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GAZETTE

April 2012

         The work consumes twelve months a year, but the busiest time for Storms and Alpaugh is springtime.  "Also the first two weeks of October, which is the final extension deadline for income taxes," said Dave.  "Those two week in October are as busy as the first two weeks in April."

         The months of November and December also mean extra work in preparation for the new tax year, while May and August are the least stressful months.  What do they do when work is slow?  "Remodel," said Dave, who has seen the office grow from three people to five.

         "We play cards and travel," replied the smiling receptionist.  Much of the travel for Susan and Paul is between their summertime home in Cody, Wyoming, and Carver County.  They love the wide open spaces of their western 15-acre "ranchette," which also provides a dry environment for Susan as recommended by the Mayo Clinic.  Plus, as Paul reports, "Susan has that relationship with Jacques Laramie, the Mountain Man who was one of the first fur traders in that area."

         "I grew up as Susan Laramie," she explained.  "My great great Uncle Jacque Laramie founded Laramie, Wyoming.  We have a mountain range, a peak, a river, a county, a fort, and a town named after my ancestors.  I was invited to be the town's guest of honor when Laramie was celebrating their Centennial in the 1960's."

         Paul and Susan have also visited Laramie together and were wined and dined as celebrities.  As a matter of fact, a photo of Susan is framed and hanging in the city museum.

***

         Back in the day, in July of 1992 to be exact, shortly before Dave Alpaugh came to work for Paul Storms, the Victoria Gazette interviewed Paul and Susan for an inside piece which was entitled, "Never Say Whoa in a Horse Race."  The title came about because of Paul's response to the question:  Does the busy accountant take on new clients?  If asked today, his answer would be the same:  "Never Say Whoa in a Horse Race."

         That particular story in the Gazette brought out other interesting tidbits.  For example, we learned that Paul grew up on a dairy farm near Cologne, the fifth of ten children.  He went into accounting because he "liked numbers and hated cows."

         After graduation from high school in 1964, the era of the Vietnam War, Paul received a lottery number from Uncle Sam and so he enlisted in the Army Reserves one morning.  At that time he was working for Herb Henschen, the cabinet maker in Cologne, so that afternoon he went back to work and cut off the fingers of one hand in a tragic accident.  Remarked the Army Reserve Officer when he was told the news, "I've heard of people shooting their toes off, but cutting off your fingers?"

         As Paul's hand healed, he received an honorable discharge for faithful service in the U.S. Army.  "And that was the end of my army career," he stated.  "Guess I showed them!"  In any case, Paul had to stop counting on his fingers!  Today he enjoys the computer age which arrived in 1976 with the purchase of his first computer.  "Now we are paperless and we've got the paper to prove it," he joked.  In fact, there are paper jackets in the office for materials to hold various documents that people bring to them.  Otherwise, everything is digital.

         Over the years, Paul has retained his enjoyment of the work.  "It gives me an opportunity to help people save tax dollars legitimately," he said.  "And it's also given me the opportunity to do tax and estate planning with a lot of our clients."

         Another delight of this happy accountant is having one of his sons join the business.  Bradley purchased a home in New Germany and is in the process of having it remodeled.  For nine weeks during this 2012 tax season, he has been living here while helping out at Storms and Alpaugh. 

         Paul has five sons, most of them close to home.  Oldest son Gary is a mechanic with Delta Airlines; he and his wife Linda have two children, Alex, 20, and Mary, 16, and live in Burnsville.  Bryan is a head jailer at Carver County; he has two children, Justin, 17, and Allyna, 14.  Brad is the middle son, married with two children as reported in the opening paragraphs.  Todd was in the Air Force for ten years and is now going to school for emergency management; he and his wife Katja, who is from Germany, have three children, Savannah, 8, Vivienne, 6, and Amelia, 7 months, and live in Winthrop.  Gregory is an electrical engineer living in Chaska and working in Plymouth; he is single until this coming May 5th when he will marry Maurielle.

 

***

         And so it happens every spring.  First it rains, and then it pours, especially as we get closer to April 15th.  People of this community, and neighboring communities, are fortunate to have experts like Storms and Alpaugh in the neighborhood to help calm the winds and settle the waves when incomes taxes are pushing at the tidal walls of deadline time.  And when the thunder and lightning of estate planning strikes all those baby boomers who are now reaching retirement age, they too can call on Storms and Alpaugh.  Congratulations on 40 years, Paul, and to all your office family.

Swanson Insurance

952-448-4580

CORNERSTONE

Insurance Agency Inc.

David Barsness, CPCU

Chaska 952-448-5028