President Dave missed out on so many things during his most unusual year - traveling to Honolulu for the Rotary International Convention, an in-person District Conference and the BBRC Charter Night. In lieu of presenting awards at Charter Night, Dave classed up his last meeting and recognized recipients, and awarded multiple Paul Harris recognitions. Read more for delightful stories on the awards from the pen (keyboard?) of Carol Smith and Teresa Ramos-Alvarez.ABOVE & BEYOND AWARD
Past President Denise Haynes presented BBRC’s Above & Beyond Award. This award is given to a local person for “on-the-job excellence.” The criteria includes: 1) Committed to the highest ethical standards on the job; 2) A person using their occupation to serve others; 3) An inspiration for others to practice their own profession with integrity.Once in awhile, you see a person who really stands out on-the-job…whatever their job might be. White collar, blue collar, no collar…you get the picture! A person who exhibits a high level of service within their vocation, demonstrating ethics and integrity while they serve others. Here is BBRC’s chance to say “thank you,” and recognize a member of our community who brings honor to their vocation.
BBRC is very happy to present this award to Jim Bailey, owner and operator of the Broken Yolk restaurant. Jim’s contributions to Rotary alone made him the perfect recipient of Rotary’s Above & Beyond recognition. Jim will be splitting his cash recognition of $500 between St. John’s Lutheran
Church and the Bakersfield Ronald McDonald House!!
Church and the Bakersfield Ronald McDonald House!!As most of you will recall, Jim provided his restaurant and wonderful staff for our meetings for several months during the COVID pandemic. He donated all of the turkeys for our Thanksgiving Basket Project. We ordered 25 turkeys but somehow received 60…so 25 were given to the Boys and Girls Club as well as The Mission and Jay’s Place. During the pandemic, Broken Yolk put together food boxes to help families meet food needs. Kathy Berry (former BBRC member and then employee of Broken Yolk) ordered the pancake breakfast items through the restaurant at wholesale then used the restaurant to prepare the eggs and sausage for the breakfasts.
A little bit about the Baileys…Jim and Brandie were both born and raised in Bakersfield. They met at Stockdale High School and started dating during their junior year. They were married in July 1999 and have two teen aged children…Breanna 18, and Caleb 17. Brandi is a second generation entrepreneur in Bakersfield as her parents founded and operated a successful oil service company for many years.
Jim is a third generation entrepreneur in Bakersfield. His grandfather, George Bailey (not THAT George Bailey) and father Jim Bailey Sr., developed many properties including restaurants, hotels and industrial buildings.
After PP Denise Haynes’ presentation, BBRC members rose to their feet to express their appreciation to Jim for his many contributions to Bakersfield and for being selected as the recipient of the “Above & Beyond” Award for 2020-2021! Congratulations Jim Bailey!!
Carol Smith - Reporter
PRESENTATION OF PAUL HARRIS FELLOW AWARDS
President Elect Jeffrey Haynes greeted both Zoom and attending in person members of BBRC with a hearty…“Good morning”! He continued by saying that when Paul Harris was a young man in Chicago he became a lawyer and began setting up his law practice. He envisioned the idea of business professionals with diverse backgrounds getting together to exchange ideas and form meaningful lifelong friendships. They would meet in a different person’s business each time they met on a “rotating” basis. Thus the word/name…Rotary!
On February 23, 1905, they had their first Rotary meeting in a downtown Chicago building. At that time, Paul Harris also thought that there were many other young men from farms and small towns that had established themselves in Chicago and were looking for fellowship as he did and he thought they should also come. This story rings true for us as a nation today! For over a year now, we have been confined, unable to have fellowship due to COVID. PE Haynes feels very fortunate we were able to continue our fellowship here at Dave’s cabinet shop. (I’m sure the entire club shares PE Haynes’ view) He stated we also did use technology and had Zoom to bring us together, but nothing can replace the face-to-face fellowship we have come to enjoy!
When Paul Harris died in 1947, his death prompted an outpouring of contributions from around the world and his name continues to evoke the passion and support of Rotarians and Friends of Rotary! Continuing the legacy of our founder, the Paul Harris Fellow program was created to recognize individuals who contribute or who have contributions made in their name of $1,000 to The Rotary Foundation (TRF) of Rotary International. This program was established in 1957 to show appreciation for contributions that support the Annual Fund, Polio-Plus and approved Foundation grants.
