HAPPY 100TH, SAM! Birthday Party For Former Mayor Recaps Century Of Many Successes – All Otsego

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HAPPY 100TH, SAM!

Birthday Party For Former Mayor

Recaps Century Of Many Successes

As his daughter Alice O'Conner holds the microphone, Sam Nader tells well-wishers toasting him at his 100th birthday party Saturday at his 95 River St. home, "May you all live to be 100!" From left are Claire Borthwick, Rick Follett, Sam's sister Jemele, Mark Boshnack, Ellen Sielig-Boshnack, Sherie Rubin, Carol Follett, Alice, the city's first lady Connie Herzig and sportswriter John Fox. (Ian Austin/AllOTSEGO.com)

Editor's Note:  Today is former mayor Sam Nader's 100th birthday, and this is reprinted from this week's edition of Hometown Oneonta and The Freeman's Journal. Further coverage of the celebration of the revered former mayor's  centennial will appear in the upcoming print editions and AllOTSEGO.com on Wednesday afternoon.

By JIM KEVLIN • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com

Sam Nader reviews a letter he received on George Steinbrenner's retirement: "They say, 'All good things must come to an end,.' That will never happen to our friendship, I pray." (Jim Kevlin/AllOTSEGO.com)

ONEONTA – Sam Nader’s life is one great story after another.

Here’s a favorite one, about playing golf at the Oneonta Country Club with Hall of Famers Bobby Doerr and the legendary Ted Williams, and the club champion at the time.

Sam played one of the best 18 holes of his life.

“Bobby had a 68 – 3 under par,” Nader, who will turn 100 on July 8, recalled the other day.  “I was 4 over par.  We took them for 10 bucks.”

Ted Williams was so incensed, he broke five clubs – a golf club set – over his knee.  (The Red Sox legend was working for Shakespeare, the quality golf-club maker, so he made good.)

With a laugh, Sam continued: Every time he would see Bobby Doerr and a Hall of Fame event in Cooperstown, the former Oneonta mayor and owner of the Oneonta Yankees would say, “Let’s go up to see Ted and see if he remembers.”

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