February 12, 2009 This Week Program Chair Bernie Barman

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1 February 12, 2009 This Week Program Chair Bernie Barman February 19 February 26 Bakersfield Youth Symphony A flute trio representing the orchestra will play several selections followed by a presentation of the history and accomplishments of the Bakersfield Youth Symphony Orchestra. The students, who must audition for the orchestra, are from junior high schools, high schools, and community colleges in Kern County. The next concert in their three-concert series is March 21 in preparation for a four-concert tour April 1 through 9 in Bucheon, South Korea. A delegation of eighty students and chaperones are planning to participate in this trip to Bakerfield s newest Sister City. February is World Understanding Month David vs Goliath Ben Stinson Open World Pauline Larwood U P C O M I N G February 5, 2009 Meeting Ken Secor, Editor President Harvey rang the Rotary gong promptly at 12:20 p.m. to call the meeting to order. He attempted a quip about two inches of horizontal rain, but didn t get much of a laugh. To cover Harvey s confusion, Monsignor Braun moved rapidly to the microphone for the invocation, including in his blessing the hope that one of the guest speakers present might become a Rotarian someday. Dave Morton led the assemblage in the salute to our flag. Riley Parker followed as the song conductor for the day, choosing God Bless America and then quickly backing away from the podium so that his voice could not be heard by the audience. Harvey announced that the roving microphones would be handled by Ron Fraze and Danny Abella. Steve Sanders first introduced visiting Rotarians Frank Colatruglio (East Bakersfield) and Mike Arriola (Bakersfield Breakfast), and then called upon club members Dick Davenport, Colleen McGauley and Linda Hartman to introduce their guests Linda, in particular, presented several individuals associated with the day s A Life Interrupted program. Recognitions President Harvey asked visiting Rotarian Morgan Clayton to stand and be recognized for a somewhat ancient article in the Bakersfield Life magazine. Despite the age of the article, Harvey was most complimentary about Morgan s many contributions to the community one of which is not regular attendance at Bakersfield Rotary, of course. The recognition was obviously very P R O G R A M S March 5 March 12 Continued on page 2. Kern Co. Grand Jury Claude Fiddler Mojave Airport & Spaceport Stu Witt

Continued from page 1. well-deserved. Morgan, when asked for a comment, wisely mumbled something like, The best speech is that which is not said. Glib Morgan escaped fine-free!

2 Continued from page 1. well-deserved. Morgan, when asked for a comment, wisely mumbled something like, The best speech is that which is not said. Glib Morgan escaped fine-free! Good News Mike Chertok spoke on behalf of his wife, Dona, to remind those present that the Assistance League of Bakersfield is sponsoring a fund-raiser involving a drawing for an attendance package at the 2009 Masters Golf Tournament. Chances are priced at $100 each, and the drawing is scheduled for February 18 the deadline for purchasing chances is February 16. John Farrer, prompted by President Harvey, rose to announce his gratitude (more presidential prompting) for the day s article in the Californian recognizing his prudence in reducing the Bakersfield Symphony season as a reflection of the existing brutal economy. Harvey added to John s economic issues with a $25 fine for the notoriety. Fred Drew stood to advise the membership that his brother, Joe, would be undergoing triple-bypass surgery the following day. The prayers and good wishes of all Bakersfield Rotary members are with Joe as he goes through this ordeal. New Member The induction of new club members is one of the high points of any Rotary meeting, and President Harvey expressed his pleasure as he asked sponsor Duane Keathley to introduce David Dobbs as the newest Rotary Club of Bakersfield inductee his classification will be Retail Sales, Wine. Duane noted, that he had been unsure about the new member process and asked the club s vaunted expert, Dick Porter, for assistance. Dick indicated that the process was very structured and formal, asking for more information about the candidate. Duane apparently responded that the proposed member was a North High product who sells booze. Despite that shaky start, David has been accepted for membership as a well-trained and experienced representative of the wine industry. Duane noted that David was already a strong supporter of Bakersfield Rotary s programs, as he had contributed all the wine for the 2008 Oktoberfest. Duane went on to capsulize David s career history, indicating that the new member had moved on from his local high school background to manage and operate several wine specialty stores in the Bay Area Continued on page 3. Area Meetings MONDAY Bakersfield South - Noon Wasco - Noon Veterans Hall on Poplar Ave. TUESDAY Bakersfield North - Noon Inyokern - 6:00 p.m. Bernardino s WEDNESDAY Bakersfield West - Noon Stockdale Country Club China Lake - Noon Heritage Inn Shafter - 6:30 a.m. Shafter Vet s Hall Bakersfield Breakfast - 6:45 a.m. Taft - Noon Jo s Restaurant Interact - 2:40 p.m. BHS Auditorium #301 THURSDAY Frazier Park Rotary - 5:30 p.m. Los Pinos Restaurant Bakersfield Downtown - Noon Bakersfield Art Museum Tehachapi - Noon Kelcy s Restaurant Delano - Noon Kong s Dynasty Kern River Valley - 6:00 p.m. Ewings FRIDAY Bakersfield East - Noon Veteran s Hall ROTARY OFFICE

Continued from page 2. and to establish solid industry relationships first with key industry contacts at the Napa and Sonoma Valley wineries, and then worldwide.

