Smith: New homes for Norman and her friends

On Sunday, the day after the death of 83-year-old Vic Pozzi, the gleeful and steel-gripped retired dairyman/firefighter whose menagerie of emus, Brahman cattle, sheep and fowl has long been one of the wonders of Windsor, there occurred at his ranch a birth.

The generally gentle Brahman cow Vic named Norman, in tribute to the calf in the “City Slickers” movie, produced a bull. The little fella’s being tended to by a couple of guys who regarded Vic as a second father: Windsor Fire Capt. Dean Crothers and neighboring former rancher Rick Olufs.

The pair toils also to find good homes for Norman and her newborn, and for the leggy emus that lifelong bachelor Vic named Elvis and Priscilla, though they’re both males and just friends, and all of the critters that delight the legions of folks who stop to visit at the ranch on Shiloh Road.

The approximately 15 Brahmans, 13 emus, 150 sheep, 150 domesticated geese and assorted ducks and chickens “were his family, his kids,” Olufs said.

“There are people lined up for some of them,” said Crothers. He thinks that adopting out the emus and geese may be problematic, but he’s determined that all of animals will go to homes that would please Vic.

So prepare yourself. The ex-dairy ranch north of the county airport and south of Windsor Golf Club is becoming far less enchanting now that Vic isn’t there to gather and charm the passers-by and the animals by parking his pickup at the gate and tossing out old French bread.

As Crothers and Olufs tend the critters and interview prospective adopters, they ponder a name for the new arrival. They can’t imagine what he might have been christened by their old friend, who named an earlier bull Turkey and an emu Maria Shriver.

Crothers said they’re inclined to dub Norman’s calf Victor.

CAFÉ WITH BRUNO: Sweet harp music and the French-tinged voice of Bruno Ferrandis, maestro of the Santa Rosa Symphony, graced the Peet’s coffee/tea shop in downtown Santa Rosa on Monday.

The music director and harpist Anna Maria Mendieta dropped in to intrigue patrons about the new symphony season at Green Music Center, chat and give away a few tickets to this weekend’s concerts.

A reprise happens today at A’Roma Roasters in Railroad Square. The harpist will perform from 9:30 to noon and Ferrandis will visit and direct a ticket drawing from 10 to 11:30.

TOM FARRELL, one of the most caring people ever to walk the Earth, was to have been a VIP at a dinner this weekend to raise camp money for kids who struggle to walk.

Tom, who died Sept. 24 at age 88, dedicated much of his life to assisting and advocating for people who live with disabilities. Though he didn’t feel or see well toward the end of his life, he pushed himself to be of help to the organizers of Boost Camp, which brings youngsters with cerebral palsy to Santa Rosa for five weeks of fun and intensive training to allow them to walk and crawl and climb and grasp and live better.

A “Dinner in the Garden” benefit in Santa Rosa on Saturday will thank Tom for all he did to attract dollars and interest to Boost Camp, and all he did for decades for the inclusion of people too often disregarded.

He so looked forward to being there.

Chris Smith is at 707-521-5211 and chris.smith@pressdemocrat.com.