By Michael Stone, President

Way back when (around 2006), I heard from a man (H.B.) in the Columbia, S.C. area who ex-pressed an interest in Prime Timers. Two years lat-er, I heard from another fellow in the same area. I sent out a “chapter startup kit”, but he claimed that the area was too “red neckie” and couldn’t get any-thing started. Subsequently, he moved and now re-sides in Florida.

Late in 2013, H.B. contacted me again. At that time, along with his partner Brian, they got the chapter started in January of 2014. Over the years, I’ve kept in-touch with them and have been amazed at the miracle they created. Their newsletter is always full of colorful and exciting, varied events.

See TWO GENTLEMEN OF DISTINCTION on page 3

I N S I D E

Your Story 2

Up Front 2 The Stability of Stability

Time To Celebrate 3

Chapter News 4 RSVP Cruise and Fort Lauderdale

Giving Thanks 4 Prime Timers Thanksgiving Dinner at Las Vegas LGBT Center Draws a Crowd

30th Anniversary 5 Prime Timers Worldwide Convention in Chicago

Congratulations 5 Happy Anniversary to Bob and Jimie

Cruisin’ Times 6

Newsletter Editor Tom Hammond webmaster@ primetimersww.com

M A R C H 2 0 1 7

Bringing together mature gay and bisexual

men for friendship, activities, support

and personal growth

ORGANIZATION NEWS AND MORE

VISIT US ONLINE AT WWW.PRIMETIMERSWW.COM

I N M E M O R I A M

Dick Bourbeau December 3, 2016

It is with great sadness that I inform his many friends and fellow Prime Timers of the passing of Dick Bourbeau. Dick passed away quietly in his sleep on December 3rd in Hawaii after battling health problems for the past few years.

I often referred to Dick as the “second” Prime Timer after Woody Baldwin. He was one of the first members when the organization was founded in 1987 in

See DICK BOUR-BEAU on page 3

two gentlemen of distinction H.B., Brian, Michael, and Robert

up front 2

By Jack Nimmo, Chairman of the Independent Chapter

A s I sit before my computer on Valentine’s Day Eve, I’ve been thinking about cou-ples that will celebrate another Valentine’s Day together tomorrow. When Woody

Baldwin thought of that idea of inviting older gay men to that first event in Boston, he was prob-ably thinking of those who might not have a special person in their lives to be the recipient of a Valentine’s Day card. His life was blessed by his beloved Sean O’Neill. However, like the sur-prisingly large turnout at the first event, it included couples who were not involved in social ac-tivities.

I often refer to happenings in my own San Antonio chapter since it is my best frame of reference. I am the membership chairman and keeper of the roster data, so I know the chapter’s demographics. We ended 2016 with 201 members that included 45 couples. I’m struck by the importance of those partnered or married members to our chapter. Our couples have shared 1935 “couple years” averaging 20.6 years together. They range from 1 to 49 years as a couple. Many met in our chapter or at another Prime Timer event elsewhere. These couples mix com-fortably with single members to make a diverse group of men seeking the fun of companionship. Our couples rep-resent a lot of stability as they push back the stereotype of the gay community from those who do not know us.

Have you focused on the gay couples in your community? They can add diversity to your organization and stability. I do not mean to imply that single members are not stable. Many of us prefer being single with all the “freedom” that affords. Perhaps we are very stable as a single man focused on a career or another time consuming activity that makes being single the best course for us. Having a partner or husband re-quires an investment in time! Or, perhaps that next sin-gle Prime Timer joining your chapter is the man of your dreams.

If your chapter doesn’t reach out to couples, perhaps it should. They participate in twos at events and almost always renew their memberships. As with their relation-ships, they bring additional stability to your chapter. While you will be reading this after Valentine’s Day, the good wishes were prepared to all Prime Timer members, single or partnered/married. Happy Valentine’s Day, Sean and Woody!

Would you like to con-tribute to Outs and Ins? Anything that would be of interest and value to fel-low members would be most helpful. Here are some ideas:

Chapter activities

Living life as a mature gay man

Advice for other chap-ters

Helping the community

Medical or retirement advice

Achievements and recognition

Chapter newsletter articles

How PTWW helps you as a gay man

Personal thoughts

Puzzles or jokes that others would enjoy

How your chapter uses the Internet

Biography of yourself or other board mem-bers

Other gay organiza-tions or conferences that benefit members

Review of good books that you've read

Poems that you have written

Please send an electron-ic version of your article t o w e b m a s t e r @primetimersww.com. Thanks for your consid-eration! Help make an impact and be a voice of encouragement and ad-vice to help us all grow as Prime Timers.

your story

Sean and Woody

Love is our true destiny. We do not find the meaning of life by ourselves alone — we find it with another. Thomas Merton

Boston. Over the years, he served on every board posi-tion. He also attended every Worldwide Convention. He will be missed by those of us who knew him as a Prime Timer and as a friend. News of his passing comes to us from Boston Chapter President Da-vid Stanford and Vice-President Harry Fullerton.

by Michael Stone, President

In April of last year, Robert and I went on a driving trip through the Southeast. Columbia was on our agenda. These two men have 79 beautifully wooded acres with two homes on it. They loaned us one of the homes for our stay. It was beautifully furnished, warm, and hospi-table, like the two of them. They kept us busy, immersing us in some of the chapter activities. We found the members to be super hospitable and warm, all in the true spirit of Prime Tim-ers.

