A LETTER FROM CLARK GOODWIN AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE CENTENNIAL OLYMPIC GAMES

NOTE: This was finally finished on Thursday, August 8....but we need to backtrack a bit

Sunday, August 4 -- 3 PM

We have just said good-bye to Sr. Sergio Santander, the International Olympic Committee Member from Chile. Sr. Santander -- whom we had hosted for a dinner party in December of 1994 -- returned to our house today for a hour of friendship and cordiality.

We were as surprised as we were pleased when we received the phone call this morning from the ACOG representative who has been interpreting and "smoothing the way" for Sr. Santander. (As you probably know, an IOC Member is one of any Olympics' MOST HONORED and VALUED guests. IOC members decide worldwide Olympic policies and determine which city is to host upcoming games. (In fact, Sr. Santander has been on a whirlwind of parties and presentations from competing cities that are hoping to host upcoming Games.)

We were honored Sr. Santander would want to spend some of his final hours in Atlanta with us. Emily and Gail rolled out the "Spanish-Speaking Red Carpet," and I cheered from the linguistic sidelines. We were pleased he seemed to have enjoyed his Atlanta visit and his Olympic experiences here. With all of the official duties placed on IOC Members, we were thrilled he carved out time for us on this last day. His return visit at the end of the Games sort of "bookended" the event for us: from preparation days to the conclusion.

Late Evening Sunday, August 4

At the end of Sunday, another surprise greeted us: the chance to be at the Fox Theatre with the team working on Sydney 2000. We were able to view the Closing Ceremonies on a big screen . It was a grand experience -- made possible through the generosity of "friends of friends" who had visited us from Australia twice before. The new friends are part of the Sydney 2000 group, and as we left their company last night we commented to them about their heavy responsibility. We wish them well -- we know what an "Olympian" effort is required.

Monday, August 5 through Thursday, August 8

Now on Monday morning, I am sure all of Atlanta is breathing a sigh of relief about Atlanta 1996. I won't tell you too many details about things you already know about:

• early Olympic Transportation System delays due to some borrowed buses of questionable mechanical quality and also due to questionable skills of drivers recruited from out of town. We need to accept some blame here: certainly training should have been given a higher priority, and there should have been no problems in this area. (See later reference to spectator transportation.)

• temporarily delayed or inconsistent information provided by IBM's World Press information system. This enraged many journalists who were depending on the massive data feeds. An IBM source tells me that much of the needed "stress testing" was critically delayed because not enough of the equipment was able to be installed at venues early enough -- venues lacked roofs or adequate power to permit timely testing -- also, some applications were poorly written. This was a black eye not only for IBM but also for the Games. And those black eyes came in the earliest days of competition when the "buzz" -- either positive or negative -- is put into play. I deeply resented this technology stumble. The problem was later fixed.

• the bomb in Centennial Park that killed one woman from Albany, GA and contributed to the death of a Turkish journalist -- a crisis that may have been worsened by the improper handling of a 911 call. In my opinion, that 911 information needed to be relayed immediately to the overall Olympic security task force so security people already there could have been on the alert sooner, spotted the bag earlier, and more people moved further away. I am not an expert in this sequence of events. (Which brings up another point. I found it hard to be a "news junkie" and be completely tied up within the Olympics with precious little time to learn anything at all about what was going on at other sites. Indeed, Gail and I were actually in North Carolina at the time of the bombing and were very much in the dark for much of the weekend...we did, however, have a great time at LeConte Lodge, but maybe that's a subject for another letter.

On the positive side...

• outstanding athletic events and attendance records set in beautiful and efficient sports venues; A+ ratings for hospitality and volunteerism;

• weather that was kind (just a few hot days early on; very warm the rest; rain occasionally that was rarely disruptive and helped reduce temperatures.)

• a beautiful Opening Ceremonies -- Gail and I attended the dress rehearsal -- a great experience that -- for us -- greatly surpassed the TV version -- however, I have the TV version, so let me know if you'd like some clips (see below.)

• a stunning theme song for the Games, "The Power of the Dream," by David Foster who created a song for Coca-Cola that became the themesong of the Calgary Winter Olympics, and a stirring John Williams anthem (and this from someone who usually does not appreciate Mr. Williams.) I have them both on tape/CD, so tell me if you would like a cassette.

