Dear editor: 

NOTL’s Mabel Hunter celebrated her 94th birthday in January with the Thursday night duplicate bridge club.

All of our bridge players have a great deal of respect for Mabel as she plays bridge competitively and continues to be a daunting opponent.

Mabel is one of the founding members, and the only surviving member, of the Thursday night duplicate bridge club which started ca. 1975 with four couples.

They were: Harry and Helen Dawson, Gordon and Mildred MacMillan, Al and Vera Derbyshire, and Eddie and Mabel Hunter.

The group of eight first started by meeting in each other’s homes but then, as others wanted to join them, they moved to the Legion where it cost $10 to rent space for the night to play.

When Harry Dawson was on council, he wangled it so they could play for free at the NOTL Community Centre, so they moved there. When the new community centre opened in 2011, the club moved to the Simpson Room. 

Mabel’s husband died in 1994 and since then, Mabel has played regularly with Barb MacGowan. The club continues to flourish and grow with Pat Braun running it as director.

Usually, about 40 or more people come out to play on Thursday nights. The cost of membership is only $10 a year, with a fee of $2 a night to play, one of the best bargains in town for a fun-filled evening with friendly people.

If you place in the top two or three that night, you get to play for free the next time. Just because Mabel is 94, doesn’t mean she has lost any skill at the game.

At the Jan. 23 game, she placed second. She’s still sharp as a tack and don’t think you can get away with anything when you compete against her.

Watch out … don’t be surprised when you find out that she cleverly led away from her King! Tricked again!

She can outwit the best of them!

Marlene Walther

NOTL