Executive Honor
“Clubs within the club” have become an important part of creating new appeal for club membership, by bringing member groups together based on specific interests. Now one of the leading proponents of the concept, the Detroit Athletic Club (DAC), is taking a new step to help further solidify the lasting value of these groups.
The DAC Executives Club, a 670-member group that meets monthly for lunch and presentations by guest speakers from the local business, political or educational community, has instituted a Lifetime Achievement Award for its most distinguished participants. The first award will be bestowed on March 19 on Dr. David DiChiera, a 40-year DAC member, to recognize his global contributions to the arts.
Dr. DiChiera composed the opera Cyrano, which was written in French and first performed at the Detroit Opera House. In 2010, he was the recipient of the National Endowment of the Arts Award for Opera.
“I came to recognize that the club has never stopped to honor someone who has truly made a difference,” Kenneth Myers, a past club director who came up with the idea for the award, told the club’s own DAC News. “This award won’t be granted often. We need to set the bar very high in looking for a person who has a presence not just locally but nationally, and even globally.”
For its recognition of Dr. DiChiera, the DAC Executives Club will hold a black-tie gala that will include video and oral tributes from his local and national admirers, a performance of an aria from his opera, and the presentation of gifts to honor him.
The club within the club was founded in 1972 as the Senior Mens
The DAC Executives Club, a 670-member group within the Detroit Athletic Club, will recognize David DiChiera (right) with its Lifetime Achievement Award for his global contributions to the arts. |
Club, as a way for older members to come together and stay connected to the DAC. The group also honors the club’s new 50-year members each fall. Past speakers have included Dan Gilbert, Peter Karamanos, and Michigan’s political figures.
Other clubs within the club at the DAC include Bowlers, Wine Society, Rod and Gun Club, Single Malt Society, Youth Activities Club and Snorkelers & Scuba Divers. Most of these clubs have separate fees with their own governing officers and budgets, with activities that are promoted by the DAC in its newsletter, magazine and website. Many also have their own logos and identities.
“Our clubs within the club truly are part of what makes the DAC experience very unique,” says Ted Gillary, the club’s Executive Manager. “Each one helps bring members together, cultivating great relationships and a good time, whether it be playing basketball or enjoying a special wine dinner.”
Winter Play
Plausawa Valley Country Club in Pembroke, N.H., opened the winter season with the debut of its aboutGolf PGA Tour Indoor Golf Simulator, the Concord (N.H.) Monitor reports.
“We have a huge clientele for people who would like to play golf in the winter, so I’ve been pushing this and we finally got to do it this winter,” says Matt DeLois, PGA, Head Professional. “A New England golfer will only get to play eight, nine months a year at best. I just have always thought that this is a great way to practice and play throughout the winter.”
Plausawa Valley CC’s aboutGolf PGA Tour Indoor Golf Simulator averages 10 hours of use per day at the Pembroke, N.H. property. |
The simulator replicates the experience of playing outside, as high-speed cameras capture a sensor-covered ball that golfers hit into a screen where an image of a hole or driving range is laid out in front of them. The equipment captures ball speed, spin, loft and angle, as well as clubhead speed, allowing the image on the screen to show a ball in flight that represents the result that would take place on a warm summer day, the Monitor reports.
“It’s impressively accurate,” DeLois says. “I hit my pitching wedge 130 (yards), it’s 130. My 8-iron’s 150, it’s 150.”
DeLois landed a deal with EverGreens Golf, the distributor of the simulator. The company agreed to split the revenue it brought in 50/50 with the club and forego the down payment on the $48,000 equipment, the Monitor reports.
So far, the simulator has proven quite successful, with an average of 10 hours of use per day. DeLois organized a 10-week league that has 56 players and uses 6 hours on the simulator, five days a week.
Most of the promotion for the indoor golf solution has been through word-of-mouth in the Concord area, and staff has reached out to neighboring golf clubs to spread the word. C&RB
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