The Editor:
News of the death of Mikhail Gorbachev brought back some interesting moments in my memory.
Mr. Gorbachev visited British Columbia on March 27, 1993, to address a Gorbachev dinner presented by Science World, then under the leadership of Barbara Brink.
In a 2019 memoir titled Remember the Good Times, I wrote:
"His visit included the dinner and time at Science World where he met a number of young students and was photographed blowing on a large soap bubble during a science lesson from a staff member.
"Science World held a contest to choose 10 students to meet Gorbachev and attend the dinner. Claire de Lister, a Grade 11 student from Queen Elizabeth High School in Surrey, was one of the 10 and had her story and photo published in the Surrey/North Delta Leader on March 28, 1993.
"She said, 'This is a great opportunity to meet someone who has done so much. It's an opportunity you can’t pass up.'
"Rita Cruerer and I [then working together at Peacock Public Relations] handled media relations for both the Science World visit and the dinner and subsequently received this note from event coordinator Jackie Shrive: 'Many, many thanks for all you did to ensure the success of the Mikhail Gorbachev visit to Vancouver. You did a superb job of keeping the media informed and we got wonderful coverage for Science World, probably the best we’ve ever had."
- Jim Peacock, Port Coquitlam
