November, 2007 Monthly Newsletter In Memory of Bark Tree 1941 – 2007

It is my sad duty to report that on November 9th, 2007 Bark Tree passed. Bark was an icon on Catalina Island. I had the privilege of knowing and working with Bark for only four years, but I was aware of his long history on the island. An incident that sticks in my mind occurred about six months ago at Edison. I was talking to a newly appointed Director when Bark walked through the lobby. The Director asked in surprise if that was Bark and when I replied that it was he chased after him before he could leave the building. I was surprised, as Bark had retired eight years earlier, had been somewhat isolated here on the island, yet it became clear that he had a following even within this giant corporate company on the mainland! And how could anyone forget Bark? But I don’t know a fraction as much about Bark as those who have known him for decades, so I sought his long-time friends for their comments about this nearly larger-than-life man. Here is what I gathered: Bark was born in Massachusetts on January 30, 1941 and his family moved to the island in 1957. After graduating from Avalon High in ’58 he attended Long Beach College, majoring in math. In 1963 Bark was drafted and served with the Air Force until 1967, after which he went to work for Hughes Aircraft and he traveled extensively overseas. In 1969 Bark married Julie Dean and went to work for Raytheon and was immediately sent to the Philippines. He traveled to Thailand, South Korea, Vietnam, Japan and Okinawa. He served on nine different Naval carriers, overseeing the electronic equipment of F-4 aircraft. But in 1971 he turned down an assignment with Raytheon in Iran and went to work for Edison. From 1972 – 1978 he served as a City Councilman and Mayor Pro Tem. He was a volunteer fireman for 25 years and a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. And, if Bark’s life wasn’t impressive enough, he led the Tree clan to the third top winning family in 1980 on the game show Family Feud! In 1990 and single again, Bark reunited with his childhood friend, Judy Perez, and they were together from then on. Bark retired from Edison in 1999 and began working part-time as a golf course marshal. A graveside memorial service will be held on November 17, 2007 at11:00 a.m. followed by a Celebration of Life at JL’s Locker Room. Judy advised golf pro Mark Phelps that in lieu of flowers, a donation to the Junior Golf Program would be appreciated. We will miss you, Bark.

Change in Newsletter Delivery At the November 14, 2007 Board of Directors meeting the following motion was made and unanimously passed: As a matter of convenience and effective December, 2007, all Avalon residents can pick up their Men’s Club newsletter each month at the pro shop. Newsletters will no longer be sent via the U.S. mail to full-time island residents. Please remember that the club has a website maintained by Steve Jordan and it contains an amazing amount of information, including past and future tournaments, current point standings, newsletters, photos and much more. The URL address is www.catalinamensgolfclub.com. Once again I encourage all members with computers and email addresses to notify me that they wish to receive their newsletters by email.

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Francisco Bravo 2007 Club Champion! We all know that Francisco has one of the smoothest swings in our club, he’s certainly one of the best ball strikers on the island, is very serious about his game, and lastly, he’s arguably one of the bestdressed players. On Sunday, November 11th, Francisco’s many attributes all came together when he strolled down the 18th fairway to a low-gross Club Championship victory of an impressive two-day 6 under par, 134. Just think about how difficult it is for any of us to shoot a respectable nine-hole round during the 12:30 group. And let’s not forget how tough it is to post an eighteen-hole round in the sixties. Congratulations, Francisco. Here’s the full tourney results:

Catalina Men's Golf Club 2007 Club Championship Results

Club Champion 68 + 66 = 134

Francisco Bravo Flight "A"

Net Flights Flight "B"

Flight "C"

1st Place - Tie

1st Place

Rigo Pedroza

Raul Pedroza

Eddie Arnold Jr.

60 + 60 = 120

59 + 64 = 123

2nd Place

2nd Place

Rick Spruell

Dave Jordan

62 + 62 = 124

1st Place

Joe Saldana 63 + 61 = 124

64 + 65 = 129

3rd Place

3rd Place – Tie

Abel Meza

George Leyva

64 + 63 = 127

67 + 67 = 134

3rd Place David Black

61 + 71 = 132

65 + 72 = 137

John Andrus 66 + 66 = 132

Proximity - Saturday "B" Flight

"A" Flight #11 - Joe Saldana

#16 - Danny Bevins

"A" Flight

Proximity - Sunday "B" Flight

#16 - Chris Arnold

#11 - Tino Rodriguez

"C" Flight #15 - Tom Hall

"C" Flight #18 - Bob Orman

In the Circle - Saturday Ed Arnold Jr., Tom Hall, Joe Hernandez, Larry Hernandez, Ron Hite, Geoff Knowles, Rick Miller, Eduardo Murillo, Jose Pedroza, Rudy Perez, Dan Regan, Lee Robison, Joe Saldana, Bud Vasconcellos