H.B. and Brian seem to have the right combination of working with groups and recruiting new members. In August, they traveled to Charleston, S.C. to setup a booth at the local Pride Celebration. They talked to lots of men and handed out information. As result, they were able to do some-thing I had been unable to do: find local guys interested in starting a chapter in Charleston.

In late October, they worked with our Charlotte and Myrtle Beach chapters to produce the Carolinas Prime regional event. I flew down along with both Vice Presidents. Everyone worked very hard and, as a result, the event was a great success. In addition, a few men were there from Charleston and we were able to meet with them and answer questions. Another Carolinas Prime will happen in October of 2018. Our newest chapter, Prime Timers Charleston, S.C. started on Sunday, February 5th with 57 guys in attendance. As you might have guessed, H.B. and Brian were there to help it get started.

I’ve spoken with Brian, suggesting that he run for spot on the Worldwide Board. He’s refused on more than one occasion. He feels he works best behind-the-scenes as he’s been doing. This modest man is a dynamo and full of ideas and great connections. Now he is sug-gesting they will work to try to get a chapter started in Greenville, S.C. I felt it time to salute these two men for all they do for our group.

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Honoring Our Own

We would like to remember and honor those who have influenced their chapters and fellow Prime Timers. To in-clude a memorial in Outs and Ins, please provide a written memorial and photo to web-master@primetimersww.com. We welcome loved ones, board members, and those who helped Prime Timers grow into what it is today.

Dick Bourbeau

Continued from the cover

cover story

continued from Michael Stone’s cover page article

Columbia SC Prime Timers

two gentlemen of distinction

Time To Celebrate By Tom Pence

While the rest of the world was freezing; the men of the Janu-ary Jamboree met in Fort Lauderdale the hottest place to be. A Celebration of Friends welcomed men attending from 28 different states and twelve different countries to the first an-nual January Jamboree. Over $10,000 was raised for Senior Services at the South Florida Pride Center and Tuesday’s An-gels, Inc. A Celebration of Friends has now raised over $174,000 for local charities in areas where they’ve celebrat-ed. We’ll be back July 20-23, 2017! Check us out at www.celebrationoffriends.org

RSVP Cruise and Fort Lauderdale Prime Timers

By A.J. Ratliff Director-At-Large

Recently I went on an RSVP Caribbean cruise with 3,400 other men. I asked RSVP to schedule a Prime Timers Happy Hour while on the ship.

When I boarded, I found that they had sched-

uled two Happy Hours for us, one on Thursday and another on Friday. Both were well attended by my fellow Prime Timers. About 60 members at-tended the first one and 40 the second.

All of us enjoyed visiting with each other from all over the country.

When I returned to Fort Lauderdale, I attended a Fort Lauderdale Prime Timers Monday evening mixer at The Tropics bar. There are always over 100 in attendance at the weekly events. The also meet at the Outback Steakhouse on a regular basis.

chapter news 4

Photo courtesy A.J. Ratliff

Photo courtesy A.J. Ratliff

giving thanks Thanksgiving Dinner at Las Vegas LGBT Center Draws a Crowd

By Gary Payne, Vice President

I would like to share a wonderful story with you. For the past few years, I have been working with the LGBT Center here in Las Vegas to have a Thanksgiving dinner for all LGBT seniors in the community. The Center is closed on Thanksgiving Day, but they made an exception this past year and opened it for this event.

Many Las Vegas Prime Timers volunteered to help. There were five of us that did all the cooking (five turkeys and two hams). Also, many guests brought dishes so we had lots of food.

The event was attended by 136 people. These would have been 136 LGBT seniors who would have stayed home and not celebrated Thanks-giving. Many do not have family here or are alone for the holidays. This was such a success that Cen-ter has said we could do it again this year.

Our ACT III Senior Center at the LGBT Center sponsored the event and will do so this year as well. Many of our seniors at ACT III are also Prime Timers. ACT III is now two years old and we are growing very fast. We have the Senior Drop-in Center open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. It is run by volunteers (many being Prime Timers). Many who attend end up joining Prime Timers. It is a great way to bring seniors in.

