It s been a Great ride!!!

Transcription

1 Volume 44 June 14, 2006 CECIL MARTIN, President, Think Globally, Act Locally Neil Walker Editor Website: It s been a Great ride!!! T he morning sun on Flag Day was warm, the weather was beautiful, lots of American Flags swayed proudly in the breeze as President Cecil Martin, in his last official meeting as BBRC President, gaveled the club to order. Howie Wass and Sarah Baron made everyone feel welcome as they performed their official Greeter duties. Mike Turnipseed led us in invocation and Neil Walker chose the most easterly of the dozens of aforementioned U.S. flags for the pledge. The outdoor setting was the Centennial Memorial Tree Grove where Bakersfield Breakfast Rotary Club took on the project of planting 100 trees in celebration of Rotary International s 100 years of existence. The park may eventually receive the official name of San Miguel Park in honor of Father Garces who traveled through the area toward Gordon s Ferry where he crossed the Kern River. Fellow Rotarian from Downtown, Mayor Harvey Hall along with Councilman/Vice-Mayor Mike Maggard were acting in their official City capacities as the Grove was officially dedicated. Other notable people from the City, the Tree Foundation, and the Kern River Parkway Foundation were also present. Tree Foundation Treasurer Rich O Neil and President Bill Cooper were given credit for having the vision and drive behind the Parkway and bike path. Diane Hoover, Bakersfield City Director of Recreation & Parks, and Dana Karcher, Executive Director of the Tree Foundation, have coordinated their efforts well. In the audience was Patrick Denney, the City Arborist. Another welcome guest was former BBRC member and Past President, Bonnie Crawford who had driven over from her home in Cambria to attend Cecil s last meeting. Bonnie was Cecil s sponsor into Rotary. Other visiting Rotarians were Jack Saba (East) and Jerry Arseneau (Nipomo). Councilman Maggard s comments were especially poignant as he praised the efforts of BBRC and the organizations and agencies mentioned above. Hopefully the newly planted Grove along the Kern River will reach the same magnificence as the wild stand of trees Maggard described near the Pacific Ocean shore in San Simeon, California. Maggard called President Martin forward along with Hall, Hoover and Karcher and the dedication boulder was unveiled (see the photos). Cecil finished the presentation by REMEMBER WE ARE DARK UNTIL JULY 5, 2006 DEMOTION PARTY NEXT THURSDAY, 6/22, BELL TOWER CLUB

2 (Continued from page 1) drawing an analogy between the strong intertwined root system of northern California s Giant Redwood trees to Bakersfield Breakfast Rotary Club members. While meshing his fingers together, Cecil described BBRC as a similar, joined network of people which is at its strongest when working together. As Cecil was making his last remarks during this last official meeting of his term, he reminded us of that BBRC continues to live up to his theme, Think Globally, Act Locally. Guests who came for the dedication and to say So long to Cecil were Cliff Straub (DeAnn s husband), Pam Walker (Neil s wife), First Lady Karen Martin, First Son Garrett Martin, Bill Black was with Tim Cox, Dale Edwards was hosted by Bob Nelson, and the most beautiful little girl in the group, Kate Kelly, came with her dad Shaun. Mark Lambert and Willy Sawyer were in attendance from the City. Commemorative Tree Grove An excerpt from the Tree Foundation s website - The Tree Foundation of Kern in partnership with the City of Bakersfield provides an opportunity for you to celebrate a significant event (such as a birth, wedding or anniversary), or memorialize a loved one with the planting of a tree in our new Commemorative Grove. Located off Manor Street on Denise Avenue, this special grove currently has over 100 trees planted in it. The Bakersfield Breakfast Rotary Club provided the trees and partial funding for the irrigation to kick start this program. Some of these trees are available for "adoption". Planting a tree provides a touching tribute and serves as lasting reminder of a special occasion, or memory of a special person. Every tree that is planted in the grove will have a personalized bronze plaque placed near the tree. In addition, a personalized card can be sent to a person of the donors choice letting them know of their special gift. More information will be available soon on our website. For more information, you can us at treeinfo@urbanforest.org or call Mayor Hall and Councilman Maggard President Cecil Martin THE VISION

3 BBRC Members and Guests at the Centennial Memorial Grove dedication on June 14, 2006 L to R - Mike Maggard, Cecil Martin, Dana Kartcher, Dianne Hoover and Mayor Harvey Hall Bakersfield City Mayor & Downtown Rotarian, The Honorable Harvey Hall