• a crush of people on the public transportation system, MARTA -- I used it all hours of the day and night and don't recall failing to get on the first train that came by; buses to my neighborhood were prompt. By the way, I list this crush as a positive because it meant fewer people were in their cars.

• attention from the nation's leaders: Bill, Hillary, Chelsea, and Al were all here (including "my" venue -- most of them more than once) entertainment and media celebrities all over town

• usually enthusiastic coverage by NBC -- "The Today Show" broadcast from the Olympic Village for two weeks, Tom Brokaw anchored here throughout the period, Costas and others did well -- even if they did do too much previewing during Opening Ceremonies, diminishing the element of surprise on occasion. I did admire them, however, when they refused to be told in advance who was going to light the caldron. (See below, however, for comment about the one-country focus of NBC's coverage.)

• a spectacularly popular central gathering spot for all-day/all-night congregating: Centennial Olympic Park with its dancing five-ring fountain that delighted children;

• the honky-tonk nature of the area near the park

• venders who complained about too much pedestrian concentration IN the park and not enough IN OTHER AREAS of the city. The venders themselves had some negative impact (see below.)

• too many Atlantans trying to get downtown "on their own" during the second week after doing their part and using MARTA so well during the first week -- the result -- as in Los Angeles -- more traffic jams than necessary;

So much for "public" news

What you don't know, of course, is how Gail and I did during the Games. We enjoyed what we did and we think we made contributions to our areas of work. The days began early and were full.

Gail drove many interesting people (VIP's, media, athletes, etc.) in an ACOG vehicle. She was based at the Motor Pool that served The Olympic Village. I joke that Gail got to meet the world (Gabon, Costa Rica, Russia, Moldova -- look it up -- we had to --Sweden, etc., etc. She had a great time with a number of interesting adventures (outlet mall shopping trips, delivering officials to downtown hotels, riding "shotgun" with a bus driver to a venue -- "We want to be sure he can get there....go with him and help out!!"

Gail was out in the world; the world came inside to me.

I was always inside The Aquatic Center but found the volunteers whom I served to be very interesting. I hope to maintain friendships with a number of them. I was always around the most amazing of athletes and was CONTINUOUSLY overwhelmed with their skill, strength and artistry. Sport and Art merge in many of the aquatic activities, and I was privileged to be so close to it all. How do the athletes -- and the judges -- do it?

I think almost all of the volunteers felt their contributions were going toward creating an overall successful effort. We all worked long, hard hours in jobs and locations unfamiliar to us; but we were driven by the desire to make sure our visitors and the onlooking world thought the best of our city and its efforts to mount the best Olympic Games ever.

On the last day of competition at the Aquatic Center, the following piece was circulated. It was written by the venue's announcer, Dick Wilson. He expresses many of my feelings about being so closely associated with Atlanta 1996:

The flag flies high and the rings all move....The cheers are heard and the laughter, too... A tear is shed and emotions show.... Friends meet friends and language is no barrier .... THESE ARE THE OLYMPIC GAMES. Baron Pierre de Coubertain said, "What is important in the Olympic Games is not winning, but taking part."

As we leave the Games, each and every time we take with us new friends, new memories and a pin or two. The pomp and ceremony grows quiet, but the memories ring ... OH SO LOUD!!! ... and for the rest of your life a casual mention of the Olympic Games will cause those memories to fill your heart with joy for having "taken part."

My own personal work at the Aquatic Center was drastically different from what I usually do in an office setting but rewarding. I was a part of Volunteer Services; my "clients" were the other 1600 volunteers. Because of that, I used the experience to really reach out to everyone. I tried to engage folks in conversation. (One reason: we wanted to be sure that all of the various volunteer outposts at the venue were set up for regular delivery of water and ice, etc.)

Some days I would help register our volunteers when they checked in for their shift. At other times, I would be walking the venue, making sure volunteers had what they needed or that certain routes were clear for wheelchair access (we had several volunteers that use wheelchairs.)

My main "fiefdom" was the Volunteer and Staff Break Room/Dining Room/Phone Room/Psychological Renewal Area we called "The Lunch Bucket." (The folks that worked there were "Bucketteers" -- one day I held a large curved (and very sharp) cheese knife between my teeth -- like a pirate's cutlass -- and the "Bucketteer" name was born.)

