February 21 2009
Well, gang, there’s some truly bad news this week. The reopening of the clubhouse and shooting ranges has been put on permanent hold due to the deep and wide spread effects of what is now a global recession.
Even those who have been our angels for years, are starting to feel the pinch. Phillip T. Lucre, who has supported us in our various construction projects since the early days, is being forced by losses caused by Wall Street related schemes to cut back on his contributions.
We won’t be able to make it without him.
Even if we opened up the clubhouse and shooting ranges, most of us every day folks could no longer handle the expense of transporting our ordnance, ammunition and so on, and of course the necessary quantities of beer, to and from our facilities.
Those that can afford the expense, don’t want to flaunt their good fortune in front of the rest of the membership.
They feel that to do so would display a certain lack of grace, and invite requests for loans.
Accordingly, here at the home office of the club, we are forming a "moth ball" committee to go out to our facilities and prepare everything to be shut down for what just might be an extended period of time.
If the recession lasts long enough, there will have to be painting schedules, regular landscaping maintenance, monthly check-ups on the electrical systems, and just old fashioned riding fence.
But it will serve a purpose. And what we want everybody to remember is, that the "moth balling" process will enable us to bounce back quickly and reopen our facilities when times finally do get better. And they will.
And when it’s over, we will be a better club for the experience.
There are those who will point out that we haven’t held an event out at facilities for at least nine years anyway, so what’s the big deal?
Well, the big deal is: The Big Idea. And the big idea is Beer and Guns…an idea that needs ten or twenty-thousand acres to properly express itself once in a while, if only in our imaginations.
Remember, we’re going to get through this thing gang, What the hell, it’s not like as if we had a choice.
And then, we party.

Till next week
Helga Biermeister
Secretary