Dear Rotary Friends,

 

I’ve got TWO BIG reasons that you will not want to miss our next meeting of BBRC.  First of all…wait for it…Queen Jackie returns to the throne! Thank you, Jackie!  She will fill in for me while my dad and I spend a couple of days on a road trip to Las Vegas.  I’m the driver, and his name is Ed, so I’m calling our trip “Driving Mr. Ed.”  Follow us on social media and watch for the movie, coming out later this year!  (Not really, don’t get excited!) 

 

Secondly, our program will be presented by Kevin Rohrer, chief of strategic communications for NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center! What an opportunity to get up-to-date on the latest, very important, activities happening in our own Kern County!  (I’m counting on you, Frank, to take great notes!)

 

Be sure to be thinking about who you’d like to nominate for our Above & Beyond Award, and for Paul Harris Fellow recognition (if you have enough points to honor someone). Here is a link to a form for you: Above and Beyond Nomination

 

Finally, let’s kick off 2020 by thinking about friends and colleagues (and clients, too) that exhibit the values of Rotary and might enjoy being a member of BBRC.  Bring them as your guest…and their first two visits are no cost, compliments of the club.

 

Share Rotary with a Friend!

 

-Cheryl

Last Wednesday’s meeting got off to a great start as Dave Perkins rose up for a double-duty, yes Dave not only gave the Breakfast Rotary morning blessing, he also can take credit for leading us in the American Flag Salute. Dave being known for his wit and spontaneity, performed masterfully. Past President Denise Haynes humored us with a most interactive morning song that blended a little New Orleans fling to our very own Rotary Four-Way Test. By the way members, if you would like to repeat this most jubilant rendition of the Four-Way-Test, just let me know because I saved the lyrics on a piece of paper so that we can sing it again.

 

Past President Ron Nelms is celebrating a birthday, so Happy Birthday to you Ron. I was curious how you and your cousin, or brother, or whatever he is, Buford P. Coltrain, will go out to celebrate your birthday? Please, let us know. Take pictures, send them to us, and enjoy whatever it is that aims to please!

 

President Cheryl Scott brought with her a guest by the name of Katie Angevine of Klassen Corporation, business development, to show her what a real Rotary Club looks like. Okay, that’s the signal for more of us to invite guests who have the potential to become new Rotarians.

Mid State Development Corp. is a non-profit organization which works with Financial Institutions to provide loans to small businesses for new construction or expansion. Most around town knew the name of Mr. Keith Brice before his Mid State affiliation. Keith is the President and ever-so friendly face of the company. The self-professed “average 9-hole golfer”, can be seen at numerous local events. Bringing great favor from President Cheryl, Keith brought a PowerPoint presentation with pictures (Cheryl likes that stuff) of some of the many building projects Mid-State has helped fund. From restaurants, automated car washes, to urgent care medical facilities, Mid State is well known for providing competitive loans to help developing companies expand.

 

Many of us understand it is commerce that drives the economic success of our San Joaquin Valley. Keith wants to make sure the momentum of our business continues moving in the right direction. Through the SBA 504 Loan Program, and just a “little bit of imagination”, business leaders and consumers enjoy the benefits of business growth, and job creation that will see us through the next decade. Keith tells us that Mid State has locally funded $450 million in construction loans which equates to 12,000 jobs! This is just from one lending company alone! Is Keith’s presence in Kern County important? You bet, that’s one reason I think everyone likes him. I like him too. He is quiet, never boasting or bragging, and all the while navigating Small Business Administration loans for local business like a driver of a Ferrari around the sharp turns of an Italian Grand Prix.

 

Of course, like any commercial loan program there are qualifying standards. Mid State provides loans for commercial projects from $125K to $13 million. The borrower must occupy 60% of the completed building space and there are pre-payment penalties. Keith and his staff are very busy these days as Mid State is currently opening 40 loans per year. Those numbers are promising for our local economy. The data represents a history of wise, well-calculated construction loans that are funded throughout the San Joaquin Valley.

 

So, if you are, or know someone who is, interested in finding out if they qualify for an SBA loan through Mid State, I am certain Keith would be happy to talk with them over a cup of coffee. Thank you Keith for visiting us to talk about the exciting things Mid State is doing in our community!