If you had had spyglass, you'd find me ...

• making a concerted effort to speak to folks

• checking to see:

  1. the 50 or so tables are spotless (this involves cleaning those tables)
  2. flies are killed (even after things started and construction was over, we still had our share of open doors)

  3. trash cans are emptied (I don't do this myself -- just raise heck about it, but I do rotate them so none of them are too full)

  4. recycling containers are OK

  5. our breakfasts, lunches and dinners have been received, placed in coolers, and -- if necessary -- later "broken down" so we can salvage any usable snacks for the continuous snack area

  6. the coffee service table is clean {milk in the ice pans, trash can OK, enough condiments in place, etc. (yes, it sounds -- and is -- small, but if we didn't handle it, who would?)

  7. We were usually short of some item that seemed easy to remedy -- but sometimes we resorted to just going out to a store and getting it. Bulk sugar for the coffee service was one, plastic spoons was another. We did have a very good relationship with the people of Aramark and the ACOG Food and Beverage team, and all problems were more or less taken in stride. We did spend a lot of time, however, "breaking down" pre-packaged condiment packs in order to "liberate" packets of sugar, creamer, spoons, etc. Nothing went to waste, however.

  8. We used a carpet sweeper to touch up around the room -- it's carpeted and picked up terrible stains; it finally got shampooed, however, about midway into the mission. We pick up potato chips, egg shell pieces, wrappers, the usual stuff YOU WOULD THINK people could pick up themselves!!

  9. I checked our big screen TV's so they were always on one of the ACOG feeds (we could see ALL venues on the cable system -- great unbiased coverage available to all broadcast rights holders) or on NBC. Too bad NBC thought only the U. S. sent teams to these Olympics. Anyway, I enjoyed their pictures and their music.

  10. We had to tell the volunteers that it really was not our fault that every lunch and every dinner seemed to be a variation on a familiar theme: turkey sandwich -- sometimes with hoagie roll, sometimes with Kaiser roll, sometimes with croissant, sometimes with hamburger roll. Day after day, week after week, it got to be a bit much. I told folks we were like the city of Columbus, GA -- downstream from Atlanta: we have no control over what comes our way -- all those decisions are made elsewhere (and have probably been made months ago -- maybe the food was prepared months ago, too.)

More food notes:

In addition to the sandwich, there was always fruit; potato chips; potato salad or cole slaw; and some sort of treat such as a moonpie, fruit roll up, or crackers. As a box lunch, it was fine balanced and nutritious -- it was just too predictable, and people got sick of the same thing twice a day, everyday. Breakfast became the most popular meal, and we learned to keep some available throughout the day.

After about the first week of competition (my third week at the venue), we started to get food "donations" from the VIP area: cheese trays, fruit cocktails, breads, meat trays (yes, turkey but also ham and salami, etc.), potato salad, vegetable trays with dip, etc. This was a major development (one learned to appreciate simple improvements!!) and really boosted Lunch Bucket morale! One day we got a huge delivery of pizza -- gone in a flash; and on our last day of competition, we got a MAJOR delivery of barbeque as a thank-you/going away present. Everyone appreciated these treats.

To be honest with you, I could never get the old phrase "a woman's work is never done" out of my mind when I was in The Lunch Bucket and in action. We were always spinning around the room cleaning up, replenishing this or that, fixing something that needed attention.

Well, I certainly gave you far more detail than you needed. Suffice it to say: I was buzzing around The Lunch Bucket, the Check-in Tent, and the Venue making sure we were getting people accounted for and served...and served in a clean, pleasant environment that was efficiently and congenially run. And, again, I engaged people in conversation to detect any needs they might have at their posts.

The venue's main focus, of course, was on the athletes...we had some great ones in our venue, and I was able to see them in the pool, at water polo and at the diving well. Spectacular. If you have any doubts, let me send you some tape. The talents of these people constantly amazed me, and it was fantastic to be so near them at the Center.

This Monday's newspaper had a section on "How Did We Do?" The city's enthusiasm got an A+; Billy Payne got a B+ because he made too much of how the games were to be the best games ever; NBC got a C because of its one country coverage; the athletes and the competition got an A+; MARTA got an A-; The IOC got an F- because of their complaints and His Excellency Juan Antonio Samaranch's refusal to call the games the best ever (in his defense, any games where two people die at the centerpiece park cannot be called the best games ever...however, the whole spirit of the Games went a long way to erase that tragedy, and I would guess our city made the "best effort ever."

