Events

Nancy Anderson serves as Kern County’s Chief Administrative Officer, and brings with her a wealth of government leadership experience. She previously worked for Kern County for 20 years in a variety of key leadership positions, including Chief Operations Officer, Assistant County Administrative Officer for Budget, Finance and Compliance, Assistant Auditor-Controller, and Special Accounting Division Chief.

She then honed her craft at the County of Santa Barbara for four years, serving as their Chief Assistant County Executive Officer and Assistant County Executive Officer. Born and raised in Bakersfield, CA, Ms. Anderson is thrilled to be returning home to lead her community forward. Ms. Anderson also holds a Bachelor of Science from CSU Bakersfield with a concentration in accounting and is a Certified Fraud Examiner.

Luigi’s and Lemucchi’s Grocery has been at its present location since 1910 and is one of Bakersfield’s oldest continuous family operated businesses. Joe Lemucchi, the founder of the business, came to California from Lucca, Italy and started his original cafe on Sumner Street in 1906. Lemucchi married Emelia Degiuli, also an Italian immigrant, and the couple moved in 1910 to the present location of the business at 725 East 19th Street. The original store had family quarters in the rear where the couple’s 4 children, Louis, Lena, Harry and Helen, were born.

The early business featured a grocery, a cafe, a bakery and a gasoline station. 19th Street was the main thoroughfare between Bakersfield, and the then town of Sumner. The street car line from Bakersfield extended east on 19th Street and terminated at Baker Street.East 19th Street also ended at the Lemucchi Store, merging into Edison Highway which became the main highway exiting and entering Bakersfield on the east side.

The now famous Luigi sandwich originated in the cafe where Joe and Emelia always had fresh stew, pasta sauce and minestrone soup for hungry customers. Small but intimate in the back corner of the grocery, the cafe was always a popular gathering spot.After Joe Lemucchi’s death, Emelia and her son, Louis, continued the business. The bar was added next to the old store, and the restaurant expanded into the building to the east. In the 1920’s and 1930’s the concrete and steel structure now housing the  restaurant, had been rented by Shell Oil Company and was at one time their Kern County Headquarters. The new expanded bar and restaurant were named “Luigi’s.”

Luigi was an incessant collector of photos and sports memorabilia, covering the walls of his business with photos of local athletes spanning more than ten decades. The photos displayed on the walls constitute only a small portion of Luigi’s pictorial collection.The photos of Luigi’s are a constant attraction to multiple generations of Kern County patrons who return frequently to view a favored photo with a friend, relative or member of a new generation.Since the death of Luigi in 1989, Luigi’s has been operated by a new generation of the Lemucchi family. Antonia Valpredo, daughters Monica, Lanette and son Gino are the third and fourth generations of the family to operate the popular East Bakersfield establishment.

Location address: 7301 Old River Rd, Bakersfield

The speaker will be Lynda Resnick from The Wonderful Company

Tamara Baker is the Executive Director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Association of Kern County (ADAKC), where she leads the organization’s mission to support individuals and families affected by Alzheimer’s and dementia. She joined ADAKC in March 2024, bringing a wealth of experience in communications, nonprofit management, and community engagement. Before joining ADAKC, Tamara served as the Communications Manager for BLOOM Fresh (formerly International Fruit Genetics), where she played a key role in global branding, marketing, and corporate strategy. Prior to that, she held leadership positions at Kern Economic Development Corporation and Bakersfield College, specializing in community relations, strategic planning, and event management.

A proud Bakersfield native, Tamara earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a minor in Sociology from California State University, Bakersfield. She is a 2017 graduate of the Greater Bakersfield Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Bakersfield program and remains actively involved in the community, currently serving on the Board of Directors for the Kern Economic Development Foundation.

Register at KeepBakersfieldBeautiful.us or contact Jennifer Yamauchi.

Court Appointed Special Advocates of Kern County (CASA) has announced its new executive director is Bakersfield native Ashley Vorhees

Previously, Vorhees was the executive director of the American Heart and Stroke Association and site director for Catholic Charities in Bakersfield for
several years.

Most recently, she was Vice President of Fundraising and Communications at Girls Scouts of Central California South.

Vorhees will lead CASA’s efforts in recruiting and training volunteers to act as court appointed special advocates to children who have been removed from
their homes and placed in foster care.

Supervisory Special Agent | Federal Law Enforcement | Criminal Investigations | Security Professional

Experienced DEA Special Agent with over two decades of dedicated service in various capacities. Starting as an NYPD officer, I’ve built a robust career in law enforcement, specializing in drug enforcement and international operations. With a track record of success across multiple regions and roles, I am dedicated to reducing quality of life crimes that affect local communities.

Looking forward to connecting with professionals and organizations where my background in law enforcement and strategic leadership can add value!

Jimmy Yee serves as president of Yankee Communications, Inc. with over two decades of local and national experience managing government relations and public affairs issues.

Prior to founding Yankee Communications, he served as Chief of Staff in the California State Assembly and in various roles with U.S. Congressman Bill Thomas, past Chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee.

As president of Yankee Communications, Jimmy specializes in communication and political risk at the federal, state and local levels of government. He represents a diverse field of companies and associations including oil and gas, real estate, agriculture, health care, waste management and public utilities. His experience and hands-on approach enable his clients to traverse the challenging intersection between business and government. Jimmy’s strengths are in managing public opinion while balancing and monitoring political risk – a challenge in today’s economic environment.

EDUCATION
California State University, Bakersfield, B.A. Political Science

Bakersfield Breakfast Rotary Club members and dozens of community volunteers are placing 1,000 flags in The Park at River Walk on Saturday morning, May 24, 2025, for the eleventh presentation of Thousand Flags.

The visually stunning, emotional Thousand Flags display honors and remembers those who have died serving our country. The community can view this magnificent display beginning at noon on Saturday. The Memorial Weekend Thousand Flags event will also feature a military band concert Saturday evening in the amphitheater and a Thousand Flags Fun Run on Sunday morning. Memorial Day will feature a patriotic vendors fair, hosting dozens of organizations that serve our veterans. At noon, Breakfast Rotary will host a short, patriotic program which will feature the presentation of donations to local military organizations and will end with a spectacular parachute jump by paratroopers from Comrades in Canopies.

Join this family-friendly 5k and run through Bakersfield Breakfast Rotary’s annual Thousand Flags Memorial Day weekend display. This awe-inspiring annual event showcases over 1,000 American flags on display at The Park at River Walk to honor those we have lost.

here will be a 5k course and a one-mile memorial walk. The 5k course winds its way through the scenic flag adorned park and down the multi-use trail adjacent to the park, and is suitable for both runners and walkers.

Proceeds will support the Thousand Flags event and other Bakersfield Breakfast Rotary community projects.

The events will be timed and awards will be given for the top three 5k finishers in each category.

Register by April 15, 2025 to ensure you receive a Thousand Flags T-shirt and medal. All veterans participating in the event will be recognized with a complimentary Thousand Flags pin.

https://convention.rotary.org/en-us/