Here it is!
Knight's Notes
May 2nd 2008
I imagine there are some basketball athletes in our Club, both current and former, who remember and relish the heat of competition. You may have been the star on your team, or maybe a sixth-man type who came off the bench to provide that needed spark. Or maybe you were more like me, hopelessly not talented enough to even watch tryouts for the public school squad, but you did have an indefensible sky-hook, hit a free throw occasionally and handled the low post for your church-league team. Even then...did you ever go up against someone with Hall of Fame talent? Someone you could point to the paper and say, "I played against them, and wow, were they good!"
Recently, that happened to me when I opened up my Albany Herald and read that our own Joe Brown's daughter Teresa had been elected to the Albany Sports Hall of Fame. I congratulated Joe and asked him if he was proud of Teresa, a former Deerfield and University of Florida standout, who now coaches young people in the sport in which she excelled. "Totally unexpected!" said Joe. While it may have been unexpected, it wasn't a surprise for me, as I thought back to a Sunday afternoon maybe 16 or 17 years ago. A bunch of my friends used to organize pickup games at Porterfield's gym when we were home from school during holidays. Usually, they were friendly games, with lots of joking around and wild shots taken from the three-point line made of duct tape we had laid down ourselves. But this Sunday, we had a lesson in Division I college basketball when Teresa Brown showed up and ran point for one of the teams. All I remember is being dog-tired when we called it quits for the day...Teresa took every one of us to school. Off the dribble...swish. Setting picks....thud. Running the fast break...perfectly executed bounce pass for the easy layup. You're not hustling getting back on defense? The future coach came out and really "encouraged" us to play harder. I honestly don't remember her missing a shot, even on the slightly crooked rim that Porterfield players for ages thought a home-court advantage.
Now, putting it to a bunch of home-for-the-holidays college freshmen and sophomore guys may not sound like much, but if you ask any of those guys who played that day, they'll agree with me that Teresa Brown was one of the best players they ever went up against, male or female. Now they can also say they went up against a Hall of Famer.
Fellowship
Please keep the following Exchangites in your thoughts and prayers this week...if you get a chance to go by or give them a call, that would be great! Charlie Hollis had a bad fall at his sister's house...he's out of the ICU and resting at home with some broken ribs....If you get up Leesburg way, give Raleigh Johnson a shout and a pick-me-up. Keep Bill Wigham in mind as well. It was great to see R.E. Lee and Inman Owens this Friday!
Announcements
Welcome to new member Chris Waters!
The Yard Sale is Saturday 5/10 from 9 AM to 2 PM in the McDonalds Bldg. Set up and pricing will be Thursday and Friday prior from 10-4 and 7-9pm. Chik-Fil-A will be there Saturday selling sandwiches...they are letting their customers know by putting flyers in the bags all this week!
Shelly Davis gave a good report on the Deputy Dawg Golf Classic. "We had a good 'un", he reported. I would say so...$15000 raised to prevent child abuse!
Jack Clay reported a good turnout and lots of work done on the house last weekend! Thanks to all who participated. If you are missing a hammer, please see Brady Lee.
Program
Secret Service agent Dan Reich gave a really interesting program on scam artists and counterfeiting operations to watch out for. Dan remarked that if he now went to work for a bank with what he has seen and knows, he would be the teller that never accepted anything! While counterfeiting is third on the priority list for the Secret Service (following presidential details and protection of foreign dignitaries), the number of U.S. citizens taken in by overseas scam operations boggles the mind. They are very hard to prosecute even if the computer used for the scam is found...how does one figure out exactly who used the computer? And if they're overseas, you are out of luck as well, because even if the U.S. has an extradition treaty with that country, the local police there aren't going to help because they're in on it as well!
Dan gave a short history of the scam artist...used to they had to be in front of you to scam you. Then they progressed to the telephone, fax, and email. Finally, they have used the power of the Internet (explained to Jack Clay as a system of tubes and lasers) Now, they just sit back and wait for us to solicit them via eBay, Craigslist, Autotrader.com, and various dating sites. Dan says that he has seen all types of people taken in by scams...If it sounds to good to be true, it is! Never wire money to anyone...it's just like handing cash away. Beware of the sad story emails...counterfeit money orders and other documents....the overpayment scams ("I know you're offering that dog for $300, but I'll pay you $500!" then sending you a $1000 money order and asking you to wire the change back)....and preying on the lonely on Internet dating sites. What to take from all this? DON'T PAY THE STUPID TAX!