By Gail Wood
Twelve years ago, when Dave Naber heard that the U.S. Olympic Committee wanted nominations for people to carry the Olympic torch through Thurston Country, he had the perfect candidate.
His wife, Lisbeth.
He never dreamed he’d get chosen, too.
But on a Wednesday morning on Jan. 23, 2002, Dave and Lisbeth Naber, who were both on the plus side of 70 back then and were living in Lacey at Panorama, had the honor of carrying the torch that was en route to the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
“It was surprising to me that I got to do it,” said Dave, who is now 83 and still living at Panorama. “There’s kind of a feeling of pride to be able to carry the torch.”
The Nabers were recalling their “Olympic moment” this week as the 2014 Winter Olympics kick off in Sochi, Russia.
“It was quite fun,” Lisbeth said.
Lisbeth and Dave, along with 21 other Olympia area residents, carried the Olympic torch through Tumwater, Olympia and Lacey en route to Salt Lake. The Nabers were one of about 200 husband and wife teams to be selected in the country. Dave, who jogged the one-fifth of a mile stretch he carried the torch, passed off the flame to his wife for the next leg of the trip. At Lacey City Hall, the torch was loaded into a truck and driven to Seattle where the relay resumed.
Rather than handing off the torch, Dave followed the procedure everyone else did and lit the torch Lisbeth carried and she then continued with her torch. The Nabers bought the torch Lisbeth carried for $300 and it is now on display at Panorama in a glass cabinet.
The Nabers, just as all the other torch carriers did that day, wore a white nylon pant and white zip jacket. They also wore white gloves and a white stocking cap.
“It was a lot of fun,” said Lisbeth, who was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, and is now 85-years-old.
The flame of the 2002 Winter Olympics was lit in Greece on Nov. 19. On Dec. 4, it arrived in Atlanta and began a 13,500-mile trek through 46 states, finishing at Salt Lake City.
The people who carried the Olympic torch were selected by the Salt Lake City Organizing Committee from 210,000 nominations nationwide. People were selected based on their contributions to their community.
In Dave’s nomination letter, he talked about how Lisbeth helped organize a national qualifier in Washington for the Senior Games. When they moved to Lacey in 1994, the state didn’t have a national qualifier meet. Since both the Nabers were active in the Senior Games, Lisbeth, who worked as a computer systems analyst before retiring, got busy organizing.
“Lisbeth helped get it started here in Washington,” Dave said.
Lisbeth, when she was 73, had won 26 gold medals in the Senior Games national meet, competing in the race walk and discus. Dave had won 12 gold medals in the Senior Games. The Nabers, who have been married 37 years, were also involved serving food at Bread and Roses. Lisbeth was also a hospice volunteer.
Over the years, the Nabers have also been involved with teaching folk dancing. They still teach a class with 12 regular attenders. Most dancers range in age from 80 – 96 years old. Five of the class participants are over the age of 90. “We’ve got one kid in our class,” said Dave, who worked as an engineer for a Navy research lab. “He’s 64.”
Back in 2001, Lisbeth didn’t know her husband was going to nominate her to carry an Olympic torch. But he had to show her the application before he sent it because she had to sign it.
“She was very surprised and touched,” Dave said. “She had tears in her eyes.”
Dave said when his wife sees a need that’s not being met, she has always moved to action and helped.
The Nabers have a special connection to the Winter Olympics. They’re both skiers. Dave, who recently strained the meniscus tendon in his knee, skied last winter. They didn’t go to the Olympics when it was in Salt Lake City 12 years ago. They watched it on TV, just like they’ll be doing in the coming weeks.
