| In May 2002 we started the year with our first visiting speaker, David Lass,
who gave a presentation on Loricariid catfish and donated fish for auction. Dan Woodland, from Ohio, was the speaker for the June meeting. He have a presentation on cichlids and also donated fish for auction. Our July meeting featured Mark Soberman of the Greater City Aquarium Society in New York. Mark gave a presentation on Corydoras catfish and supplied a variety of corys for auction. Also in July, a delegation of 7 members attended the annual convention of the American Cichlid Association in Atlanta. Our August event was a social gathering, in the form of a sunset cruise on the sailboat “Second Wind” with Captain Leon. This has become a popular summer event and is likely to become a firm fixture on our annual calendar. September was show month and we held our Annual Tropical Fish Show at the Botanical Gardens. The SPCA shifted the dates of their Expo so we elected to go it alone. The event was well attended and was deemed a success. We benefited from sponsorship from Ace Bermuda Ltd who purchased all of the show trophies. Nyon Steede won Best in Show whilst Mark Powell re-captured Best in Show by a Junior. The judge was Joe Ferdenzi who gave a very entertaining talk at the show banquet. Eric took digital photos of the class winners and we were able to show them during the awards presentation. We did not have a speaker in October, so it provided an opportunity to unwind after the show and generally talk fish. In November, we hosted Judy Daniel and her fiancé Jay. Judy was unable to bring fish with her on this trip but she gave an interesting presentation on Discus. Judy and Jay also held a workshop in which they demonstrated how to make frozen fish food. We had planned a Christmas party for the December meeting. Unfortunately, only a handful of members committed to attending so it was cancelled. We met in January but there was no speaker. On Sunday 19th January, we held our Home Show. I was surprised when I realized that we have not held a Home Show since 1998. I hope that we can get back on track with this event. Anyway, five of our members entered their tanks into the show and we had a great time visiting their homes to see them. All five displays were well done but, as in all competitions, someone has to win. This year, the race was extremely close. After all nine judges’ scores were totaled, a single point separated first and second place finishers. The average scores were only a tenth of a point apart! So, by the closest of margins, Klaus Gebhardt won first place over Chris Doe. Congratulations to all who participated. Peacock expert Steve Lundblad travelled all the way from Portland, Oregon, for the February meeting. Due to the distance, the airfare was significantly higher than usually encounted for our speakers. We broke with existing policy and agreed to fund 100% of the airfare, which was $850. We were fortunate to gain sponsorship from the Harmony Club, who provided free accommodation for three days of Steve’s stay. Steve donated a nice selection of fish and the auction bids were high. As a result, the auction pulled in about $1,600, resulting in a profit being realized from the event. |