno Nevada where we visited the outstanding Harrah Car Museum. At that point some of us would return home by whatever route we chose while others would extend the trip to visit with family or take in more of the sensational National Parks. Since we were in the Reno/Tahoe area I wanted to drive through the famous Donner Pass. As it turned out we drove through from East to West rather than the homeward direction which meant I had to turn around and go up and through again. So that particular bucket list item got checked twice.

Madeline and I then made our way home via Zion, Arches. Bryce Canyon, Grand Canyon, Capitol Reef and Canyonlands National Parks. Incredible! As we were at that point thirty days into the trip and still West of Denver, it was time for another “forced march” through the middle of the country. Altogether we were on the road thirty-seven days, covering 9,300 miles and visiting fourteen National Parks and attractions.

It made for a truly epic road trip!!

 

 

 

The 2018 Holiday Party was held 1 December, at the St Simons Island, GA, King and Prince Resort.  The weather getting there and going home was great (well at least for us from Florida.)  Top down both ways.  The weather while we were there . . . well, not so good.  It was overcast and cool (60s) and we had some showers and even a tornado warning!  However, it didn’t really affect anything, so nobody really cared.

The majority of the attendees arrived on Friday. Some actually came in on Thursday and few more arrived on Saturday.  Friday was spent checking into the hotel and getting situated before heading over the ‘Hospitality Suite.’  GatorMOG showed up with five Morgans in convoy.  There were a few more Morgans that came individually.  Other than these cars, most arrived via tin tops.  There were a few that flew in.

Pat and Ken Kreuzer organized a dinner Friday night at one of the local restaurants, the Georgia Sea Grill, and it was superb!  It started as a small group but grew to almost the entire MOGSouth crowd.  The restaurant did an amazing job of accommodating so many.

The King and Prince gave us their Wesley Cottage for the Hospitality Suite.

The Wesley Cottage – Our Hospitality Suite (Photo Andrea Braunstein)

The Wesley Cottage was a complete out building, apart from the main hotel building.  It provided us a superb spot for the hospitality room away from the rest of the hotel guests, so we could (and did) get loud without disturbing others.  It was just about big enough for our gaggle and had a television, so we could all watch the conference football championship of choice (Alabama – Georgia, UCF – Memphis, Clemson – Pitt,  Ohio State – Northwestern, etc.)  It seemed as if everyone wanted a different game, so channel switching became the norm.  I lost the bubble early on, and never really knew who was winning or who was losing or in some cases, who was even playing.  Confusion seems to be the new normal for me these days.  As they say, getting old is hell.

Chuck and Karen Bernath were our hosts and they did all the shopping for the Hospitality Suite.  They had their big SUV and it came in very handy a good number of times.  They brought up their own coolers, cork screws, and other necessary things making the Hospitality Suite operate quite smoothly.  Chuck also collected money for the trolley and for the dinner.

Chuck Bernath (Photo Andrea Braunstein)

We had plenty of food and drink, and then others brought in more and more goodies, local fudge and holiday cookies and fresh zucchini bread, etc.  It was a good thing none of us were on a diet!   I guess it’s really futile (or stupid!) to try to diet around the holidays!  I won’t do it, again.  We did have to make a wine run on Saturday as folks were quite particular about the wine they wanted to drink.  On Saturday it was a beer and ice run.  Good thing we were close to a Liquor store and well stocked gas station!

Most of us spent Saturday morning on the trolley tour.  The trolley tour was in a covered trolley and the very light rain didn’t impact our ability to see the sights, take photographs or enjoy the tour guide’s banter.  The Trolley Tour company we engaged, Colonial Trolley Tours, dedicated the entire day to MOGSouth.  They provided several tours at differing times, picking us up and dropping us off right at the hotel’s front door.  Those that participated in the tours were quite complimentary of the entire operation.  The tour guide was knowledgeable, animated and quite entertaining.  I thoroughly enjoyed it all; however, we got so much information, it was like drinking from a fire hose, and much of what was mentioned, I have now forgotten.

Island Spirit (Photo Andrea Braunstein)

During and after the tour, there were periods of light rain, nothing too heavy.  Some folks wandered about downtown Saturday afternoon, taking in the local crafts fair or other sites mentioned on the trolley tour, but I don’t think anyone really got wet.  Folks found lunch on their own and made their way to the Hospitality Suite.  Spending lots of time at the Hospitality Suite is getting to be the norm.  This is where everyone is and everyone wants to see everyone else and chat.  I guess this is what the club is all about.

More ‘Hospitality Suite’ prior to the Holiday Banquet.  Then everyone left the Hospitality Suite to return to their rooms to don their Holiday finery in preparation for the banquet.  We had a cash bar outside the banquet room and used this area for our silent auction.  My apologies for the somewhat hectic nature of the silent auction.  We had some folks mention a desire to donate some items to the club.  Ok, we thought, we’ll have a silent auction for charity.  It was a last minute thing and we didn’t solicit other donations but were simply overwhelmed by a huge quantity of things that were donated.  Next time we will be better organized and better prepared and do this thing right (?) or at least we will be better organized.  Perhaps we should make this a standard part of the Holiday Party?  It is the only time we tend to travel to a MOGSouth event in a vehicle with sufficient space for added stuff.

The Holiday Banquet Room (Photo Andrea Braunstein)

The Mother Courage Award was presented during the Holiday banquet remarks. The 2018 awardee is Rich Fohl.  Rich, unfortunately, wasn’t present to accept the award, however, we will get it to him in the next few weeks.

It was suggested that we survey the club on their preference for allowing previous winners of the Mother Courage award to be eligible to received it more than once.  We tried a verbal vote during the dinner, but this was inconclusive.  A suggestion was made to get the entire membership involved, so we decided to table this for now and include it in a more formal survey later on.

Also, it was suggested that those voting on the Mother Courage Awardee, i.e. the previous three awardees, should be allowed to rank order their votes (e.g. First choice, second choice, etc.)  This would allow for a simpler selection of the awardee should the initial votes all select someone different, resulting in no obvious winner.

When the suggestion was made during the dinner, I said I didn’t think this had occurred before, but now thinking back on previous years, I seem remember that this situation did occur just once, and we simply asked for another choice from the voters which resolved that year’s voting.  Ranking the choices, however, would eliminate the delays associated with a second vote, and the rankings could be used to more quickly determine an awardee.  These suggestions will be included in a survey we send out later in the spring.

As has become tradition, Collette Clark provided a beautiful platter for the event hosts.  And, Lee Gaskins gave us a few minutes of his experience with the fabled Morgan Plus 4 Super Sports.  Then we all left the banquet room and headed back to the Hospitality Suite for more imbibement(?) and interaction with friends.  A wonderful weekend and start to the Holidays.  A Happy Holiday to you and yours from MOGSouth.

Let’s do it all again in 2019!!

Cheers,  Mark