Tag Archives: Dr. Ed Gesley DMD

Did We Really Do That – College Antics…..

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Welcome back to Thebeerchaser.  If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title above to see all of the photos and the video at the end of the post and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened.  (External photo attribution at the end of the post. (#1 – #2)

In several of my recent posts – in a fit of nostalgia – I’ve looked back at some of the crazy antics in which my friends and I participated when I was younger:

The first was in the mid ’70’s, when on a golf outing to Tumwater, Washington, our foursome “crashed” an electrician union’s graduation ceremony.   https://thebeerchaser.com/2023/10/26/did-we-really-do-that-part-i/ 

My crazy dentist and I receiving our motorwinder diplomas.
Union President, Chief Chester and Thebeerchaser with diploma

The second, somewhat “out-of-the-box” undertaking occurred in 1984 at the American Society of Association Executives Annual Conference in Chicago.

That’s when my fraternity brother and friend of now over 50 years, Jud Blakely and I co-presented at a session that took all those attending by surprise. https://thebeerchaser.com/2023/11/03/did-we-really-do-that-part-ii-the-tie-that-binds/

“Sloe” Down – You Move Too Fast…

Perhaps because of the rather tragic demise of the PAC-12 Athletic Conference, I felt compelled to share a college memory during the years of the OSU Giant Killers.

We lived in a sheltered environment for four years while trying to figure out what we were going to do when our draft deferments ended or we had to face reality in the working world.

It was a time filled with wonderful and unforgettable campus memories such as the one below which involved the Class of 1970 at the Oregon State SAE Fraternity. (#3) 

Oregon Alpha Chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon

One of the great memories from college days in the late 1960’s is the concerts – held in Gill Coliseum where the Beavers played basketball.  The acoustics were not great, but we didn’t care.  Most of the time, these were part of a campus celebration such as Homecoming or Moms’/Dads’ weekend and sold out. (#4)

Gill Coliseum the campus of Oregon State University in Corvallis.

For example, during just my sophomore and junior year, we saw Harry Belafonte, The Association, Petula Clark, The Doors and The Righteous Brothers. (From left – clockwise below) (#5 – #9)

But the concert evoking the most vivid memory for me was in 1968 when three-time Grammy-winner, Lou Rawls, was the solo performer.  Rawls’ jazz and blues albums were best sellers and his 1966 album “Live!” was certified gold, but the concert surprisingly did not sell out. 

The event was held during “The Sophomore Cotillion” (That’s something you wouldn’t have in this era!) on a dreary winter weekend after a home football game.  Perhaps it was the weather and the fact that most OSU students were not jazz aficionados, but his concert was not that well attended.

That said, all of us who experienced it were absolutely thrilled with his performance. (#10)

Our sophomore class from the SAE house rented a room at the Town House Motor Inn in “downtown” Corvallis for pre-functioning and post-functioning – we weren’t yet twenty-one and couldn’t go to a venue that served alcohol. 

(The motel is now the Hotel Corvallis and you can still get a discounted standard room with a king-bed for $97 if not on a weekend with a home athletic contest.)  And it gets pretty good reviews on Trip Advisor…..

Rick Gaffney, one of the SAEs from our class, was the Cotillion Manager and had responsibility for all of the events that weekend including the Rawls concert.

While chatting with Lou Rawls immediately after the concert, he invited the singer to our party at the motel, never thinking he’d actually come.  (Rick in the present is shown below)  (#11 – #12)

But to our great surprise, the singer was staying at the same motel and when he knocked on the door of our room, we invited him in and offered him a beer.  He casually asked if we had any “hard stuff.”   

The only bottles in our inventory were Olympia and Blitz Beers – both of which were big in the Northwest – especially on campus. (And in Oregon, Coors was not available, but that’s another story…..  (#13.)

Olympia_Beer_label_1914

An historic Oly label

We reluctantly admitted, however, that we did have a bottle of Sloe Gin, which made Rawls guffaw. Yes, it was that “red liqueur” made with gin and drupes – a small fruit relative of the plum.

Sloe gin has a staggering alcohol content between 15 and 30 percent ABV!  He opted for a beer. (#14 – #15)

The only “hard stuff”
Not grown in the Willamette Valley!

The OSU Football team the year before was known as the “Giant Killers” and beat a No. 1 Ranked USC Trojan team led by running back O.J. Simpson by a score of 3 to 0 in Corvallis.  The 1967 team also beat No. 2 ranked Purdue and tied No. 2 ranked UCLA.  

OSU was a formidable opponent in 1968, as well, and ended with 7–3 record overall and 5–1 in the Pacific-8 Conference (Pac-8). Their final ranking in the AP Poll was fifteenth. (#16) 

OSU Giant Killers 1967

The Giant Killers in 1967

And the legacy will live on long after the demise of the PAC 12.

