Annual Christmas Party and Awards Dinner
Bring to a Close 2007
Lake Murray Power Squadron hosted more than 120 members for its
annual Christmas Party and Awards Dinner on 8 December at Saluda Shoals.
The first award of the evening was presented by 2006 dual
recipients of the Rusty Anchor Award Bryant Blakeslee and Sheila Bozard. Blakeslee presented special
runner-up awards before announcing this year's winner of the Rusty Anchor Award,
which is given for the most glorious unintended dip in the water.
Marilyn Hyman and Carl Swartzmiller each received the "Splinter
Award" for each falling on the dock — Carl
while cruising in North Carolina and Marilyn at Flotilla.
The next two runners-up were Gerry Sanders, who twice fell on
the swim platform of another member's boat during the June Log Jam and topped it
off by falling a third time during the August Log Jam, and Angie Tronco, who
fell into the water with "arms spinning like windmills" during a squadron raft
up. These two received the "Rubber Ducky Award."
But, the most glorious unintended dip earned Andy Hyman the 2007
Rusty Anchor Award. Following the June Log Jam, which he coordinated and fully
participated, Andy bent over to pick up a mat on his swim platform and proceeded
to fall into the water — all while the boat was
underway; yes, someone else was at the helm, which goes to prove the adage,
"always know where the captain is." As a special treat,
Blakeslee
repainted the award garnet and black to blend in with Andy's Gamecock
decor.
The next highly coveted award to be presented was the Bent Prop
Award, presented annually to a member for the most outstanding property damaging
navigation "errors." For a complete rendering with photos, go to
Bent Prop Recipient.
After the fun of these presentations, P/C Mike Kirk took the
floor to present the squadron's most prestigious awards: the Golden Anchor
Award, Lake Murray’s highest award to a long-time member in recognition of
extended and outstanding service; the Commander's Award, presented for exemplary
service; and the Spark Plug Award, presented to a member of less than two years
for exemplary service. For more on those awards, go to
Prestigious Awards.
In
addition to the presentation of fun and serious awards, this year's Christmas
Party included a roast of Past Commander Mike Kirk, AP, and his slogan "Get Up
Now." Most of the comments dealt with how often "Wanna Be Past Commander" Mike
Kirk was found laying down on the job. He was presented a reclining deck chair
in which to sit while a multitude of photos were shown of him "resting," such as
this one taken at a raft up on Norris Lake, Tennessee. Lake Murray's "real past
commanders" voted to leave "Wanna Be Past Commander" Kirk in limbo.
