Sometimes I have to sing for my supper--or lunch.

The Rotary Luncheon


Part of my job is to serve as the library’s public face. Part of that involves speaking to various community and civic organizations from time to time. The local Rotary, Lions, and Kiwanis clubs often have guest speakers at their weekly lunchtime meetings. I’ve found that it helps to work this circuit about once a year to publicize whatever the library has had going on lately. Fortunately I know members of each of these and can arrange to get tapped to speak. One reason why I have never tried to join any of the three service clubs is because I want to remain on equally good terms with each of them. A couple of weeks ago I was asked to speak at the Rotary Club.

Each club meets in the meeting room of a certain restaurant. Recently this restaurant moved from the local motel where it had been based to a location downtown. This was my first time to go to the new location. It sits midway between the mayor’s office and the police station, about a block from each. There is a good-sized parking lot in back. I rode there on my bicycle and elected to park it near the main entrance. One thing about bikes—they’re usually very easy to park.

I had been in the building before, when it was still a pharmacy. The place looked rather dim and gloomy inside then. Today it looked bright and airy, the windows letting in abundant light from the clear day outside. The member who had invited me to speak was not yet there, so I sat down at a little table near the main entrance, well away from the diners. Several Rotary Club members were already going through the buffet line on their way to the meeting room in back.

I waited awkwardly for a couple of minutes. Spotting my pastor and his wife nearby, I decided to pass the time by walking over and saying hello to them. We chatted for just a couple of minutes about the church’s upcoming summer camp and so forth. One of their adult sons came and joined them. I had never realized before that he was a police officer. He is certainly built like one—but then his father looks as much like a retired pro football lineman as he does a preacher.

Eventually my host to the meeting arrived. It turned out that I had misunderstood where I was to meet him. I had assumed that I was to meet him there at the appointed time. He had intended instead to pick me up at the library and take me to the meeting. He had gone there looking for me, only to learn that I had already taken off! Naturally I felt rather sheepish at inconveniencing him in this way. But he was nice about it, and there was no harm done. We still had plenty of time to go through the line and get our meals.

The place serves good food. The pre-made green and fruit salads (I got the latter) were not that impressive, but the choice of vegetables and entrees was great. It is essentially a meat-and-three plate arrangement. Entrees on offer included what I knew to be fine roast beef and pork, scrumptious-looking crab cakes, fried catfish, and grilled fish. I decided, over the fine competition, to choose the last offer. They serve good rolls and cornbread there as well. I did not even worry about the selection of pies for dessert.

One nice thing about these luncheon speaking engagements is that the clubs always feed the guest speaker. I’ve been to the restaurant a number of times over the last several years and have only had to pay to eat once so far. At one Kiwanis luncheon last year the club members kept trading stories about a former local radio announcer who apparently was a first-rate moocher. He took full advantage of any eating opportunities at events he covered or was hired to emcee. It made me feel vaguely guilty at having enjoyed the clubs’ hospitality as many times as I have, but I evidently have never tried anything as egregious as what he did.

My host and I sat at the table up front to one side of the lectern. Apart from the Rotary Club emblems and an American flag the room had no decoration. It did have about all the tables the management could cram in. My host wondered whether the president of the Chamber of Commerce, who uses a large powered wheel chair, would be able to make it inside. He just managed.

About twenty members and a couple of guests attended. There were several women. I recalled attending a Rotary Club meeting in my home town when I was in high school, where several of us talked about a school trip we had taken to Washington D.C. as part of the Close Up program. There had been no women members then, and that club was likely no exception in those days. I recognized several of the members. One of them, a very petite young woman whom I had not seen in some time, was struggling under the unaccustomed weight of a noticeable baby bulge. I had not known about this! I knew I’d have to go over and congratulate her as soon as the meeting was over.

I had enough time to eat and chat with my host before the meeting was called to order with a rap on a little bell beside the club president. All rose. We turned toward the flag and recited the Pledge of Allegiance. The president then asked a member to ask the blessing on the meal we had just eaten (or in the case of later arrivals, were still eating). Everyone resumed their seats.

The president went through a couple of items of business. The main one involved club sponsorship of an upcoming summer civic event. I had been asked to sponsor it as well. As usual I had had to turn down the request. Though I think that having the library sponsor more of these events would be a good idea, I don’t have any budget for it and can only sneak so much out of my “Miscellaneous” expenses for such things.

After a few minutes the president turned it over to my host, who had been made responsible for this week’s program. He in turn introduced me and turned the podium over to me.

This speaking engagement had been on my calendar for a couple of weeks. Unfortunately there had been a lot going on in my life and at work. I had thought a bit about what I wanted to say, but had had no time to come up with a real speech. So I had to wing it. Fortunately, although I’m not a particularly good public speaker, I’ve learned not to be scared of it. I love to talk about the library any chance I get. There was plenty to talk about.

I told the assembly about our summer program (as many as 80 children and youth attending at one time, which turns our smallish library into quite a circus), about the new computers we had bought with Gates Foundation money, about the new web site funded by a grant to our Friends group, about our plans to get wireless access in the near future and to redevelop the network. I mentioned area merchants and others who had volunteered their time and resources to help with the summer program. We enjoy a good level of community support. This was an excellent opportunity to say thank you for that. I answered a few questions about the library and its current collections and operations. I observed that public libraries today face the same problem as churches—they must convince the rising generation that they still have something to offer them without pandering to current fads in a way that jeopardizes the institution’s mission.

After I had said my piece everybody thanked me for coming. The meeting adjourned with everyone reciting the Rotary Club’s motto—“Service above self.”

I circulated for a while, saying hello to people I had not seen lately. Naturally I gave the mother-to-be my congratulations. I asked another attendee about his daughter, whom I had known at school some years earlier. She had spent a couple of years in Spain and was now back in the U.S. I told him that my Mom had just gone to Spain for summer study.

I also had a chance to speak to the president of the Chamber, and to the Chamber’s director (i.e., the paid person who does most of the actual work there). We chatted a bit about what sorts of things were going on in the area. The Chamber has been working hard to promote the town to businesses, and also to the area’s restless, the-grass-is-always-greener-over-the-fence youth. Whenever the Chamber tries to sell a potential employer on the town they always mention our library. We always do whatever we can at the library to help them in return. We all care about our town, even those of us who aren’t natives.

Eventually we all had to be on our way. I said my goodbyes and headed back to work.

Sigh....I love crab cakes.

Sounds like you did a good job singing for your supper. Nice job, D.L.