Photo Dec 05 2023, 9 35 45 AM

The Giant Killers in 2017

The SAE’s had eleven players on those teams and two of the starters – both defensive backs – were in our class and attended the party with their dates.  Larry Rich and Don Whitney did not drink that night but both had encounters with Lou Rawls.

The funniest was Don Whitney, as related by SAE, Keith “Sweeney” Swensen, a first-hand witness to the incident:

“I remember the look on Whit’ ’s face when he came out of the bathroom singing a Lou Rawls’ song only to walk right into Lou Rawls, himself.  He turned bright red but then Lou complimented him on his singing. 

After that, I don’t think Don said a word for the next 10 minutes.  He just sat there with a shit-eatin’ grin on his face.” (#18 – #19)

Don, a Pendleton native, after a long and valiant battle with pancreatic cancer, passed away in 2012. https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/gazettetimes/name/donald-whitney-obituary?id=13558684

Larry Rich and his date, Mariellen were there (they celebrated their 53rd wedding anniversary last year) and Larry remembers Rawls sporting a fabulous, large diamond-studded ring with the initials “LR.”

Rich said that he told the singer if he ever got tired of the ring, he would be glad to buy it “at the right price!” (#20)

Larry and Mariellen are both retired and live in Lincoln City, Oregon on the Central Oregon Coast. (A picture of Larry and Mariellen with Janet, my wife about three years ago is shown below.)

2016-05-26-18-15-13-e1464496436155

Janet Williams, Mariellen and Larry

The Next Chapter

Flash forward about ten years and Rick Gaffney, after completing his service in the US Navy, was working as the Beach Captain at Kona Village Resort in Kona.

One morning he was raking the sand and comedian Dom DeLuise walked up behind him kidding him about how his college degree had prepared him for his job. (#21)

“Hey Rick, Don’t You Get Any Respect?”

Another morning, Lou Rawls walked up to Rick’s beach shack.  He was visiting with actress Brenda Vaccaro. (#22)

Rick, somewhat sheepishly, reintroduced himself and reminded the singer of the Sophomore Cotillion concert he performed at Oregon State in 1968.

Rawls first replied, “Well, it’s all kind of a blur.  I was on the road so many nights.”   But then, he looked Gaffney right in the eye and said, “Wait a minute.! Sloe Gin — All you guys had was Sloe Gin.”  They both had a good laugh. 

Gaffney is now the President of Rick Gaffney & Associates on the Big Island of Hawaii.  His firm specializes in ocean recreation business development and marketing as well as marine eco-tourism resort planning and management and boat and yacht outfitting plus Pacific voyage planning. (#23)

Rick with clients.

The music world was saddened by Lou Rawls’ death at the age of seventy-two in 2006.   In 2021, he was posthumously inducted into the Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame.

None of us at that post-concert gathering will ever forget that interaction with the famed singer who was also a nice guy.  Similarly, I would suggest that none of us ever drank Sloe Gin again…. (#24)

“All you guys had was Sloe Gin!”

Cheers

External Photo Attribution

 

#1. Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (File:Memorial Union at Oregon State University.jpg – Wikimedia Commons)  I, the copyright holder of this work, release this work into the public domain. This applies worldwide.  Author: user:Owen   May 2005.

#2.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (File:Weatherford Hall Oregon State University Greg Keene.jpg – Wikimedia Commons)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Author: Gregkeene – 17 January 2009.

#3.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (File:Gill Coliseum entrance.JPG – Wikimedia Commons) The copyright holder of this work, release this work into the public domain. This applies worldwide.  Author: M.O. Stevens  May 2008.

#4.  Oregon State SAE Website (Sigma Alpha Epsilon Oregon Alpha | Oregon State (saeoregonstate.com)

#5. Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (File:Harry Belafonte 1970 (cropped).tif – Wikimedia Commons)    Public domain / Arquivo Nacional Collection – Agosto de 1970.

#6.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (File:Petula clark 1965.jpg – Wikimedia Commons ) This work is in the public domain in the United States.  Author: Tullio Piacentini / Federico Zanni – 1965.

#7.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (File:The Association 1966.png – Wikimedia Commons) This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published in the United States between 1928 and 1977, inclusive, without a copyright notice.  Author: KRLA Beat – 1966. 

#8. Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons  (File:The Doors 1968.JPG – Wikimedia Commons) the public domain in the United States because it was published in the United States between 1928 and 1977, inclusive, without a copyright notice.  Author: Agency for the Performing Arts (APA) – 1966.

#9. Wikimedia Commons (File:TheRighteousBrothersperformingKBF.jpg – Wikimedia Commons)  No known copyright restrictions; “There are no known copyright restrictions on this image. Photo courtesy Orange County Archives.  Author and date unknown.