Photo courtesy Gary Payne

Photo courtesy Gary Payne

Prime Timers Worldwide Convention in Chicago By David Lazear, Chicago Prime Timers

Chicago Prime Timers is honored to be hosting the Prime Timers Worldwide Conven-tion on its 30 year anniversary! Come enjoy “The Windy City”, Prime Timers style! You’ll meet new friends, greet old friends from across the world, and maybe find your soul-mate here in “the town that Billy Sunday could not shut down”.

Our Convention Committee has put together four days of events and workshops which will make your time at the convention truly memorable.

Gala Halloween Ball including dinner buffet

Dinner Cruise on Lake Michigan at night (optional)

All the site seeing you can

handle

Workshops specially de-

signed for Prime Timers

Elegant Closing Banquet including entertainment & awards

You’ll stay at the beautiful Double Tree Hotel by Hilton Chi-cago, a short distance from the famous Lake Shore Drive and from Chicago’s iconic Magnificent Mile. We’ve negotiated a great rate for a hotel in the heart of a major metropolitan area!

We’ve also made it possible for you to register online or down-loading a mail-in registration form, so it’s super simple and easy to make your reservation for what promises to be a fabulous four days. Current registration is $215/person (convention only) and $325/person (convention and dinner cruise). Your registration includes a polo shirt with the convention logo, attendance for all special workshops which will be scheduled, a fabu-lous Halloween masquerade ball (with buffet), and a gala closing banquet.

You do not have to be a member of Prime Timers to attend this event.

We can’t wait to welcome you to Chicago and the Prime Timers Worldwide 30th Anni-versary Convention. Book your reservation today! Check the website for full details at:

www.ChicagoPrimeTimers.org/convention

2017 Prime Timers Worldwide Bi-Annual Convention

October 29 - November 2, 2017

5 30th anniversary Happy Anniversary To Bob and Jimie

By Huck Fitterer Prime Timers of Phoenix

5

PRIME TIMES DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR

To receive this newsletter by postal mail for one year, address a check for $14 to “Original Prime Timers Worldwide”, then mail it to: Tom Hammond, 15439 Valley View Road, Doylestown, Ohio 44230. You may subscribe for more that one year as well as larger quantities for your chapter membership, Pride events, promotions, etc.

It was in March 1966 when Bob Sorensen and Jimie Swensen first met in the only gar bar in Salt Lake City: The Radio City Lounge. Fifty-one years later, they are still a couple living in Phoenix with their two little doggies, Min-nie and Maude.

So what is their secret? Jimie said, “It’s love and give and take. When you love someone you are willing to give and take more then you would for anyone one else.” Bob smiled and nodded in agreement.

In 2002, they had a commit-ment ceremony in Vermont, and were legally married in Chula Vista, California on December 18, 2013.

They have been Prime Tim-ers of Phoenix members since 1995 and Bob served as a member of the PTOP Board of Directors for seven years. During those years, he was the Newsletter Editor, Mem-bership Director, and Treasur-er.

Bob and Jimie, congratula-tions on your 51st Anniver-sary! Many best wishes and blessings as you continue walking life’s paths hand-in-hand and heart-in-heart. Hap-py Anniversary on March 25th!

Photo courtesy Huck Fitterer

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Travel Opportunities Promoted by PTWW

cruisin’ times 6

PRIME TIMERS WORLDWIDE, MICHAEL AND ROBERT, AND COURTYARD TRAVEL

PRESENT NEW ORLEANS AND A CRUISE TO THE MEXICAN YUCATAN!

New Orleans: March 29-31, 2017 5 Night Cruise: April 1-6, 2017

Price includes three nights at a four-star hotel in the heart of the French Quarter with hot breakfasts daily, free Wi-Fi, and a private tour of New Orleans. Also in-cludes a five-night Yucatan Cruise and an all-day private tour of Uxmal, a World Heritage Site.

© 2008 Scott Lucht

ITINERARY

March 29 New Orleans March 30 New Orleans Included tour March 31 New Orleans April 1 Carnival departs April 2 At sea April 3 Cozumel April 4 Progresso with included tour April 5 At sea April 6 New Orleans

INCLUDES

3-night Hotel in New Orleans

Private Tour of New Orleans

5-night Yucatan Cruise (all taxes and port charges included)

Private tour in Uxmal

COST

Inside Cabin $ 966.46

Outside Cabin

$ 1,041.46

Balcony Cabin $ 1,166.46

Ask about optional

transfer hotel to ship

Full deposit refund up to 90 days before sailing

ALL FARES BASED ON DOUBLE OCCUPANCY

For information and reservations, please contact:

Courtyard Travel, 1010 Northern Blvd. Suite 228, Great Neck NY 10021

Bobette at Courtyard: 800-437-9685, fax 516-829-5427

Donations will benefit Prime Timers!

© 2013 Arian Zwegers