By Karen Roberts, F282636
June 2013
Forty-three motorhomes from three FMCA chapters — Great American RV Club, Olympic Snowbirds, and Reigning Rex — gathered Sunday, September 16, through Wednesday, September 19, 2012, at the Swiss Sportsmen’s Club of Tacoma in Bonney Lake, Washington, for a three-chapter rally.
Actually, the fun kicked off on Thursday, September 13, as those who arrived early were invited to LeRoy and Eunice Johnson’s site for a potluck dinner. On Friday, folks were on their own for dinner, and some of us shared what we had in the outdoor covered area. On Saturday, hors d’oeuvres sufficed for dinner. Games such as Sticks, Pegs & Jokers, Mexican Train, and others were played during these days leading up to the official beginning of the rally.
Sunday’s happy hour and potluck dinner were presented by the Reigning Rex chapter. They also were responsible for Monday morning’s continental breakfast. Sunday’s happy hour included the game “Who Am I?” to get the group mixing. A label with the name of a famous person on it was attached to the back of each attendee. Attendees did not see the names on their backs and asked other participants questions to try to discover who they were. Each question could be answered only with a “yes” or “no,” with a limit of only one question per person. It got quite intense for some attendees as they tried to figure out who they were. Yours truly was Ringo Starr.
On Monday, 16 people played a round of golf at the Tapps Island Golf Course. Winners were Chuck Sissons and Jim Guthrie. While the golfers were off chasing the little white ball around, 12 ladies made greeting cards for Operation Write Home, an effort that collects and ships handcrafted cards to troops so they can have attractive stationery when writing home. Four women made more cards on Tuesday, so there were 45 cards total when they were put out for display. Brian Illston drew a name from among the participants and a prize was awarded to Carrole Buchanan. First-timers and experienced card makers alike did a fabulous job.
On Monday, following the golf and card-making activities, we had the first round of our Pegs & Jokers tournament. Monday night’s happy hour and baked potato bar dinner were served by the Olympic Snowbirds, who also handled the continental breakfast on Tuesday morning. Everyone was asked to wear a costume for happy hour, and although the theme was Western, we had a variety of interesting outfits. The winners were Joe Cokl and Lynda Steinman.
On Tuesday afternoon, we took a trip to Crystal Mountain Resort for a gondola ride. Even with all the fires in eastern Washington, the view of Mount Rainier and the surrounding area was spectacular. Happy hour and a spaghetti dinner were presented that evening by the Great American RV Club.
On Tuesday night, the finals of the Pegs & Jokers and Sticks tournaments were held. The Pegs & Jokers winners were John and Linda Haley, Lester O’Bryan, and Vic Buchanan, while Meri Schneider was the Sticks winner. Congratulations to everyone.
This rally was so special and the chemistry among the three chapters was great. Everyone made new friends, with the common denominator being our motorhomes. We played, ate, toured, and enjoyed being together. Each chapter took a day as the host, so the work was spread out among the entire group. The planning took some flexibility, as each chapter had its own traditions regarding how to run a rally, but with compromise and cooperation, it was done well.