Pagosa Springs Rotary ClubThe meeting began with an invocation Sherri Booher, who offered several observations to live by: promise big and deliver big, she said, challenging us to make a promise we can keep, every day. Don’t overlook the small joys of life. And be a leader, she reminded, noting that it’s the lead sled dog that enjoys the best view.
After the Pledge of Allegiance, and a rousing rendition of “You are My Sunshine” under the guidance of the Songmeister, visitors were introduced.
Then, Greg Booher was revealed as the mysterious, “Mr. R.” The revelation was greeted with a howl of surprise from Dave Commack: “where were you?” Undaunted, Greg shot back, “Hiding, so I can make a lot of money,” and admonished, “fork it over.” A host of chagrined members complied – this week, not including your reporter, who was saved by Bill Hubbard. Bill had thoughtfully re-printed Dick Babillis’ “Starfish” invocation from several weeks back, but was unable to attend the meeting, and requested Greg at the last minute to give it to me for presentation.
Jo Ann Laird reported to the group that the recent distribution of dictionaries to third graders had been a great success, and thanked all those who participated, with a special nod to Mr. Commack for having delivered the dictionaries to those handling the distribution in the classroom. (Perhaps Jo Ann felt Dave needed a special pat on the back, after all the anguish he had suffered over Mr. R.)
Sergeant-at-Arms Betty Switzer then unveiled her season-appropriate Sunshine and Showers props. These featured a remarkable pair of elaborately-horned, Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer sunglasses, equipped as well as horns with a bulbous red nose – a marvel of marketing ingenuity, which so swept away the group that your reporter regretfully missed the ensuing announcements in the midst of the murmur of hilarity sweeping the room. Announcements seemed comparatively few: perhaps Rotarians were too dazzled by the sunglasses to take the floor? 
No doubt the glasses will reappear at Rotary’s annual meeting on December 21, which will make the event more than ever one not to be missed.
Roberta Tolan then shared with Rotarians the welcome news that the Geothermal Greenhouse Partnership had received two new, substantial grants from the Colorado Water Conservation Board and the Colorado Garden Foundation. Together, the two grants will be sufficient to allow realization of the GGP’s ambitions, by funding the installation of two additional grow domes in Pagosa Springs’ Centennial Park, on the banks of the San Juan River opposite the Springs Resort. The existing, original grow dome is devoted to educational uses. One of the new domes to be added in the Park will provide community garden space, and the other will be devoted to the development of innovational techniques.
Sergeant Betty then waiver her scepter (not sepulcher), and resumed the floor, to read a “Who am I?” submitted by one of our members, describing a personal attribute unlikely to be known to other members. Betty challenged Rotarians to guess the member’s identity, based on the mysterious contributor’s description of having once put his/her hand inside one of a cows’ four stomachs, while the cow was (what else) dining contentedly.
A flurry of wild guesses from the audience ensued (apparently, many among us are imagined to be capable of troubling the digestive tract), followed immediately by stout denials from the various accused, until Betty relieved us of the suspense. “The hand in the stomach,” she said, “was the hand that rings the gong to assemble the meeting,” identifying President Kim Moore as the adventuresome Rotarian.
Kim explained that when she had been a pre-veterinarian student at Colorado State University, her class had been introduced to a cow whose stomach could be accessed through an external port, entered by removing a plug, and she and her fellow students had all explored the animal’s stomach with a gloved hand while it was munching on hay or some such bovine delicacy, appearing not the least troubled by the invasions. Kim did not comment on whether the experience had any bearing on her career today in real estate.