And nearing the close of this letter (really), I want to say just a couple of things about the Closing Ceremonies. I think the children singing "Power of the Dream" was very moving; if you missed it, I would be pleased to send you a video clip. I was amazed (and surprised) by the acrobatics of the skateboarders, etc. and was impressed by Stevie Wonder. I was most pleased with Billy Payne's comments -- he really spoke for all of us...and was speaking to the man at his side as well -- and they are available on audio or video if you would like a copy. Some of the music/sound/noise was cacophonous, and other elements were great. As I mentioned above, we saw the event under great circumstances -- with the folks from Sydney 2000. (They, by the way, applauded when the rubber kangaroos bounced in....I read in the paper yesterday that some Australians cringed....I can give them chapter/verse about cringing...remember "What Is It?" at Barcelona? We all do here. -- By the way, I was thrilled that I NEVER saw Izzy during the games nor ceremonies.

I am not sure if this letter has achieved its purpose -- or purposes, I should say. Which really was to note a couple of ideas:

I met some very fine people at the Aquatic Center, and I hope to be able to keep up with them. Some are from Atlanta -- with interesting ties within my "sphere." Others are from out of town -- some from overseas. This letter -- which is being sent to them -- is an effort on my part to start and maintain communications.

Also, I hope this letter has captured a bit of the GREAT PRIDE I felt as my city hosted the world. I noted the areas where we stumbled a bit, but our desire and effort to succeed was always present. And it really was A LOT more than just "good intentions;" a tremendous amount of professionalism was used.

The venues looked great -- the "Look of the Games -- quilts and leaves" was handsome -- I even got past thinking of those leaves as Kudzu. The "tent cities" that sprang up on the sidewalks near Centennial Park and elsewhere certainly did a lot to destroy the cleanup effort the city had made, but (like so many things) there is another point of view: Why shouldn't someone be able to sell a $10 T-shirt to a visitor? Certainly there were a lot of other "commercial" aspects to these games, and on that subject, as an Atlanta property tax payer, I am GLAD corporate sponsorships, etc. helped foot the bill for these games. Montreal had a financial crisis as a result of their expenses for the 1976 Games. We did, however, pay a visual price for entrepreneurship and capitalism.

Finally, how do I feel about my involvement? It was strange and exciting; a bit goofy and exhausting; great being close to the focus of the world but a bit disappointing to be just outside of it; shock and despair upon hearing the first reports of the bombing then a determination not to be defeated. (I was back in Centennial Park the afternoon it re-opened. Which reminds me to mention that my venue -- the Aquatic Center -- is right in the "Olympic Ring," so it was a quick walk downtown to Centennial Park.) Overall, a great experience -- perhaps my talents -- such as they are -- were not used to best advantage, but I was pleased to, in the words of the Baron: "take part."

Hope this rambling has been of interest. YOUR impressions of the events in Atlanta would be most welcome. Importantly, however, any response on any subject of interest to you is of interest to me.

I hope to hear from you.

All best wishes,

Clark

Clark Goodwin
2945 Dale Drive NE
Atlanta, GA 30305-2720
404-237-7233 ; 800-313-0058 -- both home
404-676-3105 - work
And please try this: 800-SKY-TEL-2 I. D. is 2370000 # you can leave either a numeric message or dictate a text message to an operator. It's a nation-wide beeper service with text display.
e-mail easily found at: WLS890@AOL.COM

P. S. I almost forgot: we were pleased to be able to arrange for homestays for two "friends of friends" from Zimbabwe during the Games. That worked out well, and we ALL thoroughly enjoyed the visit of Tony and Joey Canary of Harare. The Canary's were hosted by Peter and Terry Shelton of Atlanta -- relatively new friends of ours who brought a bit of the Olympic Spirit into their home. Tony and Joey are sisters and are friends of Charles Msipa, a Coca-Cola friend of mine in Harare; and they also know my friend Travis Wheeler (of Pitzer College, Claremont, CA and North Cascades National Park, Stehekin, WA.)

I am sure there are more "Things Olympic" I need to share, but I will let this be enough. Again, your comments are always welcome.