Sandra Parnell is all about business and vocation! Sandra is our Vocational Service Director. Sandra and President Cheryl announced that January is Vocational Service Month in the world of Rotary. Rotarians’ commitment to vocational service means we:

Sandra also let us know that it’s time to submit nominations for the Above & Beyond Award.  Nominees must be a non-Rotarian who exhibits high ethical standards and service through their occupation.  Breakfast Rotarians are asked to consider people who meet the criteria and nominate them for the award. Please contact Sandra for details and the nomination form. 

 

Sandra got kudos for her business, Dionysus which was recently being named in the L.A. Times as a recognized “boutique” beer dispensary. Nice recognition and that cost her $20 bucks even before the Coffer Management System started. Ouch!

 

President Cheryl mentioned that some of the ladies in the club have started adding the Rotary emblem to brooches they find at thrift and antique stores (or even in their own jewelry box). From wearing Rotary pins to displaying our Rotary wheel emblem on other items, it’s always a good time to show off our involvement in Rotary. So, it looks like we should now focus on creative ways to show, display, or even create that oh so familiar wheel design wherever, or whenever you can. There must be a prize in this somewhere…right?

 

President-Elect Dave Spalinger spoke to us about the importance of recognizing Paul Harris Fellow candidates for the upcoming Charter Night February 29^th at the Bakersfield Country Club. If you have questions, see Dave.

Super Bowl Party at Connie Bensusen’s home. Something tells me you do not, I repeat, you do not want to miss this BBRC party. The fun will start at 2:30 p.m. on February 2^nd, you must let Connie know if you are attending and if you are bringing an appetizer or dessert through the BBRC.org website.  Just select the event at the top of the webpage and complete the form. Easy peasy!

 

Rotaract Paint Night February 4^th from 6 – 8 p.m, see the BBRC.org website for more information.  KernYES is February 22^nd -for more details on Kern YES visit KernYes.org  Tom Burke is probably still looking for volunteers.

Dave Perkins who earlier was recognized for doing a “two-fer” is recognized again for imitating a UPS courier by traveling to 5 European countries, and 9 cities in 2 weeks! Dave brought back some…I will have to say… very cool coffee cups for the Prez from Austria, and a very special, leather bound notebook. The Prez’s first entry into the notebook was to add up Dave’s fine of $20 per week of his absence. Well, I will have to say Dave fared a lot better than that other guy who traveled to the same area in what we all recall was aptly named “The French Connection”. 

 

Past President Mike O’Doherty produced an equally unique coffee cup from England that his friend Felix asked him to deliver to our President!  Felix’ father is a Rotarian and he appreciates the tradition of souvenirs…even though Felix visited our club just once.  What a guy!

 

The classy and friendly Past President Kay Pitts rocked the place with a special Ammonite stone necklace from Phoenix for Pres. Cheryl that I think has special medicinal healing qualities. Kay needed some of that medicine as she was stung for a whopping $20.

Big Nick Simmons was caught on the spot by the Prez, as he was asked to respond to just a few basic personal questions about his favorites and not so favorites. Nick fumbled through a few questions, but in the end came out okay. We did learn Nick is a dog person who is becoming increasing more accepting of country music. He drove a 1993 Ford “Exploder” as his first vehicle and he conveniently cannot remember an embarrassing moment from high school. Yeah, right! Baby boy Luke now weighs 18 pounds at 4 months and Past President Craig Holland is his sponsor.

 

Speaking of Craig, as of the time of this writing, he has had his surgery and all reports post-op are good at this time. We pray for a speedy recovery and more heckling from our dear Craig upon his return.

 

Our sensei, Dale Bender announced his clearance from a bout with cancer and received a clean medical report. He is really happy about that--to the tune of $50. Praise!

Also please keep former Rotarians Ryan and his mother Liz Rozell in your thoughts, as Liz’s husband, Paul, recently passed away. If you have their number I urge you to give them a call. I am confident that they would love to hear from us.

 

There’s something that I like about Stephanie Baker. Is it because her kids went to BHS and she is a BIG time Driller fan? Well, yes, but that’ not the only reason. She is my new buddy ‘cause she won the opportunity drawing. Hey Stephanie, let’s go to lunch…how does pastrami sound?

 

Until next week, go out and Rotorize someone.

 

By: Frank Wooldridge