A fond farewell to a longtime Rotarian

The speaker at Wednesday night’s meeting of the Rotary Club of

Newport-Balboa needed no introduction. The speaker was 34-year member

and retired Marine Corps Gen. Robert Owens, who with his wife, Fran,

is moving to Boulder, Colo., this week to be closer to their children

and grandchildren.

Owens, 86, gave his final craft talk to an overflow audience. Many

past club presidents, former members and spouses joined the Rotarians

in honoring him.

The Anchor Watch scribe for the evening, Terry Rousselot, said:

“Owens started out describing graduating from college at 18 years

old, then into the Marine Corps career at North Island, San Diego

with legendary Pappy Boyington, serving as an honorary pall bearer

for Dwight Eisenhower, trading golf tips with Arnold Palmer at a

Newport Beach reception, commanding the Marine Corps air wing for the

Western U.S., arriving with Fran at Scoffield Barracks, Hawaii on

Dec. 7; greeting Spain’s King Juan Carlos and his queen at El Toro

and supplying the couple with a much-needed carton of Camel

cigarettes upon their departure, briefing Robert McNamara in Vietnam

about choosing the correct targets of supply barges on the river.”

Owens served as Rotary Club president in 1974-75, led Rotary Group

study Exchange team to India in 1976 and has remained an active

member of our club since that time, said Ed Rennie, club president.

After a career in the Marine Corps, Owens became a Realtor in Newport

Beach, found time for golf at the Newport Beach Country Club and

joined a number of other groups, including Amigo Viejos.

I join with many in the community wishing Bob and Fran Owens the

best in their new adventure.

AN AMIGO FROM AFAR

Eighty members of Amigos Viejo gathered at the Newport Beach

Country Club for their regular luncheon meeting on Wednesday,

including Don “Muk” McCallum, who had arrived from Tahiti.

The group enjoyed a delicious barbecue, fellowship around the

tables and the humor of President Theodore “Bob” Robins. Robins

introduced McCallum, who provided the audience with a 10-minute

update on his life since moving to Tahiti in 1960.

McCallum was Newport Harbor High School student body president

when he graduated in 1948, a year after Robins graduated. He built a

number of hotels in the islands of the South Pacific and now just has

one in Tahiti itself. Time and distance may prove to be a barrier,

but when we gather, we are still Amigos, Robins said.

WORTH REPEATING

From Thought for the Day provided by Greg Kelley of the Newport

Mesa Irvine Interfaith Council:

“Live not one’s life as though one had a thousand years, but live

each day as the last.”

-- Marcus Aurelius

SERVICE CLUB MEETINGS THIS WEEK

TUESDAY

7: 30 a.m.: The 40-member Newport Beach Sunrise Rotary Club will

meet at Five Crowns for a program by Beate Litz of the Marine Mammal

Institute (newportbeach sunriserotary.org/index.htm).

6:30 p.m.: The Costa Mesa Newport Harbor Lions Club will meet at

the Costa Mesa Country Club.

WEDNESDAY

7:15 a.m.: The 10-member South Coast Metro Rotary Club will meet

at the Center Club (www.southcoastmet rorotary.org); and the Newport

Harbor Kiwanis Club will meet at the University Athletic Club.

6 p.m.: The 50-member Rotary Club of Newport-Balboa will meet the

Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club to hear from Rotary ambassadorial scholar

Amy Angelo, who studied last year at the University of St. Andrews

(www.newport-balboa.org).

THURSDAY

7 a.m.: The 20-plus member Costa Mesa-Orange Costa Breakfast Lions

Club will meet at Mimi’s Cafe.

Noon: The 50-member Costa Mesa Kiwanis Club will meet at the

Holiday Inn (www.kiwanis.org/ club/costamesa); the 50-member Kiwanis

Club of Newport Beach-Corona del Mar will meet at the Bahia

Corinthian Yacht Club; the 80-member Exchange Club of Newport Harbor

will meet at the Newport Harbor Nautical Museum to hear Don Udahl;

and the 100-member Newport-Irvine Rotary Club will meet at the Atrium

Hotel to hear Martyn Hopper and Assembly candidate Christi Cristich

discuss “The Business Climate in California” (www.nirotary.org ).

6 p.m.: The Exchange Club of the Orange Coast will meet at the

Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club for the installation of officers and

directors.

* COMMUNITY & CLUBS is published Saturdays in the Daily Pilot.

Send your service club’s meeting information by fax to (949) 660-8667

or by e-mail to jdeboom@aol.com.