Thanks again for coming today and for being a part of this glorious day in the history of the IVY Club, for almost to the day, this great club of ours is 100 years old. What an achievement! Not many institutions reach this milestone. It is easy to say we are 100 years old, but if we take a few steps back and look into 1907 the depth of the magnitude of this awesome accomplishment takes on a powerful meaning.

One hundred years ago, Teddy Roosevelt was President and had not yet taken his famous ride on Grand View Drive. Who knows, maybe, just maybe, while riding along up there he looked down here and saw the IVY Club and that's what made him proclaim it the "world's most beautiful drive."

In 1907, many of our grandparents weren't born yet. None of the last nine Presidents, beginning with JFK, were born yet. Important people no longer with us, like Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Jesse Owens, Jackie Robinson, Pope John Paul II, Edward R. Murrow, Lucille Ball, Milton Berle, Sam Snead, Joe Lewis, Albert Camus and Frank Sinatra and a host of others were not born yet.

In 1907, if a group of people gathered together for an occasion similar to this, many would have been Civil War and Spanish-American War veterans. WWI wouldn't start for seven years and the Great Depression was twenty-two years away.

In 1907, there were only 45 states. The average life expectancy was 47 years. The average wage was $0.22/hour making the average income about $500/year. Only 6% of Americans graduated from high school. Dues for the IVY Club were $5—for the whole year. Sugar cost $0.04/pound, eggs were a penny each.

In 1907, Caterpillar wouldn't exist for another twenty years. There were only about 10,000 cars in the U.S., none of which were yet Model T Fords, and a couple of thousand miles of paved roads. Morse code and the telegraph were the preferred methods of electronic communication. The radio, telephones and electricity were in their infancy. "Talkies" hadn't yet arrived on the motion picture circuit. There were of course, no television sets, computers or even calculators. The first airplane flight at Kitty Hawk took place only four years before the IVY Club was founded. Indoor plumbing was considered a real luxury.

I could go on and on, but you get the point. Through all this the IVY Club was here. Through all this the IVY Club prospered. Why? Because of all those who came before us who in their own way helped make the IVY Club the best boating club on the Illinois River. The 59 previous Commodores, many of whom are here today, the boards, the members and staff have left a lasting legacy that we are honored to celebrate here today. We thank them for their passion, dedication, contributions, leadership, accomplishments and wisdom. But they also leave us a challenge—to protect and build upon what they have given us so that 100 years from today our offspring can do this again. With our exceptional membership, board and staff, along with the deep and lasting friendships that are the essence of the IVY Club, I know we will succeed. Thank you.