HIGH NOON ROTARY

March 25, 1999

Boy, we were not missing our excitement this day! The leader of the day filled the air with enthusiasm and vigor. Dan was at his best this day. He defined the word Joke with his tale of the Chicken crossing the road. We were lead in prayer and pledge by Len. Dan then noted that our room was missing the Flag, bell, banner, and a broken Microphone.

We introduced George Mirich who was our Guest Speaker of the day. Dick Gibbs, from the evening club and perennial quest, was with us. Dick was joined by another evening club member Kaye Byerly. Joe Williams then introduced Dave Widenmiller who presented gifts to those club members who helped to get relief to the folks in Honduras. There were two special sons with us this day. Roy Crow introduced his son, Glen, who was on his way through town but stopped to have lunch with Dad. The other was Michelle's son, Bruiser, who celebrated his nine month birthday with us. Welcome, Welcome.

Dave Widenmiller then recognized Joe Williams for taking the lead in getting relief goods from Aspen for the Honduras Project. Joe also set up the storage and people to load the truck to get the stuff headed south. Charlie Albert played a big role in this, as did the muscle guys, Rick Routh and Wayne Bedor. The memory fails on the others who helped. The results of the effort were 20,000 pounds of food and dry goods were shipped from here. Stuff like 6,000 pounds of beans from Dove Creek, 4,000 pounds of onions, 2,000 pounds of potatoes and 2,000 pounds of cabbage. Lots of good stuff sent to help others. This is what Rotary is about.

What Rotary is about was also the next item on our plate. The bright young man with the innovative approach to fines struck again. J. R. Fined everyone in the room a buck for not being out of town on Spring break. We also then played "Name that Rotarian". Seems one of our members is an expert in Crime Scene Examination. Don Freemyer was asked to identify this person from a list of three. He missed but we did find out that Mark Prouty is the one. Mark did this for fifteen years in the Army.

Mike then introduced George Mirich to the group as our guest speaker. The topic was leasing or buying your next car. Leasing has become popular because there is a small down payment (less than the twenty percent banks want)and the payments are low. This allows new car buyers to get a new car and be affordable. Fifteen million cars were sold in 1998 and, of these, thirty-three percent where leased. This is true for most cars over 60,000 dollars. Car dealers find the venture profitable as it moves a lot of cars and increases the bottom line. If leasing had not occurred in 1997 there would have been 3.5 per cent fewer cars sold, 15 percent of the dealerships would have closed and 70 million would have been lost to the economy. Most dealers focus people on the low monthly payment. But a person looking to lease a car needs to look at the type of use for the car. Will the car be high mileage? What is the predetermined value of the car at the end of the lease? What is the interest rate? What fees and charges will be assessed? What is the acquisition fee for the Leasing agent? What is the disposition Fee? How much is the purchase option fee? What is the wear and tear limits on the car? There are two types of leases. The first is a closed end lease that allows you to give the car back or buy it outright. The other is an open-ended lease that has a guaranteed value of the car when you turn it in. If the car is worth less than the value you pay the difference. George said that the monthly cost of a lease is always less than a car payment. He also said that the gross cost of leasing was about the same as buying. The long term cost of a lease does not match the ability of an owner to drive their car forever. Thanks George.

ONE FINAL NOTE: "Win hearts, and you have all men's hands and purses." Bear.