OTMJ OVER THE MOUNTAIN JOURNAL u OTMJ.COM
SOCIAL
Royal Family
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2017
SPORTS
King Bill Bowron Has Deep Ties To the Beaux Arts Krewe By Donna Cornelius
Journal photo by Lee Walls Jr.
Bill Bowron has gone from being a “new boy” to Krewe King. Bowron was invited to join Birmingham’s Beaux Arts Krewe shortly after he returned to his hometown in 1991. He’d been living and working as a banker in Savannah, Ga., before moving back to Birmingham to join his family’s company, Red Diamond. “The year I became a member, there were six ‘new boys,’ and we were required to hang and take down all the decorations for the ball,” he said. “We’d been up all night and then had to go to the King and Queen’s Dinner the day after the ball.” At the dinner, one more duty awaited Bowron. “My cousin, Caroline Amason, was the queen that year,” he said. “A good friend told me, ‘You’re the queen’s cousin – so you’re giving the toast.’” Although Bowron had to think on his very tired feet, he didn’t mind doing his part to help finish off the fun of the ball. His family has a long and extensive connection to the annual event. “Dad was a founding member of the Krewe,” he said. “I remember my mother going over to Anne Kidd’s house to sew banners. Dinners were put on hold while that was going on.” Kidd is the reason the ball, set for Feb. 24 at Boutwell Auditorium, is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. After heading up the Beaux Arts Jewel Ball for the Birmingham Museum of Art in 1966, she led the formation of a support group that would host the ball and be able to use the event’s elaborate costumes and decorations year after year. The Krewe started with more than 125 men as charter members. While the ball is a formal and festive social event, it has a charitable purpose, too, raising money for the Birmingham Museum of Art. See KREWE, page 32 Bill and Emily Bowron
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12/19/16 4:13 PM