VOL. 59, No. 47, September 22, 2005

Alberto called his last meeting to order at the Holiday Inn last Thursday. Thank you Alberto for a job well done! Your enthusiasm is appreciated. Will's sister, Melissa Pentecost, is still very sick, but is in good spirits. Please remember Will's family in this difficult time. Hershel led us in our blessing and thanked the lord for letting us know Duane Williamson and that he is in a better place today. Our pledge was recited and then we had the Holiday Inn buffet. Duane Plank passed out directions to Ray Swaim's farm. We had one more of Alberto's weekly moments of history, which included the birth of chemist Michael Faraday in 1791 and Earl of Chesterfield in 1694. President Abraham Lincoln issued a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation in 1862 that the slaves would be free on January 1, 1863. Composer Irvin Berlin died in 1989 at the age of 101.

Remember next weeks meeting at the Optimist Recreation Center. It will be at 6:30pm, September 29. This will be for installation of officers and board members for the new year. Sidney Sandridge and Connie Gipson were elected as VP's earlier this month, and Jim Roe was elected to the Board. Thanks to you all for the service you provide to our club! It was announced that our district meeting has been moved from Hattiesburg, Mississippi to Decatur. This will be held October 21-23. This is an excellent opportunity for us to have a good showing for our club and city. Please see Will if you would like to attend.

We had been promised some programs featuring some of our own and we started today with three of our best members. Nathan Showers, Clyde Nevins and Connie Gipson gave us biographies of their lives and what brought them to Huntsville. Nate is from Ohio and enjoyed his' days as a youth riding trains across the country. He has been an optimist all of his life, but officially 35 years in this club. Clyde was born in Montana and his fascination with airplanes landed him a job with NASA where he was on many projects from Saturn, Skylab and the shuttle. Connie was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana where she has a huge family. She stated that at one Christmas they had over 350 in attendance. She then admitted her hobby in life in knitting and passed around several items she had sewn together. Thanks to each of you for the life experiences!

Connie then pretended to draw her own name and take the attendance prize. Remember to attend the meetings. It really does pay! We recited the creed and were dismissed.

Kurt

Picnic Update - Duane reports that 48 people attended Saturday, and a good time was had by all, especially our oldest adolescent, Zack Thompson. Four wheeler rides were enjoyed, as well as piņatas, horseshoes, karaoke, baseball and other activities. Blake Doming, though he couldn't attend, prepared an excellent chicken, sausage, and hot dog meal. The Klimeks and Clarks brought ice cream, door prizes by el Presidente. Sounds like a great time. Thanks to the Swaims for being excellent hosts, and to Duane for coordinating. Hope 1 didn't miss a contributor. See you Thursday night.

WD

CALENDAR

September 22 Thursday 11:45 am Holiday Inn Select TBD
October 4 Tuesday Board Planning Meeting