The Demotion of President Watson...
As the heat gradually dissipated into a sparkling evening, the Rotary Club of Ojai gathered at the oak-shaded domain of Larry and Kathy Yee for the grand occasion of seizing the gavel from Betsy Watson and commemorating her year as our chief instigator and co-conspirator.
The merry folk stylings of Seth Oster and Sharletta Erb set the tone, and Dorjee of Mandala Restaurant laid before us a buffet of his specialties, mostly vegetarian in keeping with the culinary customs of our soon-to-be-former president.
Guests included Betsy’s sister from the Bay Area, her son Ernie and his bride Hannah, coming up from Encinitas where Hannah was just named California’s Student Teacher of the Year.
After settling in for serious schmoozing and modest boozing, our event coordinator and immediate past president Mike Scar got the crowd properly wowed with a rendition of her board of directors as trash pickers, marching around with trash picking gadgets to the tune of “Bridge over the River Kwai,” as a tribute to Betsy’s inveterate routine of picking up trash and debris from roadsides around Ojai.
Then followed an onslaught of poetic tributes, led by Deirdre Daly, then a hip hop beat which Karen Banfield wove around with such lyrics as “Don’t know what to say, the lady’s got more energy than a kid with ADHD.”
Al West also let loose with some lyrical praise, as did Bill Prather’s “Betsy’s Wild Ride,” and Tony Thacher’s “Flotsam? We got some.” Leslie Bouche commemorated “life’s sweetness” and Bob Davis summoned the spirit of Edward Lear with a limerick which was heartfelt if a little not safe for work.
Then the “Three Amigas,” Cindy Frings, Kathy Yee and Sue Gilbreth all sang out their own original rhyme, which paired such words as “jet ski” and “yet see.”
Then all the tables, so beautifully set amid the gathering dusk in the oak forest of the Yee’s backyard, became the site of a friendly, yet frenzied, game of Betsy Watson trivia, of which four of the eight tables got all the questions correct. Sample; Betsy was born and raised in which state?
Then soon-to-be ex president took to the podium for a final message. She thanked her board and listed the accomplishments: six new members, the Snowflake program for veteran families, the Winter Wonderland, and Entrepreneur training as new projects launched in her year.
Then Betsy made the Rotary of the Year announcement … drum roll … Andy Gilman! Our tech wizard, program chair and hard-working and big-hearted club member.
The old board stood together for one last time, and then gave way to the new board, which included a few familiar faces.
Our new presidents Marty Babayco and Kay Bliss then took the gavel and presented Betsy with her special Bling Hat which metaphorically Crowned the Year. Then amid the twinkle of the magical setting, the magical evening gradually dispersed as people gathered in group for Carl Gross’ FaceMash slideshow, in which he proved that Rotary club members had been at virtually all major moments in history, a fitting show for her This Day in History vignettes. Hopefully, we will all get to see this clever and hysterical enactment of history.
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