Many people were involved with the start of CLCR. It would be easy to forget some, hard to remember all. Ron Cotterill was the key. He and I met on the water, fellow scullers in 2014. As a long time sculler on the lake he had often thought about starting a club. Over coffee after one of our rows together, I offered to help and we started researching the process. With Pam Miller we cobbled together a plan. A year later… We had a fledgling sculling program.
One person comes to mind from that early time. Katie Lynch was one of a number of masters (adult) scullers who joined us. Many are still active. Katie is not. That fall she received a devastating diagnosis, terminal cancer. While she was with us she exemplified the goals we had for our association, a community of rowers of all ages and abilities, sharing and learning. She was new to rowing, willing to learn something unfamiliar, and appreciative of the skills necessary to scull well. Also, she was delighted by the rewards sculling provides to one who persists. In turn we were delighted by her enthusiasm and asked her to serve on our inaugural Board of Directors.
As she entered hospice and reflected on her fore-shortened rowing experience she made a decision to leave a generous donation to our nascent club. We were gratified and surprised that she would choose to recognize our new enterprise rather than other established non-profits. Her bequest made it possible for us to purchase a new Peinert lightweight single, in a distinctive periwinkle color. We named it “Katie”.
If you are one of our current scullers, for whom this craft is a good fit, please honor her memory when you push off from the dock. Any gesture or mantra will do, a tap on the gunwale or just a whispered “Thank you Katie”.
Ed Keagle, President 2014-17