4 Page 4 Here s Looking at You, Cecil Comments from the members regarding President Cecil Martin and his year in office. This is like "signing" a high s c h o o l y e a r book!! Goodie! Goodie! I thoroughly enjoyed being Cecil's secretary this year. His "wit" during Board meetings made Board meetings fun!! I think the Centennial Grove will be a great plus in BBRC's history. I, for one, will miss him at the helm. The best of everything to you, Cecil. His other wife, Carol Smith, the Dolphin. Cecil has given 150% every day of his presidency. Relay for Life jackets were the best of all of the 299 teams. He is a person you are proud to work with and for without reservation. Three cheers to a great year Cecil. Mary Jo Pasek Relay for Life Chair Rotary and Friends Circle of Life In the rough seas of life, I should choose Cecil s boat in which to row. His calm, but strong and caring, leadership will always carry one through the storm. It has been a most excellent year! Best of luck in all your future voyages. Julie Huffman Fellow BBRC Member I have found Cecil to be a gentle man with a true sense of care and compassion for others. Sister Judy Morasci, RSM I was impressed with Cecil s leadership and very much enjoyed his Rotary year. He dug in right away and wasn t stiff or cold. He could have even laid to rest some of our BBRC members, if you will, given that he had us dying of laughter on more than one occasion. Certainly, with Cecil at the helm there was no such thing as a Wednesday mourning meeting, although I am sure that like all of us Cecil must have a grave side to his personality. Nonetheless, Cecil s planning was impeccable: he was certain to plot the year well in advance so as not to get buried by last minute details. One complaint that I do have is that he too often put up with Paul Cooper s seemingly endless commercials indeed, enduring the shameless plugs made everyone in attendance a Paul bearer. Nonetheless, I look forward to a fitting eulogy on June 22 may his Rotary year rest in peace. Don Ray The term "class act" is synonymous with the name "Cecil Martin"... Cherryl Biggar Executive Director Cancer Services Mercy Hospital Cecil: nice job. Not bad for someone who specializes in dealing with the end of things. Doug Burns Cecil does everything with such class and style. It is things like Wendell's piano playing, to the flowers on the tables for special meetings, to his ongoing efforts to assure each meeting included the right amount of fun and lightheartedness. Cecil gives continual support to his fellow Rotarians, and was always there to provide support and encouragement at project time. I thoroughly enjoyed Cecil's year, and can't believe it has been one year already. DeAnn Straub Cecil really raised the "bar" at Charter Night this year by presenting each Past President with a blue stone Rotary ring. This was a really nice and personal gesture on his part. In addition, he asked each of the spouses of the PP to reveal the ring size, and if the ring size was unknown, he then asked for the shoe size. He said that the ring size and shoe size almost always match (I guess in his profession, he would have ample opportunity to prove this theory???) Way to go Cecil! Mike Daniel (Continued on page 5)

5 (Continued from page 4) With great business acumen and a sharp wit, Cecil has done a wonderful job as the BBRC leader. And as an added bonus, the beautiful First Lady Karen also contributed greatly to making BBRC such a great club. Beginning with chocolates and tote bags from Chicago, to vehicle emergency kits, to crystal keepsakes and Past Presidents rings, Cecil has done everything top cabin. He has kept all the meetings fresh by allowing different people to run the meetings. The Centennial Memorial Tree Grove is a lasting testimony to Cecil and BBRC. Attracting quality members and Katrina Relief efforts are two more examples of how Cecil has made us proud. Superb year, Mr. President! Now take a break... you ve earned it. Neil Walker I think the most memorable thing about Cecil s year will be the outstanding table decorations and the thoughtful gifts, esp. the t-shirts for the young guests. Also, sharing the podium with past Presidents was great to get a change of pace. Cecil led in a low key, positive way. Karen Wass The white Oprah has been very generous and thoughtful. He has made this centennial year a very special one for BBRC. His sharing of the podium with past presidents and the fine masters was a wonderful way to involve more people and celebrate our own history. I appreciate his management style (give someone the job and let them do it!) Kay Pitts I would like to say that I am always impressed with men who have the "truly gentleman" skill-set down. (There are so few). Cecil is certainly one of those men I admire very much who epitomizes the Virginia Country Gentleman. Always polite, concerned, empathetic. I NEVER got the feeling he is looking at me and sizing me up for a box! He is truly interested and concerned about you and has a wonderful disposition. I truly admire him and how he conducted his year as more in the background with others in the foreground. Jim Bell Cecil, Thank You for a wonderful year and for your leadership. Much has been accomplished for our community and it is with pride that I can say that I am a member of Bakersfield Breakfast Rotary Club. You have raised the "Bar" for us to follow and that will be our challenge. Warmly, Joe Nunez I am pretty new to the club but already I have been impressed with Cecil's leadership style including his ability to make me feel welcomed and a part of the club. Sarah Baron It may seem like something that is insignificant, but I personally have always liked and appreciated Cecil's "smile". Cecil is always smiling regardless of whenever and whatever he is doing. His smile is infectious. Ed O Donnell Thanks for the phone call, and the nice words that came along with it. You were a great leader!! Robin Rossi Gee, I don't know. I remember most the smell of formaldehyde. Other than that the only thing I remember is his overwhelming generosity with regard to supporting our events. Putting a ton of his own money into making things just that one little bit better. But, that formaldehyde! Whew!! Tim Cox His entire year was a class act. Every time I open my trunk I see my emergency kit, and say Thank you, Cecil! What a thoughtful gift. We had wonderful programs, Charter Night was absolute spectacular. Thank you Cecil, for a great year. Sandy Foster (Continued on page 6)

