At first blush, that headline may seem to convey a mixed message. To some, a tender roast cannot be well done, though at the same time, I guess it is possible.

This time, “tender roast” was the description my friends at “my” firm, CFM Strategic Communications, applied to a roast held in – what can I say – “my honor” earlier this month. It was a retirement party.

Despite the fact that I had given explicit instructions that my retirement should not be the subject of any kind of party, my friends at CFM didn’t listen. Nothing new about that.

They planned a party and decided to hold a roast. It was a total surprise to me, but once I adjusted to the idea that there would be a party for me, I had a great time reliving portions of my 40-year career in forming public policy – 15 years as an Oregon state government manager and 25 years as a lobbyist in a firm I helped to co-found with partner and long-time friend, Gary Conkling.

How did the surprise occur?

Well, two of my now “former” friends – lobbyist Tom Gallagher and Bend attorney (and former state senator) Neil Bryant – enticed me with an invitation to play golf at the club where I am a member, Illahe Hills in Salem.

I should have suspected that something was up, but then many of my friends would tell you that I am not necessarily quick on the uptake.

The first clue was when Tom called to set up a golf game at Illahe; he does not like the golf course, so such a call should have struck me as strange. Then, when he came to the club on the fateful day, he met me on the putting green in his Sunday best attire. I thought he had just left his golf clothes up on the locker room.

Soon, around the corner came Neil carrying his golf clubs and a change of clothes.

To be ready for our tee time, we trooped up to the locker room and then came another clue – Neil, who has been at Illahe many times, asked to see the remodeling out in the front of the clubhouse. Well, that remodeling occurred more than 15 years ago, but again I dutifully walked with Neil and Tom out to the front.

There, I arrived at a room and, seeing a lot of my friends in the same place, I wondered what they were all doing at Illahe.

Finally, I tumbled to what was up when I saw my daughter, Lissy, standing there with all of my friends. Turned out she had flown down from Seattle just for the retirement party occasion. At that point, it was real. Finally.

It was gratifying to re-live some great memories over 40 years. The best news was that representatives of four of my favorite lobby clients were in the room.

Greg Van Pelt, Marcia Williams and Jessica Adamson from Providence Health System came, a great honor for me. Providence was CFM’s first client 25 years ago and it was a distinct pleasure to represent such a fine organization over the years. From its roots in the Catholic Church, Providence is a great health care organization, the cornerstone of which “is to provide compassionate care accessible for all – especially those who are poor and vulnerable.”

Ron and Lynne Saxton also did me the great honor of attending. They are two great friends. For Ron, I represented JELD-WEN, a home-grown Oregon company that became, in our lifetimes, an organization with an international scope. Lynne, the executive director of Youth Villages-Oregon (formerly Christie School and ChristieCare), came from her new job as director of the Oregon Health Authority to attend the event.

For me, the Saxtons, beyond our friendship, represented two great clients – JELD-WEN and Youth Villages. They stood for honesty and forthrightness in all of their disparate activities.

The fourth client representative was Annette Price from the Port of Portland, a great client for CFM over the years when we worked together to gain funds to deepen the Columbia River Channel, thus allowing deeper draft ships to make their way on the 90-mile transit off the oceans to inland ports, including, especially, the Port of Portland.

Gaining these funds stands as one of the results of which I am most proud during my 25 years as a state lobbyist. As always, in such projects, credit goes not to one individual, but to a team that worked together effectively to produce a solid result.

Back to the retirement party.

With so many friends and colleagues in the room, it turned out to be a great evening. I won’t mention the names of all who honored me by attending, but two people stand out – my wife of 41 years (almost 42), Nancy, and my daughter, Lissy. [Son Eric couldn’t be at the event because – and he knew I would support his decision – he was serving as captain of Oregon’s teams at the Pacific Northwest Golf Association championships in Portland.]

As Lynne Saxton rightly said in her remarks about me, Nancy is truly the “wind beneath Dave’s wings.” Without Nancy’s steadfast love and support over the years, I would not have been able to accomplish much of anything.

As for Lissy, it would not be possible to have a better daughter who has become a loving wife and mother in her own right. The fact that she made the trip down from Seattle was a special treat.

Thanks to all who contributed thoughts and ideas for this best of all retirement parties. One of best moments of the evening came, properly, I guess, at my expense. My former associate, Beth Remley, with microphone in hand, relayed this story about me: “Hey Beth, I asked, how do you get rid of those blue dots on e-mails?” Her reply: “Well, Dave, just read them!”

It cracked up the audience, but, of course, to set the record straight, one of my duties in this post, my friend Beth failed to mention one key fact — it was that my question came after I read the e-mails and the blue dots still wouldn’t disappear. Oh well, the fiction of her story was better than the truth of mine.

I might not have wanted this party in the beginning, but now it stands as a fitting end to my professional career, which has been made better by too many friendships to count over the years — friends who will remain friends long after professional associations come to an end.

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[It should be reported that three of my colleagues had the idea to come up with this retirement. They are my long-standing friend and partner Gary Conkling, who has led CFM with distinction for many years; Partner Dan Jarman, who now leads the CFM state lobby practice; and Cindy Brown, our office manager who could not be better than she now is. And, by the way, retirement gifts for me are still being accepted!]