#10. Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (File:President Ronald Reagan meeting with Lou Rawls in the Oval Offiice (cropped).jpg – Wikimedia Commons)  This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work prepared by an officer or employee of the United States Government as part of that person’s official duties..  Series: Reagan White House Photographs, 1/20/1981 – 1/20/1989. 3 December 1984.

#11.  (https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotels-g51817-Corvallis_Oregon-Hotels.html).

#12.  Rick Gaffney Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/rick.gaffney.73). 

#13.   Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympia_Brewing_Company#/media/File:Olympia_Beer_label_1914.jpg)  This media file is in the public domain in the United States. This applies to U.S. works where the copyright has expired, often because its first publication occurred prior to January 1, 1928, and if not then due to lack of notice or renewal. Author: Olympia Brewing Company.

#14. Wikimedia Commons (File:Hand Made Sloe Gin.jpg – Wikimedia Commons) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.  Author:  Smifff  – 9 December 2022.

#15. Wikimedia Commons (File:Sloe berry.jpg – Wikimedia Commons)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.  Author: Stephanie Watson – 13 September 2007.

#16. Corvallis Gazette Times (https://gazettetimes.com/albany/entertainment/movies/giant-killers-tells-the-story-of-the-1967-beavers-football-team/article_573b5c1e-523d-5669-888e-06d484aab93f.html)

#17.  Oregon State University Athletic Department (https://osubeavers.com/news/2017/11/27/football-giant-killers-the-legend-50-years-later).

#18. – #20.  Courtesy of Jud Blakely.

#21. Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dom_Deluise_Allan_Warren.jpg)       Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Author:  Allan Warren  – 1975.

#22. Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lou_rawls_edit.png)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.  Author:  MiliHell – 20 April 2014.

#23. Rick Gaffney Facebook Page ((6) https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10159998291059698&set=ecnf.1477435070Facebook.

#24. Wikimedia Commons (File:Hand Made Sloe Gin.jpg – Wikimedia Commons) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.  Author:  Smifff  – 9 December 2022.

 

 

 

 

Did We Really Do That? – Part I

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It seems that more often than I’d like to think, I say to Janet, my wife of forty-three years, “What were they thinking?”  Many of these reflections involve political issues or coaching decisions during professional or college athletic events.  (External photo attribution at the end of the post – #1).

My wife, however, reminds me that she is now making the same query about my actions more often!

And as I’ve gotten older, in moments of introspection, I think back on some of my younger escapades and based on what I hope is more maturity and better judgement, ask the same question. 

This and the next post are descriptions  of three such incidents that make me shake my head.  That said, I also laugh while contemplating each one and cherish the memories.

The Graduation Celebration

After college and the Navy, I moved back to Oregon City in 1972 and lived with my parents initially.  I had lettered in golf in high school, but had not played in six years. 

That changed when I started golfing every weekend – sometimes on both Saturday and Sunday mornings with three other guys – a group that lasted for about ten years.

McGarvey, Gesley and Chester on the links

Unfortunately, none of these wonderful gents is still with us, but here’s the group:

Chief Bob Chester – The Oregon City Police Chief and the step-father of my best friend in high school, Gary Kestler, who was killed while serving in the US Marine Corps in Viet Nam in 1967.  Bob was also the Best Man in our 1980 wedding and he and his family lived across the street.

Bob was admired and respected by fellow law enforcement professionals and was also a percussionist – often playing the drums on weekend gigs at various nightclubs.

Dr. Ed Gesley – An Oregon City dentist who lived with his wife and four kids, in the house behind ours and was my dentist from the time I was in seventh grade. 

Eddie was one of the brightest, most humorous and cordial people I’ve ever known.  He was also an excellent golfer who amazed us with how far he could hit his drives. 

Best Man Bob, Eddie and Thebeerchaser at our 1980 wedding reception

Len McGarvey – a police equipment salesman who was a friend of the Chief’s – a cigar-smoking Irishman who loved whiskey and was also a good golfer.

I was obviously, the youngest of the group and when we started golfing, I kept score. Our home course was Arrowhead Golf Club – a picturesque rural public course along the Molalla River about fifteen miles south of Oregon City. 

We’d usually tee off at around 8:00 AM, play eighteen and then have lunch and beers. (#2 – #3)

I had not interacted with these guys as an adult and at age twenty-four, still initially viewed them as authority figures.  This was evident by our conversation after three holes the first time we golfed together:

Beerchaser:  Mr. Chester, what did you have on that hole?

Chester:  Williams, if you call me Mr. Chester, one more time, I’m going to throw your clubs in the river.

Gesley:  Don, unless we are drinking beer, I would prefer that you address me as Dr. Gesley…

We didn’t take the golf too seriously and had wonderful comradery for many years.   About twice each year, we’d take an overnight “field trip” to a golf resort and play two rounds with robust eating, drinking and card playing in between. 

