Jim's story for the July 8 plus Bulletin

 

But of course President Ken was not quite done yet.  There was still the Demotion ceremony to be had.  Master of Ceremonies Tim Hageman kicked things off with Ian Jackson inducting the new board, with words of advice, praise and mockery for each.  They are:

 

Annie Hendrickson, Community.

Russ Samuels, Treasurer.

Tim Hageman, President-Elect.

Ken Deemer, Past President.

Bruce Greenspon, Programs.

 

Absent but ably (better said, amusingly) represented by stand-in Roger Cox were:

 

Dave Long, Membership

Kathleen Murphy, Secretary

Tim James Auringer, Youth

Cedrick Tuck-Sherman, International

Dave Gendron, President

 

Thanks were offered to a host of folks who made this particular Demotion a standout, with wonderful food and drinks, a beautifully decorated hall and stage, table favors, and countless tie-dye shirts.  Gratitude to Lisa Hemmat-Lupercio, Annie Hendrickson, Loli Ramezani, Roger Rombro, Mark Burton, Scott Yanofsky, Russ Samuels, Chris Ullman, Donn Ennis, Bruce Greenspon, Cedric Tuck-Sherman, the Lido staff, Tim Hageman, and two especially valuable contributors, member wives Amy Hageman and Candy Deemer.  Candy was presented with flowers, a benign moment before the roast (much of it based on her revelations) began.

 

There on stage, in a Dalmation coat, looking like Cruella with a glass of wine, stood President Ken.  (He would soon strip down to a tie-dye shirt with a tutu and would doff at least two ridiculous hats.)  Mark Burton went off topic and offered nothing but praise for Ken. (“He took us to the next level with his nonprofit and fundraising experience.”)  Tim Hageman restored order by telling us Ken was expelled from military school in 8^th Grade, and then advanced his criminal enterprises by hacking pay phones.  He is still struggling to get Global Entry as a result (he apparently got himself an FBI file).  Chris Ullman offered up an episode of Finding Your Roots, analyzing the word history of the name Ken Deemer with predictably absurd results, passing through Mounting Deer to Burning Man.  Bruce Greenspon wondered aloud whether Ken is a madman or messiah, noting that Ken has put his MIT and Carnegie Mellon degrees to work collecting data in a manner that seems, at first, serious, but proves disruptive, all leavened with his sociability, a multitude of costumes and hats, and love of the great outdoors.  We found ourselves “truckin’” to the sounds of the Grateful Dead as we watched slides of Ken’s life.  Finally, with Chris Ullman’s lyrics and Jan Rhees’ country twang we joined in singing the traditional farewell song, this year based on Garth Brooks’ Friends in Low Places.

 

President Ken Deemer was rightfully the centerpiece of our last meeting of the year and our annual Demotion.  But both Ken and his entire board kept returning to the same theme:  They merely led a club packed with people who always say yes when a need is apparent.  Ken expressed gratitude to “our fantastic members who can always be relied upon to step up when asked.”  What a perfect match it’s been—an extraordinarily effective leader with an extraordinarily proactive membership.  That’s Manhattan Beach Rotary.