All photos by Ronnie Abbott

Last Saturday was the 11th Annual Ronny Bean Memorial Arm Wrestling Tournament which was held at the VFW Hall in Laconia, NH. Ronny Bean was the brother of the Honorable Representative Harry Bean of Gilford, NH.

The event kicked off with referee Badger Drewes (long-time friend of Representative Bean) asking the crowd to lend support for Harry and his family. For those that were unaware, Harry Bean has been quite busy as of late winning his fight with cancer. He also made the exciting announcement that Representative Bean would be dropping by to lend some encouragement and to welcome all the competitors. This event is dear to Harry’s heart as the proceeds benefit CHAD and are raised in the name of his brother Ronny who lost his own battle to cancer some 11 years ago. This year’s tournament was a huge success, raising $3,000 for the charity. Harry and his family pick a different charity every year when they host the tournament. They have been hosting tournaments for almost 30 yrs and to date they have raised in excess of $100,000 for various charitable causes.

Next to the microphone was Lisa P. who wanted to take a few minutes and talk about the generosity of Harry Bean and his family. Lisa talked about Harry privately contributing to local charities and never wanting to be in the spotlight. This past year, however, Harry was approached by a man named Joshua Grant who worked for an organization called Little Wanderers, which is an organization that provides services to children who are orphaned or aged out of foster care and have no family to care for them. They provide housing for individuals that otherwise would not be able to find a home because most landlords will not rent to homeless children. The Bean family has provided housing for four individuals in the Little Wanderers program during the past year.

Badger Drewes then came back to the mic to go over the rules of the tournament but was interrupted when the man himself, Harry Bean, walked in the room. The room instantly bursted into applause and raging excitement for his arrival

When the Bean Family puts on an event, it’s assuredly a family gathering. Present at the event today were four generations of the Bean Family (all Harry’s), from Harry III to Harry VI as well as Representative Bean’s wife Priscilla and their children Harry and Tricia along with many grandchildren and great grandchildren. The youngest Harry was also in attendance, being born two weeks ago on October 9th. The room was also filled with many lifelong friends of the family

Representative Harry Bean, in the midst of his charity work and battling cancer is also running for re-election to the State House covering Ward 2 in Laconia, Gilmanton and his hometown of Gilford. One could consider Harry to be an old school Republican who encompasses the conservative position that many share living in his district. Harry is second to none as a defender of our second amendment rights, is in favor of a small but effective government, and an advocate of small business.

Harry was in the headlines in the last year by leading the charge to ensure that Gunstock was back open in time for Soulfest and to prepare for the winter ski season. Harry was instrumental, along with Representative Hough, for calling the meeting that would put in motion the actions that led to the return of the Gunstock Management team and Harry stepped into the role of Chairman to ensure that the emergency meeting was convened correctly and that the business at hand was completed.

Ronnie Abbott
_{^{Ronnie Abbott is a local photographer and founder of FYP Media – facebook.com/fypmedianh}}