Over the years these included a number of outings to Sun River and Black Butte in Central Oregon.

But our most memorable was the trip to Tumwater Golf Course – a beautiful course, at that time owned by the Olympia Brewery and adjacent to the historic brewery building.   

Olympia Beer’s motto was “It’s the Water,”  because the source of its water was purportedly artesian wells.  These same wells kept the fairways emerald green. (#4)

An historic Oly label

Although for weekend golf we always walked, on field trips we rented carts (both to save our energy and to accommodate the large jug of screw drivers Eddie fixed to quench our thirst along the way).  (#5)

Aside from the good doctor nearly capsizing the golf cart (and spilling the contents of the jug) when he was trying to refill our drinks, we had a raucous and entertaining round – typical of all of our outings as you can see from the montage below:

After finishing our round in the early evening, we returned to the motel to first, find its bar and then, eat dinner in its excellent restaurant.  The motel hosted events and we heard a clamor, of sorts, behind double-closed doors as we walked through the lobby.

Of course, the Chief barged in and we found ourselves standing at the back of a large banquet room with about 150 couples in casual business attire finishing what appeared to be a very nice banquet meal.

There was a stage in front with a podium and the guy who looked like he was in charge emerged and walked to the microphone. We asked a waiter about the occasion and he responded, “This is the graduation dinner for the apprentices in the Washington Electrician Union.” 

At that point, the emcee welcomed everyone and said that diplomas were now going to be awarded. So he began calling the names individually in groups of ten and the graduates proceeded to the stage, standing in a semi-circle, for the first round of diplomas.

Eddie, or I should say, “Dr. Gesley,” noticed that during the first two rounds, about 1/3 of each of the first two groups, didn’t respond when their names were called (non-attendees) and the emcee paused before going on. 

So as the four of us stood there, on the fourth name of third round, nobody initially walked up.  Eddie, without hesitation, confidently strode from the back of the room and joined the partial semi-circle on the stage!

photo_20190802_OR0018019_0_20190802

I couldn’t believe it and was loose enough that when the eighth name of that group was called and Ronald Pearson, did not walk up, I found myself compelled to also head for the stage and stand in the semi-circle opposite Eddie Gesley waiting to receive my diploma. (Also trying not to look at Gesley, knowing both of us would crack up.)

I received Ron’s diploma as a Certified Motor Winder (“As a motor winder, your responsibilities entail taking steps to assemble, repair, and maintain electric motors.”) 

At the end of the third round, we both walked back, only then realizing that if one other person in the banquet room knew Ronald Pearson or the Gesley stand-in, we might have not exited the ceremony unscathed.

But that didn’t happen and we then proceeded to mingle and congratulate the other graduates.  The President of the Union with Chief Chester and yours truly is shown in the photo below.

I kept the diploma for a number of years, being too embarrassed to return it and feeling a bit sheepish about the entire episode, thankful that we didn’t get humiliated or beaten up. 

Also rationalizing with myself that in no way were we trying to demean or diminish the accomplishments of the people in that group.

We were just having a semi-intoxicated spur-of-the-moment “adventure” which was followed after dinner when we accompanied the female vocal group “Thunder Mama” in the Tumwater Lodge Lounge – but that’s another story……

Motorwinder_0002

Fellow graduates with Williams and Gesley holding their diplomas.

Bob Chester passed away at the age of 93 in 2007, Eddie in 2019 at the age of 87 and Len in 2008 at the age of 90.  I attended the memorial services of both the Chief and Dr. Gesley,

Although I didn’t share any golf stories, I chuckled when memories of these two wonderful friends were related.   I lost track of Len after he retired.

Did We Really Do That? – Part II

When I look back, there are two more such incidents where I pose the same question.  Fortunately “The Tie That Binds?” and “Weekend Update” occurred after I was married and had matured in addition to having a wife with very good judgement who I knew would admonish me if I went over the edge.  Stay tuned.

Cheers

External Photo Attribution

#1.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Question_mark_on_a_green_background.png) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.  Author: Hjvds – 14 April 2022.

#2.  Arrowhead Golf Club Facebook page. (https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=483849037080935&set=a.483849023747603)

#3.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Molalla_River_Recreation_Area_(11327205466).jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.  Author:  Bureau of Land Management Oregon and Washington  – 6 February 2010.

#4. Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympia_Brewing_Company#/media/File:Olympia_Beer_label_1914.jpg)  This media file is in the public domain in the United States. This applies to U.S. works where the copyright has expired, often because its first publication occurred prior to January 1, 1928, and if not then due to lack of notice or renewal. Author: Olympia Brewing Company.  Copyright 2014.

#5.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Screw_Driver_Cocktail.jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.  Author: Lillottama   10 May 2016.