As he looked over a sea of red, President Elect a.k.a. Pro Tem, Stand-In, Pinch Hitter, Second In Command, Presiding Officer or whatever Chuck Stark is, called the meeting to order and proclaimed that "it must be Valentine's Day, the first day of "Make a Will Week."  One might suggest this was another astute observation by a member of the legal profession, today’s "Commander In Chief."

President-Elect Chuck Stark

The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Bob Miller, whom we heard from later in the meeting …read on. The Rotary Moment was led by Paula Wrenn, with a very thoughtful poem entitled "Take Heart."  Congrats to Paula for keeping it short and "sweet" on this special day.

And then, without fanfare, we were entertained by a Quintet from Santa Rosa High School, who performed four great songs for our members and guests/significant others in the audience.

Noel Buehler had the opportunity to showcase his English speaking skills by reading the names of the visiting Rotarians. With minimal experience at pronouncing the Dusty Muckinhaupts of the world, Noel did a superlative job.

And never was there a more memorable introduction of Guests of Rotarians, beginning with none other than Pat Sizemore (how apropos on Valentine's Day). Pat began with requesting equal time with today’s Commander by proclaiming it "Write a Will Week." And Pat introduced his lovely wife Valerie, asking what she ever saw in him. Pat, we love and admire your many exceptional qualities, even if you haven’t figured out what they are. With that behind us, there was a quick pause during introductions so Carl Vallejos could "Remedy" his latent desire for exhibitionism by showing off his Valentine sox.

Paul Schwartz introduced friend and cohort Frank Briceno, candidate for Superior Court Judge.

Continuing with introductions, the more memorable were:

• Bob Miller introducing his wife Gerri as the "Woman who’s car he has washed for forty years."
• Mike Merrill introducing Maureen as the First Lady of the District.
• Hank Zagar, one of the founders of our Club, introducing his wife as his "Bed Partner."
• And, the most notable was former member Chuck Zahl introducing his wife of 50 years!

Chuck Stark noted that the longer people are married, the more we get away with in introductions of our spouses, a second astute observation of the day by the Commander.

Our real President Patsy then took the microphone from the floor and announced that she is turning the responsibilities of the Presidency each week to Past Presidents due to a progressive neurological disease she is fighting. Patsy continues to show tremendous strength in the face of adversity, trying various treatments to improve her condition.

President Patsy Barnes

We all wish Patsy renewed health and appreciate her successful efforts this year to assemble a team of talented leaders to carry the Rotary banner for our Club! Thank you Patsy. Patsy was presented a bouquet of roses from the Club for Valentine's Day along with a standing ovation!

John Palmer - 10 teams of Rotarians are delivering flowers today, and were given thanks for their efforts.

Bob Marigo - Looking for $50 sponsors for the Annual Conference Program. See Bob for details, and expect a call.

Janet Codding - Projects review committee is meeting March 2, 11:30 AM at Portofino Restaurant. If anyone is interested in attending please call Janet so she can give the restaurant a count of number of attendees expected.

Chris Parr led the Club in a rendition of Happy Valentine's Day to Us, in the Happy Birthday theme. Believe it or not, she was not fined.

Rich Pratt’s wife Kathie celebrated a birthday last week.

John Withers celebrated his 47^th anniversary with Pat, for which John donated $1 for each year of marriage, setting a new tradition in our Club. Pat Sizemore was overheard asking nervously if this tradition takes into account the cumulative years of being married or just the current marriage?

Bob Miller once again stood out in the crowd by turning to his wife Gerri and asking her for a check for $40.

Dale Sipe was recognized for his Birthday.

Paula Wrenn was recognized for adding to the quality of life in Sonoma County through her articles in the recent special section of the Press Democrat called "Live and Work in Sonoma County."

Commander Chuck then thanked our dynamic D.A. Mike Mullins for "Standing on the thin line between our freedom and anarchy."  Hmmm.

D.A. Mike Mullins

Wouldn’t you know it that Bob Miller, still looking for the $40 to pay his fine, had the right number for the right to select a marble. Unfortunately for Bob and his wife, and fortunately for the rest of us, Bob was unsuccessful at picking the right marble out of the nine remaining for $1040. John Withers won the $20 second prize.

And Now Introducing Our Speaker… Arnie Carston presented Deborah Myers, Certified Acupressurist and Jin Shin Jyutsu Practitioner. Deborah’s theme for her presentation was "Be Good To Yourself", with the underlying message being that it is hard to be good to others if we do not take care of ourselves. My interpretation was "be good to yourself because nobody else will." (Just kidding!)

Deborah created an image of the human body by describing it as being made up of rivers of energy, and when obstacles back up the rivers from flowing freely due to accidents, misuse, stress, disease, or emotional and physical dysfunction, then toxins can accumulate and cause major problems.

Her practice is about creating the proper energy movement through the body and, therefore, good balance within our systems. This includes breathing property to fill our whole torso, through breathing in the abdomen, diaphragm and chest. The ultimate goal is living in ease and peace, resulting in better productivity, higher energy and overall good health.

At this point in the presentation Bob Marigo was observed sleeping through the "energy flow and enhancement" exercises.

The movements of the body that Deborah taught us are for prevention and maintenance of our bodies, as well as treatment. As Deborah said, God created us to live safely, freely and in ease and comfort. With that in mind, President/Commander Chuck thanked Deborah and presented her with a bottle of fine wine to further enhance her energy flow. Way to go Chuck!