Peyton is the new home of professionally trained clowns Sam and Pam Frazier, but getting there was no laughing matter.The couple called San Diego home until the 2007 fires in Southern California burned their home to the ground.”We lost almost everything – family pictures, furniture and clothes,” Sam Frazier said. Just a few things survived the fire: the suitcases in which they stored their clown costumes.Shortly before the fire, the couple had purchased an RV in which they planned to tour the country. The RV also burned to the ground, Frazier said.The Fraziers decided to buy another RV and tour the country, looking for a new place to live. They spent nearly a year, driving to the East Coast and back through the West. In the Midwest, spring flooding slowed their travels. By the time they reached the Front Range, Frazier said, “Colorado looked like home.”The Fraziers purchased a house in Peyton Pines and moved in Oct. 19. They had to call the Salvation Army in San Diego to let them know they would no longer be able to appear as clowns at Salvation Army holiday events in California.”Within 20 minutes of hanging up, we got a call from the Salvation Army in Colorado Springs inviting us to appear at their Halloween party,” Frazier said.Sam Frazier is a trial lawyer and small claims court judge in real life. He started performing magic tricks when he was 10 years old. Now, he dresses up as “Grampa Doubtfire” doing magic tricks and juggling and twisting balloons to the delight of his young audiences.Pam Frazier, a special education teacher, dresses up as “Grammy Pammy” and paints faces.Both are graduates of Ringling Brothers clown school, and they retrain yearly to maintain their professional edge.Ringling Brothers made their clown costumes. The shoes cost $1,000 a pair.The Fraziers have performed for charity events all over the United States, including Homer, Alaska, and they’ve entertained in France, Scotland, England, Ireland and Mexico.In San Diego, they performed at Camp Pendleton for families waiting for their Marine family members to come home.It was one of their favorite events, and one was especially memorable, Frazier said. A little girl had made a sign saying “Welcome Home, Daddy” and had pasted a picture of her father on it, he said.Somehow, the picture fell off, and the girl looked everywhere trying to find it. In tears, she begged Grampa Doubtfire to use his magic skills to make it appear.”I didn’t know what to do, but then I saw someone at the back of the audience waving the picture in the air,” Frazier said. “We managed to put the picture into Grampa Doubtfire’s magic suitcase without the girl seeing and then asked the girl to open the suitcase, and there it was.”The Fraziers plan to return to Southern California one last time for the Christmas show in La Jolla, where they dress up as Santa Claus and Mrs. Santa Claus. “We’ll probably go back for Marine homecoming events, too,” he said.The Fraziers are available for performances at church events, from Pueblo to Denver, at no charge. They prefer events where products are not sold for profit. They are also available for paid private performances.”We just have a lot of fun with it,” Frazier said.To contact the Fraziers, send an e-mail to GrampaDclown@aol.com or visit their Web site at www.clowns2.com.
