Special to The Times-Journal

The “I Can’t Believe You That Stupid” Coffee club originated more than 30 years ago.

It began with Calvin Byrd and four or five courthouse employees. It has been in several locations.

Presently, the club meets at the Downtowner Restaurant. The club hopes the Downtowner will continue to extend a welcome. The restaurant has great food and coffee. The service is real good, too.

The club is serviced by Bernice and Mattie. Karen Butts is the restaurant owner.

The club did not have a name until about six years ago.

The name originated with now-retired Probate Judge Johnny Jones.

A numbers game is played each day to see who pays for everyone’s coffee. The number range is one to 100. The person that calls the number written by the club member who lost the previous day pays for coffee that day and selects the next day’s number.

Jones would look at the person who was the loser for that day and tell him, “I can’t believe you that stupid.”

That is how the club got its name.

The club keeps a record of who loses each day. At the end of the year, the person who has lost the most times that year gets his name engraved on the “I Can’t Believe You That Stupid” plaque. The plaque is posted on a wall in the Downtowner.

The club is made up mostly of retirees. There are six retired members of the Army National Guard and retirees from other professions. There are six working tax-paying members who support the retirees.

One club member has read a couple of magazine articles that say retirees who participate in coffee clubs have better memories as they get older. The fellowship is great because there is such a diverse group of men from a wide range of work backgrounds.

The club does not discuss politics, has great conversations, improves their memories and best of all, makes memories.