President’s Letter
November, 2023
We’re laser-focused on the programs and information that will keep you informed and entertained, with some perspective on “what’s goin’ on” all around us.
The club opened our ‘new year’ with an innovative doubleheader meeting on the region’s defining asset – 20% of the world’s freshwater in the Great Lakes, every drop of which flows past Detroit and Grosse Pointe (with one notable exception – Chicago). In the first program, the club’s very own John McGrail, a civil engineer who managed the DWSD capital program until his retirement in 20014, laid out the history of the water management from its inception in the 1830s. The second program, presented by William Wolfson, senior administrator of the relatively new and award-winning Great Lakes Water Authority, brought the story forward to current developments – after dodging a few questions about flooding issues that have landed in the courts. Mayor Hodges described Grosse Pointe Park’s interest in finding solutions to the water management issues that are sure to come in the future.
The big event of the month was an in-depth tour of one of the Ford Motor Company’s early automotive manufacturing factories – the factory museum on the near east side on Piquette Street, which set the pace for the Ford Model T line and the products of other car companies in the early 1900s. Organized by events leader Ed Benz, the tour was well attended, featured an extremely knowledgeable and engaging guide, and a delightful post tour lunch at Zs for those who could stay. If you haven’t been there, it’s a must -do.
These two openers demonstrated the quality and fun we’re trying to bring to you. If it’s an off-campus activity, it’s an ‘event’. If it’s a regular luncheon program at the War Memorial, it’s a ‘meeting’. Share your suggestions for meetings with Dan Clark or a member of his Program Committee. Give your event ideas to Ed Benz. You can find all their contacts in the Membership Directory or the web site.
And speaking of directories, Jim Callahan is off to a really good start on the Membership Directory for 2024. If you can help with an ad, please contact him. If you can help with businesses or organizations that have a natural interest in the demographic represented by the club, please also contact Jim.
Have a Thanksgiving full with gratitude. We have much to be thankful for.