6 (Continued from page 5) I was honored to be inducted as a new member of the BBRC during the presidency of Cecil Martin. Steven Teglia I think Cecil has done an excellent job in the leadership role in the best Rotary Club in Kern County. He was able to invoke excitement and had the water cooler conversations happening after his meetings. He had a great team working along with him, which helped provide absolutely wonderful programs. One of the things I noticed and was really impressed by was his ability to get the club more involved-in projects and with each other. I just can t think of words big enough to express what a great leader I thought he was during his year, and what a wonderful asset he is to our club. Denise Knudson It's been both an honor and a pleasure to be part of Cecil's board this year. I've appreciated his support for my idealistic efforts as the New Generations director. He's applauded my successes, and consoled my flops. I've appreciated his quiet leadership. Cecil's not your hellfire and brimstone type of guy; he's more of a let's move forward deliberately but purposely kind of guy. I like that. There's a ministerial quality to Cecil - no doubt stemming from his profession. And there's a real commitment to Rotary and its ideals. It's been a great year, and that's attributable to Cecil. Thanks, Cec! And great job! Mike Stepanovich A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR J ust a quick note of thanks to my fellow BBRC Rotarians and to President Cecil for allowing me the privilege of handling the newsletter duties over the past year. I have had a lot of fun (mostly at your expense), and will miss the weekly opportunity to share a few words and pictures and to sling a few barbs. If I have offended anyone... well, you ll get over it! I wish Dixie King the best as she assumes the Editor duties for President Larry Mueller s year at the helm. Neil

7 Volume 44 Page 7 WHO IS THIS FUTURE ROTARIAN? Oh, wow. If that kitty would get just a little bit closer (Answer to last week s mystery: Ed & Denise Knudson)

8 WHERE TO MAKE UP Meeting Day Rotary Club Meeting Place Time Monday Bakersfield South Holiday Inn Select Noon Monday Inyokern Homestead Restaurant 6:30 a.m. Monday Wasco Valley Rose Golf Course Noon 1st & 3rd Mondays Bakersfield College Rotaract B.C. Executive Board Room 6:00 p.m. Tuesday Bakersfield North Holiday Inn Select Noon Tuesday Foothill High Interact Club Foothill High 7:15 a.m. Wednesday Bakersfield West Stockdale Country Club Noon Wednesday China Lake Heritage Inn Noon Wednesday Shafter Minner Air Field Cafe 6:30 a.m. Wednesday Bakersfield Breakfast The Petroleum Club 6:45 a.m. Wednesday Taft Jo's Restaurant Noon Wednesday Interact Bakersfield High School 2:40 p.m. Thursday Bakersfield Downtown Bakersfield Art Museum Noon Thursday Tehachapi Kelcy's Restaurant Noon Thursday Delano Mary s Heavenly Bites Noon Thursday Frazier Mountain Communities Dream Castle Café & Bakery 7:00 a.m. (Frazier Park) Thursday Kern River Valley Ewings (Kernville) 7:00 p.m. Friday Bakersfield East Veteran's Hall Noon BBRC PAST PRESIDENTS Michael O Doherty Neil Walker Harley Pinson Susan Eaton Don Trybul / Mike Daniel Paul Cooper Mike Daniel Ray Geigle Bonnie Crawford Carl Leech John Tait Greg Smith John Vasinda Bill Jones Glenn Ray Mike Kirkwood / Howie Wass Howie Wass Craig Holland Anil Mehta Bob Bryant Sid Chapin Jerry Starr John McWhorter BBRC Board of Directors BBRC Committee Chairs Bakersfield Breakfast Rotary Club P.O. Box 2568 Bakersfield, California editor: nwalker1@bak.rr.com President Cecil Martin Vice President Michael O'Doherty President Elect - Larry Mueller Secretary - Carol Smith Treasurer Denise Knudson Club Service Cheryl Scott International Service Shaun Kelly Fund Raising Jim Bell New Generations - Mike Stepanovich Membership Harry Bryant Vocational Service John Guerard Community Service DeAnn Straub Sergeant-At-Arms Chris Rogers Fellowship Carl Leech, Mike Daniel Fireside Chats Jerry Starr Rotary Information Howie Wass Club Bulletin / Web Editor - Neil Walker Programs Kay Pitts Club Awards Vincent Fong Music Carol Smith Publicity Becky Smith Family of Rotary - Sister Judy Morasci Foundation President Larry Mueller President Elect Nominee Ed Knudson