In the Circle - Sunday Ed Arnold, Danny Bevins, Jorge Leyva, Eduardo Murillo, Juan Rodriguez, Tino Rodriguez

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Lessons Learned While playing in this tournament I learned a couple of new things. They are: 1. When Coyote Joe says he’s not going to play in the tourney…he’s playing. 2. When Bob Orman is in your foursome, don’t worry about being quiet on the tee…he couldn’t hear a nuclear blast from ten feet. 3. Before the tourney, Ed Arnold Jr’s. index was mistakenly recorded as a 16, rather than the 10 he plays to.

A Message from the Pro Trail Fees Beginning January 1, 2008 the golf course will start enforcing collection of the $3.00 trail fee for golf carts. The collection of this fee should help take down the number of golf carts per group thus reducing the wear and tear on the fairways. There will be no increase in the green fees this year, which I fought for in lieu of collecting the trail fees. Thank you in advance for your understanding, as this is a move to keep our golf course in the best possible condition.

Sincerely, Mark Phelps, PGA Course Manager Coyote Aces #9 Last week I wandered into Coyote Joe’s for a piece of hot apple pie and a cup of coffee (actually it was a beer and a shot), and Joe Saldana was there, ensuring his customers were well served and satisfied. Joe told me that the prior weekend he marked another hole-in-one on #9, and he stressed that he did it from the blue tee! Now that’s a pretty long ace. I asked Joe what club he used and he claimed he couldn’t remember. Couldn’t remember? What? Joe Saldana remembers what club he hit on his very first ace, which hole it was on, which course, the wind speed and direction, how low the cloud ceiling was, the temperature and ambient humidity and whether he was wearing boxers or briefs! So I again asked Joe what club, but again he said his memory had faded. My reply was, “That’s OK, I’ll simply put in the newsletter that since you’re getting up there in years that you hit a driver.” Immediately Joe’s memory returned and he said hit an “easy” four iron. Rumors have it that Joe STOOD on that four iron, barely making it to the cup on its final revolution. I guess this means no more comped apple pie and coffee for me at Coyote Joe’s, huh? At the Board of Directors meeting on November 14th, the members asked me to once again mention that receiving this newsletter via email rather than by U.S. mail is a big saving for the club. Obviously not all members even have a computer so they can’t opt for email, but I’m sure there are many members who check their email everyday and could easily get the newsletter electronically. It cost the club about $60.00 for stamps monthly, roughly $15.00 for computer paper and new laser jet ink cartridges for my printer cost $67.00 each and run out after 2,500 pages, about four months. Only 71 of our members get the newsletter via email. Send me an email at [email protected] or [email protected]. The tournament next month is the ever poplar, and sometimes dangerous, Monster. Make sure to sign up before it fills. Bud Vasconcellos, Editor Men’s Club Newsletter

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MONSTER TOURNAMENT 4 MAN SCRAMBLE Sunday, December 9th, 2007 - 10:00AM Shotgun Start Sign up only as a single. Teams will be made up by the traditional up and down handicap system. Your last chance to earn Tournament Points and break into the top 10 for Prizes! Entry Fee: $55.00 includes Dinner Dinner Guests: $25.00 Sign up in the Pro Shop or by Mail! Pro Shop sign ups and Entry Fees close on Friday, December 7th, 2007 at 05:00 PM, or when we have 56 Entries, whichever comes first! (Since this is a 4 Man Team event the total number of entries must be divisible by 4, meaning there will be either 44, 48, 52, or 56 golfers, so sign up early!)

Raffle/Dinner/Awards following the Tournament in the Country Club Dining Room Cocktails @ 5:00PM, Dinner @ 5:30PM Mail in entries must be received by Wednesday, December 5th , 2007. Fill out the form below, include the entry fee and mail to:

Catalina Island Men’s Golf Club Attn: Tournament Director P. O. Box 81 Avalon, Calif. 90704 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sunday December 9th, 2007 Mail in Entry Form Member Name: _________________________________ Dinner Guests: ___ Entry Fee: $55.00 per Member Dinner Guests: $25.00 Deadline: Mail in entries must be received by Wednesday, December 5th, 2007. Entry fee(s) must be included. NOTE FOR MAIL IN ENTRIES PLEASE CALL TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR, LARRY HERNANDEZ, AT 310-510-0510 OR EMAIL ME AT [email protected]

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