A Message from Your President - by Lou Ronca

Summer is gone and fall is upon us. I know this to be true having just returned from the Annual ACBS General Membership meeting in Gravenhurst, Ontario, Canada. What a fall show it was. By the time we returned to Manotick with our friends, the trees had gone from solid green to all shades of yellow, orange, red and green. It was a beautiful site to see. Speaking of sites to see, for those of you that have never had the opportunity to see the boats and the boat houses of the Muskoka’s you are missing one of the great wonders of the antique boating world. The Toronto Chapter had arranged a two day tour of about 25 boat houses in the area, some of which have never been open to the public. Many of these boats were custom built one of a kind. I have never seen so many beautiful and unusual mahogany boats in one place and I doubt there is another place on earth that can boast the quantity and quality of antique boats that our Canadian neighbors created out of this region.

Setting all the mahogany beauty aside, the ACBS Annual meeting turned out to be quite an inspiration for me personally and has created a renewed interest in moving some of our local efforts forward. One of the most interesting parts of these meetings is getting to know new people and sharing ideas with other chapters. I had the distinct pleasure of spending time with several members of the Toronto Chapter including incoming President Chris Bullen and his wife Julie. Last year their chapter created a youth program that attracted about 20 young participants. Plans for a basic dory were designed and made available for the youth to build. A total of 10 boats were built, finished, painted and launched in a weekend boat show. Many of you may already be aware that Sunnyland has plans for a three phase program that will begin with youth and develop into a Boatwright Apprenticeship Program. We already have several people including Dave Tilley and Richard Arnold, stepping to the plate to make it all happen. More on this program will be discussed at the Sunnyland annual meeting.

The Muskoka’s are a group of communities much like our three cities of Mt Dora, Tavares and Eustis. Each has its own unique character. I had the opportunity to visit the Grace and Speed Museum on the Gravenhurst water front. This museum displays the history of the area and the significance of its hotels and the boating industry to its economy. Most boats are on loan

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