Wilson Walker Wright
Past President
It is with a heavy heart that we report that Mr. Wilson Wright passed away on Thursday September 2nd at age 91. Wilson and his wife Pat called Tallahassee, Florida home. Wilson was a Founding Director and Past President of The Sunnyland Chapter of the ACBS. As you will see below, Wilson was a shaker and mover within our chapter and accomplished so much for the antique boating community.
The following is a summary of the many contributions Wilson made to our antique boating hobby.
- Participated in the precursor of the Sunnyland Chapter formation held at Sanford, Fl. in April 1981
- As a founding member, drafted and submitted the original charter for the Sunnyland Chapter ACBS
- Hand carried the original Sunnyland charter to the 1985 Lake Tahoe ACBS Annual Convention with Mike Matheson where it was approved by the ACBS International Board.
- Petitioned the legislature in 1985 on behalf of Sunnyland Chapter ACBS and successfully sought enactment of law, which provided for antique boat registration in Florida.
- Served as a member of the first Board of Directors of the Sunnyland Chapter and continuously through 1992.
- Served as President of the Sunnyland Chapter 1991-1992
- Served as a member of the Past Presidents Advisory Committee from 1993-2004
- Contributor to Sunnyland Chapter newsletter
- Recipient of the Sunnyland Chapter President’s Cup in 1993
- Recipient of the Mary Herwig Award in 2006
- Petitioned the legislature again in 1997 on behalf of Sunnyland Chapter and successfully sought re-registration fee exemption for antique boats, resulting in significant savings to all chapter boat owners.
- Was the recipient of the 2001 Lifetime Achievement Award from ACBS Chesapeake Bay Chapter
- Intervened with Chris Craft company officials, when it was part of OMC and more recently under present ownership for support and sponsorship of Sunnyland Chapter activities.
- Has provided free legal counsel on several occasions, assisting with permitting for docking through the State Department of Environmental Protection and other legal problems that presented themselves over club history.
- Planned and coordinated activities for the 2004 quarterly ACBS meeting in Sarasota. He planned a Chris Craft plant tour including lunch, a tour of Kreissle’s plant and Tempo and topped it off with a chapter sponsored cocktail party.
- Regularly attended ACBS International meetings, representing and bearing the Sunnyland Chapter proxy.
- Past Executive Director of the Chris-Craft Antique Boat Club and Editor of the Brass Bell for over 25 years.
Wilson was a constant fixture at all Sunnyland chapter events and a fine chapter ambassador when attending ACBS International events (usually with his delightful wife Pat) and always ready to assist and support us all. Wilson’s favorite shows were at Lake Tahoe, Lake Rabun and our annual Sunnyland show on Lake Dora.
Wilson will be sorely missed by all of us.
Please find Wilson’s Obituary that was published in the Tallahassee Democrat newspaper.
Contributions to this story by Pete Williams and Pete DeVito
