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Letter: Port Coquitlam resident remembers the late Mikhail Gorbachev

News of the death of Mikhail Gorbachev brought back some interesting moments in my memory, writes Port Coquitlam author Jim Peacock.
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FILE - Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev addresses a group of 150 business executives in San Francisco, Monday, June 5, 1990. (AP Photo/David Longstreath, File)

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