The Lads of Enchantment, from left, Maurice Sheppard, Dick Heaton, Stan Bennett and Stan Brown with Bernadette Lauritzen, center. Photo by Chad Lauritzen

By BERNADETTE LAURITZEN
Los Alamos

I can die happy at any moment, but more on that at the end. I’d like to throw my support behind 100% fond of being able to retire. I had some goals, so I wasn’t led down a path of no return and by the end of November I will meet the goals.

First of all, I was determined NOT to sit on any Board of Directors during my first year. I kid you not, that my office chair wasn’t even warm to the touch when I was asked to do so for four different programs.

Let me be the first to tell you that I did get a job, but hold on, let me clarify. One of my goals was to become a Poll Worker (an Election Worker). I did not know that this is a paid position. As a believer to continue the tradition of free and fair elections, I am happy to serve. It is about three weeks of work, then back to my current “grind”.

Next month we kick into higher gear for the annual Festival of Trees fundraiser. I think this will be the 22st year and I have only missed one year. The event is done with my non-profit C’YA and the senior centers (LARSO). We even did 2020 completely virtually and it was horrible, but this year the event is 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 18 at the Betty Ehart Senior Center. There will be more information coming out soon.

If you know me well, you know I can’t carry a tune in a bucket. I have sung publicly two times, once with a choir at church and once with some fantastic young people at a middle school welcome event, called WEB Crew.

So, when I was about to retire, I asked the Lads of Enchantment, if they would come sing at the 25th senior center anniversary. There’s a much longer story but I’ll save that for later. Short story long, I practiced to sing one song with them and they allowed me to stay. The Lads and Lasses of Enchantment will hold their first show since 2019, at 7 p.m.  on Oct. 20.

My goal is to sell as many tickets as I can, and whoever buys one from me has a chance to win baked goods in a raffle. Yes, I call it Shameless Self Promotion, but only because I want this year to have the best attendance ever. This great group has been sidelined for 3 years and they are back baby!

I have loved barbershop since I was a radio personality in Bremerton,  Wash. The LOE tried to get my husband to join. I even pondered a Mulan situation to cut my hair and sneak in but that was 25 years ago. Now here we are, they have added lasses and my husband said, “Why not?” So, here we are today.

Thursday night I got to sing with a quartet or two and while it was an out of body experience because I really don’t sing, it was magical when I made myself try something that scared the hell out of me. So now, if I die an early death I’ll die happy.