The Paul Harris Society was also established. This is a distinct group of Rotarians that have pledged to contribute $1,000 or more per year to any of
the three above mentioned funds. PE Haynes stated that there were two members of BBRC that are now a member of the Paul Harris Society. One recipient joined BBRC on July 26, 2000, and was sponsored by Kay Boehm-Fannin. PE Haynes admitted that even though he has been in the club since 1997, he is at a loss of “who that is”! (Perhaps someone can bring a picture of Kay Boehm-Fannin to the next club meeting to show then-President Jeffrey Haynes who she is…but I digress.) The Rotarian receiving this acknowledgment was President during the 2016-2017 year and has been invaluable to this club by serving in multiple positions within the club and also with the District. PE Haynes said that it was his honor to introduce Past President Kay Pitts on becoming a member of the Paul Harris Society!
the three above mentioned funds. PE Haynes stated that there were two members of BBRC that are now a member of the Paul Harris Society. One recipient joined BBRC on July 26, 2000, and was sponsored by Kay Boehm-Fannin. PE Haynes admitted that even though he has been in the club since 1997, he is at a loss of “who that is”! (Perhaps someone can bring a picture of Kay Boehm-Fannin to the next club meeting to show then-President Jeffrey Haynes who she is…but I digress.) The Rotarian receiving this acknowledgment was President during the 2016-2017 year and has been invaluable to this club by serving in multiple positions within the club and also with the District. PE Haynes said that it was his honor to introduce Past President Kay Pitts on becoming a member of the Paul Harris Society! 
The second member of the club to join the ranks as a member of the Paul Harris Society became a member of BBRC on November 25, 1998, and was sponsored by John Guerard. This member has held multiple positions with our club over the years and is currently presiding over his last meeting as President of BBRC for the 2020-2021 year. Needless to say…with that introduction, members knew it was none other than our own beloved President David Spalinger! The club responded with a thunderous applause for these two members of BBRC! Congratulations to both Past President Kay and President David for becoming members of the Paul Harris Society! (Editor's note - Carol has been a member of the Paul Harris Society for several years. Thank you Carol!)But wait there’s more…President David and President Elect Jeffrey presented a Paul Harris Fellow + (1) pin to two Past Presidents, Cheryl Scott and Ron Nelms. This equates to $2,000 given to The Rotary Foundation over the past years. Each of their PHF pins now sports a beautiful sapphire stone embedded in the pin.
In my years in Rotary, I have had the privilege to “give” six Paul Harris Fellows. In addition, I was also able to assist two fellow Rotarians become Paul Harris Fellows. So when I see Rotarians become first time Paul Harris Fellow recipients…it makes my heart so very happy!! With that said, Mary Jo Pasek presented her husband a Paul Harris Fellow for all he has helped her with since coming to Bakersfield 40 years ago, 
such as the Relay Teams for Cancer and the wreaths for the Veteran's Cemetery. Congratulations Tom Pasek!
such as the Relay Teams for Cancer and the wreaths for the Veteran's Cemetery. Congratulations Tom Pasek!Connie Bensusen presented Athena Collup with her first Paul Harris Fellow. For those who may not know, the recipient receives a certificate signed by the current President of Rotary International along with a Paul Harris Fellow pin and a medallion! Both are to be worn with pride!
Our BBRC Club was honored to have Past BBRC President Gina Hayden from Colorado join us (by Zoom) to present Teresa Waller her first Paul Harris Fellow. PP Gina was Teresa’s sponsor when she joined BBRC in 2014. Thank you Gina for joining us and Congratulations to Teresa on becoming a Paul Harris Fellow!
And last but certainly not least…our very own President Dave bestowed a PHF to his lovely and gracious wife Melody!! Thank you Melody for “lending” us your husband to be President for BBRC for the 2020-2021 year. We all know he couldn’t have done it without you being right by his side, or pushing him from the back! Congratulations Melody upon becoming a Paul Harris Fellow!
It truly was an exciting and uplifting meeting! Looking forward to the BBRC 2021-2022 year with President Jeffrey Haynes! See you on July 14th for President Jeff’s First Meeting!!
Carol Smith - Reporter
ROTARIAN OF THE YEAR
This award is presented each year to an individual who “stands out” in the Club. And sometimes that is not an easy decision to make when so many members meet that criteria. President Dave said that this individual has jumped in with both feet and never said “No” when asked to do something that would benefit the Club! All members stood and applauded, with much enthusiasm, when President Dave announced that because of her “service to the club” Mindy Wilmot was his choice for the Rotarian of the 2020-2021 Year! Congratulations Mindy! So deserving!!President Dave continued by recognizing his awesome Board and all BBRC Members, thanking them for their enduring support.
Teresa Ramos-Alvarez - Reporter
More Photos in the meeting photo album