A Trifecta: Happy and Sad Dollars and A Fine

On September 1st, fifteen Rotarians and one guest enjoyed a lunch of stir fry, rice and cookies. George was first on his feet to offer a Sad Dollar in recognizing the passing of former Rotarian and his friend Homer Fitts. He noted that Homer was very helpful to him personally during his term as District Governor and that he was a lifetime Rotarian. George held the floor and proposed a fine of one-and-nine on everyone not wearing a BAS tee shirt. (He was the only one wearing one.) Eddie tried to dodge the fine by bringing out a BAS road sign to be placed on the Sunday before the auction. Alona used the ex post facto argument with the appropriate legalese and concluded the fine was not fair. Our self-proclaimed parliamentarian Bob Pope pointed out our sense of justice is not meant to be fair and just. Tom tried to use his hat as a substitute, but it was noted that one could not read the inscription on the hat and that it was dirty. Doug was next using the Honorary Member moniker and that he had given his tee shirt to his granddaughter who wore it in New York City. (A photo appeared on FaceBook and in Granite Chips). President Tony ruled that those “dodges” failed to prevail. Fine passed. Tony offered another Sad Dollar at the passing of Homer and remembered how much he enjoyed our visit when he was a resident of The Gardens in Williamstown. Eddie rose to give three dollars: taking his daughter to college; attending a Red Sox game; and Homer’s passing.  

Rotarians Report 

Karl reported that the sculptures will be removed on September 7th and transported to the Granite Museum. The next day, on September 8th, they will be cleaned to be ready for the auction on September 18th.

On September 10th, the race cars will be on display at Thunder Road. 

Bob Pope reported on the celebration of life event for Billy Rossi at Joe’s Pond. About 150 were in attendance which was more like a wedding reception with great food and an open bar. Several Rotarians attended and both George and Bob spoke. Billy’s wife Diane wanted a party and it certainly was with many funny stories about Billy’s adventures and antics. George pointed out that Diane drove from Joe’s Pond to Shelburne where Billy was in a memory care facility five days a week for five years. Given her efforts and continued interest in Rotary, George moved and Karl seconded to make Diane Rossi an Honorary Member of the Rotary Club of Barre. Motion passed unanimously. 

Since Last We Met 

Club Anniversaries:

John Steinman  3 years  Aug. 29

On this day in history:

1972 Bobby Fisher becomes the first American to win the World Chess Championship.1985 The wreck of the Titanic is found.

1998 Federal Legislation makes airbags Mandatory.

Joe Preddy introduced his guest Joslyn Letourneau.

Getting to Know You 

Tony presented two truths and one lie:

He started Video Vision because he wanted to become an underwater videographer of humpback whales.

He picked tobacco in Connecticut.

He worked one day on George W. Bush’s press crew in Vermont and was on stage with him.

After a few questions, he revealed the number three was the lie. He worked on the press crew, but was not on stage with him.

Karl Presents: Design Facts of the One Dollar Bill

As Karl approached the lectern, crisp one dollar bills were passed out to serve as a visual aid for his presentation. He presented many interesting facts about the design of the one dollar bill focusing mainly on the reverse side. Much thought went into the design and Rotarians found it fascinating. For those interested, here is a link describing its features.  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_one-dollar_bill