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Congratulations to Our Newest Life Masters
We are proud to recognize our member who have achieved "Life Master" status with the American Contract Bridge League. A Life Master is a player who has achieved a widely respected milestone in duplicate bridge. The designation reflects sustained success, competitive experience, and a strong understanding of the game.
Within the bridge community, Life Master status is recognized as a mark of dedication and accomplishment, indicating a player has progressed well beyond a casual level and into consistent and competive play that reflects a solid, well-rounded understanding of the game, further sharpened at regional and national tournament play.
Mary Lynn Wilkerson
Congratulations Mary Lynn, you are a Life Master!
NELA Bridge Club is excited to announce Mary Lynn Wilkerson as the 4th ACBL Life Master for 2025. Mary Lynn is the current and 3rd year President of the NELA Bridge Club.
She played party bridge on and off from her college days to retirement, both in person and online in the mid 1980's. After retiring from the University of Louisiana at Monroe, she actively searched for opportunities to play bridge face to face again. A chance meeting with NELA Bridge Club member Annie Williams at an aerobics class, she was connected to the beginning duplicate bridge lessons at NELA Bridge Club in 2017. Mary Lynn was off and running with a new duplicate bridge obsession!
In 2023, she was introduced to her current regular bridge partner, Sandra Ford. They formed a friendship beyond bridge and have had great experiences attending tournaments. This dynamic duo likes to have fun and there is rarely a dull moment. One day it became clear they were both within striking distance of achieving ACBL's Life Master.
Both became Life Masters on consecutive weekends in August 23, 2025. Mary Lynn achieved Life Master at the Baton Rouge Tournament on August 23 and the pair had a 70.74 game on August 22, 2025.
Susan Barnette
NELA Bridge Club proudly celebrates Susan Barnette on achieving the rank of ACBL Life Master.
Susan retired as an oil and gas accountant in 2018 and only began her duplicate bridge journey after retirement. Alongside her husband and bridge partner, Rodney Barnette, she embraced the game with the same dedication she had shown throughout her professional career.
The Barnettes combined their love of travel with bridge, enjoying vacations filled with golf, cards, and new friendships. They visited local clubs across the country and participated in numerous regional and national tournaments, where Susan quickly earned the different “colors” of masterpoints required for Life Master.
Although they live in El Dorado, Arkansas, Susan and Rodney regularly make the 135-mile roundtrip drive to play at NELA, a testament to their enthusiasm and commitment to the game and our bridge community.
Her final milestone—crossing the 500 masterpoint threshold—came on July 9, 2025, in Crossville, Tennessee, marking the completion of her ACBL Life Master journey.
Please join us in applauding Susan’s achievement and welcoming her into the Life Master ranks. Her story is a wonderful reminder that it’s never too late to take up new challenges, travel with purpose, and find joy in partnership at the bridge table.
Johnny Booth
We celebrate Johnny Booth, who achieved the prestigious rank of Life Master this past July at the Lake Charles Regional.
Longtime NELA Bridge Club members say that from the day Johnny, now a retired assistant DA, walked into our clubhouse, it was clear he would be a bridge-playing star. At the bridge table, he prosecutes each hand with razor-sharp logic ⚖️, delivers verdicts that opponents rarely appeal, and crafts strategies as finely as the jewelry pieces he gifts our members 📿. And when a contract is on the line, Johnny savors the challenge like a fine vintage red wine—measured, layered, and never rushed🍷.
It’s no wonder Johnny is always in demand as a partner, whether at our home club or on the tournament trail. His brilliance, generosity, and spirit enrich not only the game but the community we share.
Raise a bottle 🍾 to Johnny, ACBL Life Master—a milestone well-earned and well-deserved!
Sandra Ford
After many years of dedicated and focused bridge play, Sandra Ford has achieved the prestigious Life Master rank! 🏆 Her persistence, skill, and love of the game have paid off — and she’s just as fun to partner with as she is formidable across the table.
Please join us in congratulating Sandra on this well-earned accomplishment! 👏👏👏
Jody Johnston
On April 30th, we celebrated Jody Johnston's incredible achievement of becoming an ACBL Life Master with a fabulous lunch gala! She's pictured here with our wonderful party hosts, Ann Williams, Kit Kelley, and Jan Ashbrook, who helped make the day unforgettable.