Karen Pauley (right) Past President of Pikes Peak club with 7 1/2' sailfish. Joanne Bass (left) Jefferson County Club President with 6 1/2' sailfish. Mexican boat captain in center.

Pre-Ponderings from Pam Sufak, President-Elect

Saturday's crew at Rebuilding Together looked like they had the day well in hand, so I phoned ahead for direction, (Kathy D'Amore's friendly voice encouraged me to come) and high-tailed it for Castle Rock to throw our support behind our compatriots. I am so glad I did.

What an exciting vibrant group of involved and committed women we are! (Zontians, I mean.) Our Castle Rock sisters are gracious and I had a wonderful time, from the creative concept of second hand fashions re-invented, the delicious ice cream buffet, and the door prizes and centerpieces, I felt that Spring Fling was a truly original event.

Pam Ninness, (treasurer), and Janell Will, (president), made me feel like visiting royalty. I am determined to keep close ties with this group of interesting and determined women!
Pam Sufak

Earlene Herman is well-known for her Color Me Beautiful work, a job she has loved for 21 years. But the Intercept girls probably did not know that the lady helping them had the highest sales performance in the nation this January and February, 2003.

Growing up on a ranch in Oklahoma, never in her wildest dreams did she ever imagine that some day she'd be lecturing on cruise ships and telling beautiful ladies what colors were best on them. The Chairman and CEO of CMB, after attending Earlene and Jerry's 50th wedding anniversary celebration, described Earlene as "fashion forward and yet approachable for her clients." In a letter to her following the anniversary celebration, he also told her, "You hold the record for the greatest sales performance in the history of the company (CMB), " and said, "You and Jerry are an inspiration to us because of the way you lead your lives - full of energy and fun."

Earlene has served more than 22,000 clients. She has done image consulting with corporations like Hewlett-Packard, Shearson-American Express, Honeywell, USF&G Insurance, Merrill-Lynch and Mitsubishi. Earlene has an accumulation of letters of reference attesting to the fact that she has changed lives, saved her clients money in selecting appropriate wardrobes and makeup, turned around businesses and saved careers. Her experience in charge of Liaison and Protocol for the Office of the US Treasurer, Francine I. Neff (she and Francine were college roommates at Cottey College in Nevada, Missouri) and the American Bankers Association in Washington, D.C. schooled her in the subleties of corporate protocol and business etiquette.

Earlene says her greatest reward is seeing the transformation that comes over her clients through their improved self-esteem, confidence and success in their personal and professional lives.

Earlene has a Masters Degree in Economic Education, having won many state and national awards for her Creativity in Economic Education and has also taught economics in Frankfurt, Germany. Earlene and her husband Jerry are parents of two grown children, Linda and Lawrence, and have 3 grandchildren and a grand dog, Amber.

Here's a funny, but true, story that happened recently. A teenager, Gina, wanted to have a color analysis and makeup party for her 13th birthday. Gina's mom had been a high school student in Oklahoma City when Earlene was teaching there. Driving to Earlene's studio, the mother was telling the girls that Mrs. Herman was a teacher when she was in high school. The mother said there was dead silence...because at 13, they knew Gina's mother was OLD...and, if this color lady was a teacher for Gina's OLD mother...well, they couldn't imagine what this lady would look like.

Earlene said she did their colors and makeup, and the girls had a ball. The mother said everyone went out for dinner afterward, and the girls talked and talked all evening about their colors and makeup and what fun they had had. One of the girls said, "You know, Mrs. Herman is OLD...but she's really, really COOL."

Kudos Kolumn

Here you have the opportunity to thank and/or praise your fellow Zontians for something above and beyond. Send all contributions to the newsletter editor - nulty@money.org.

From Kris Wells - KUDOS TO:

To all the Zontians who worked April 26 on Lucy Arellano's house: Pam Sufak, Teri Hermans, Helen Smithwick, Shannon Rowan, Liz Groothoff-Croddy, Kathy Fortner, Janet Fuehrer, Betty Hudson, and Ellen Slavitz.

A special Kudos to Pam for her special connections - she acquired over 200 flowering bulbs and a huge bag of mulch.

To the four Zontos who also worked on Lucy's house: Jim Fortner, Jerry Hermans, Tim Rowan and Jeff Wells. Without your expertise, patience, and talent we could have never accomplished our goal. Thanks a bunch. You truly embody the mission of Zonta: to advance the status of women. Lucy is a lucky lady because of you four!

Dates to Remember . . .