Barry was a imperturbable presence as he both called the club to order and, substituting for Gary Young, offered the invocation.
With no birthdays, anniversaries or visiting dignitaries to welcome, Nancy Gentes offered myriad examples of Easter traditions and their antecedents. There was a strong pagan bias among many of them, and the symbolism of the Rabbit/Bunny remains unresolved.
Announcements were provided by Barry and included reminders of the ECAR program on April 19: breakfast at 8:30 and Membership Meeting at 9:00 am: “United Against Hate – Identifying, Reporting and Preventing Hate Crimes.” May 3 @ 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm.
Whiskey, Wine and Cigar Event at Bella Fiore; May 12, The Woman’s City Club program Let’s Talk about Mental Health at Three Rivers Community College (TRCC), 6-9 p.m; May 20 Day of Service 7:30 am – 12:30 pm at TRCC; and the Native Son and Daughter program on June 7 at the Holiday Inn, Norwich, 12:00 pm – 1:15 pm Holiday Inn, 10 Laura Blvd. All members were exhorted to invite potential recruits to a meeting.
Happy Dollars with Nancy Gentes! Nancy was happy her daughter was coming home for a visit; Mary Richardson announced this year’s recipient of the Native Son and Daughter Award is…Wally Lamb! Huzzah! Mary shared Easter photographs that hearkened back to a simpler time, when all photographs were black and white. Andy Nollman congratulated the UCONN men’s basketball time for winning their 5th NCAA title, regretted the recent death of Randy Black, offered commentary on Easter and Seder and the recent calamity at the Apollo Theatre in Belvidere, Illinois. The roof collapsed during a sold-out metal show leaving one person 1 dead, 28 injured. Jim Daly applauded the UCONN title, and described in detail his office move and the prowess displayed by the movers. He was equally effusive about his first sojourn to the driving range (a golf reference.) Stan Lucas described a recent skiing experience that ended at the emergency room (no damage!) Alan Sholes birthday, and the pleasures of not having to pay to ski when you reach a “mature age.” Mike Cooney announced a work promotion Huzzah! and an impromptu chat with the Westerly Rotary Club. Matt now has glasses, and during a trip to the mall, Katie’s first, she was fascinated by the massage chairs and the animal cars. Matt’s bus made the news when it unexpectedly passed by a body. The children are doing o.k. Jeff Brining lamented Randy Black’s death and allowed that his father was still skiing at 83! Barry also showered the UCONN men’s team with accolades, and effused over the grand opening of the ARC’s Woodstock cookie factory and their great film festival.
The Lottery with Bill Champagne had those present in suspense. The results, alas, were discouraging. Jim Daly, and Mary Richardson, twice failed to pick the winning card. Jim Daly found some solace in selecting the winning card for the cookies.
With a semblance of normalcy restored the meeting concluded with a passable rendition of the 4 Way Test.