MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

Dear CAL Gals,

I tried very hard to keep our first meeting moving along, but there was so much to share that I couldn’t seem to cut it anywhere. My apologies. As a teacher I had the philosophy that, “the mind will absorb only as much as the ass will endure,” and anything over 90 minutes is just too much. In October we should be back to our usual length for the business part of the meeting.

I am so grateful to Tom Gibson for his informative presentation regarding the value of foundations to an organization. I wanted him to speak to you about his experience and from the perspective of a person who has spent his career in the financial world. It has been a year-long journey for me starting when Donna Hutter asked me to look at the literature for the Idaho Community Foundation. I truly believe this will build a long-term legacy for CAL long after all of us are gone. I am gratified by the overwhelming support from the membership.

Without CAL my social life would be dismal. I just finished filling in my calendar with dates for our events so that I can look really busy. There is the “Day of Hope” on October 3, the New Member Tea on October 8, and the 2^nd annual Wine Tasting on Friday, October 23.  Now that I see all those dates strung together I know why the meeting had to be so long. There was a major amount of information that had to be imparted. Oh, one more thing: if you haven’t paid your dues, please help Robbie Gleason out and mail them in to CAL, PO Box 1361, 83864, attn: R. Gleason. Thank you. 

I heard from our Charlene Matheson that the tickets to “Soldiers in Petticoats”, a one-woman show, have sold very well. There are a few left so please call her at 265-8775 or 713-202-1054. She is spearheading these sales in order to help the Panida after their summer hiatus to replace the ceilings. The Panida is the heart of downtown and so important to our cultural offerings in remote North Idaho. Tames Alan has a wonderful reputation for putting on a fun and entertaining show.

I like writing this message every couple of weeks. It forces me to sit quietly and look out the window at my desk and mark the changes that are happening. The quail are still under the bird-feeder regularly, but the berries on my mystery bush have turned red in the last few days. The burning bush was already red, the alders are just getting yellowish and the black-eyed susans are fading. Only the asters and apples are in their full glory. The deer are bedding down now under the apple tree waiting to be bopped on the head by the fruit they can’t reach. We are fast approaching that time when everywhere we look is a dessert for the eyes to gobble up. It’s the beginning of my favorite four weeks of the year.

As always,

Sherry