3 Continued from page 2. and to establish solid industry relationships first with key industry contacts at the Napa and Sonoma Valley wineries, and then worldwide. In 1988, David seized an opportunity to purchase Red Carpet Wine in Los Angeles, and over the ensuing years more than doubled its sales volume, in considerable part through his established position in the industry. A couple of short years ago, David and his wife and long-time business partner, Tamara, decided to return to his roots. They now are the proprietors of Imbibe Wine and Spirits Merchant of Bakersfield. The couple have two children. David s hobbies are golf, fly-fishing and riding motorcycles. David approached the podium with a gift for Harvey: a bottle of good single-malt Scotch whiskey. Duane commented on David s behalf (and representing the club membership in general) that it was everyone s hope and fervent prayer Harvey would take the visions in a bottle and get rid of the crap in a can. That being said, the new member then expressed his pleasure in being invited to join Rotary (although he did commit a small gaffe by mentioning that he was a past president of a Glendale Kiwanis club). He noted that he wanted to be an active club member and support Bakersfield Rotary programs to the best of his ability. Program President Harvey called upon Bakersfield Rotary member Linda Hartman to introduce the day s program, A Life Interrupted. This is a powerful and interactive initiative introduced in 2002 by the Bakersfield Police Department as a partnership with families of persons killed in automobile crashes involving alcohol, drugs or unsafe driving by young and inexperienced drivers. The intent is to respond proactively to increases in the number of teen-age auto fatalities through A Life Interrupted multi-media presentations, with a particular focus on local schools. Linda introduced the three individuals who would take part in the day s program: BPD Officer Rex Davenport (son of Rotarian Dick Davenport), Nancy Chaffin (Linda s sister) and BPD Chief Bill Rector. Chief Rector opened the program by commenting, as a Catholic-school product, that Monsignor Braun s included note in the invocation had made him feel some pressure! Moving on to more serious subject matter, the Chief indicated the A Life Interrupted concept had actually been developed during Chief Matlock s Harvey McCown... President David Price... Secretary Neil Sawyer... Treasurer Steve Sanders... Sgt.-at-Arms Board of Directors 1 year...joe Drew...Ed Paine...Steve Roach...Mary Trichell 2 years...eric Matlock...Colleen McGauley...Carla Musser...Ben Taft Past President...Daphne Harley President Elect Duane Keathley R.I. President Dong Kurn Lee Korea District 5240 Governor Anil Garg Simi Valley, California Assistant Governor Brad Henderson Bakersfield West Group Representative Frank Trippichio Bakersfield South Rotary Office P.O. Box 1628, FAX: (661) evelyn@bakersfield-rotary.com Continued on page 4.

4 Continued from page 3. tenure in office. It was first suggested by a BPD field officer engaged in working accidents, and that suggestion was then picked up and implemented with strong support from departmental management and involved citizens. Each year, some 40,000 students across Kern County see the very impactful presentation. This year A Life Interrupted was recognized by the League of California Cities as the top public safety program in the state. Chief Rector concluded his remarks by praising the commitment and fortitude of the parents who participate in the presentations by talking about the impact on their lives of losing children in such accidents. Officer Davenport then went through the A Life Interrupted multi-media presentation. It is not a horrendous red pavement production, but rather a well-integrated computerized slide show reinforced with video and 911 audio clips associated with two accident scene case studies. One case study relates the story of a young woman broadsided and killed by a drunk driver at the intersection of Panama Lane and Ashe Road in 2006; the drunk driver was relatively unharmed and was sentenced to six years in prison. The other study concerns a single-car crash caused in 2002 by a youthful and heavily inebriated young driver operating his vehicle at high speed in heavy fog late at night. He lost control at Seventh Standard and Zerker Roads, crashing into a metal electrical tower; and his four young passengers did not survive the impact and the vehicle fire that followed. The driver of the vehicle, who lived through the experience, is currently serving a 15 year to life sentence for second degree murder. Nancy Chaffin provided an intense personal note by supplementing the multi-media presentation with her personal story about her son, Jeff Chaffin. Jeff was a passenger in the vehicle that crashed on Seventh Standard Road in 2002, and he died of brain trauma and burns from the accident. Nancy talked openly about her reaction to her incredible loss and the extreme difficulty of achieving acceptance. The A Life Interrupted presentation concludes with a memorial gallery of pictures drawn from the lives of recent young crash victims. The overall impact of the presentation seemed very powerful and emotional. And there is evidence that the A Life Interrupted program is working: Officer Davenport indicated that, over approximately the last 18 months, no high school kids have been lost in such accidents; but just a short time prior to that, twelve were lost in one year. In order to demonstrate the reality of crashes A Life Interrupted program takes their DUI crash exhibit on the road for demonstrations. The DUI Crash exhibit is pulled by a 3/4 ton Chevrolet crew cab pickup designed to match the trailer, and was Area Meetings MONDAY Bakersfield South - Noon Wasco - Noon Veterans Hall on Poplar Ave. TUESDAY Bakersfield North - Noon Inyokern - 6:00 p.m. Bernardino s WEDNESDAY Bakersfield West - Noon Stockdale Country Club China Lake - Noon Heritage Inn Shafter - 6:30 a.m. Shafter Vet s Hall Bakersfield Breakfast - 6:45 a.m. Taft - Noon Jo s Restaurant Interact - 2:40 p.m. BHS Auditorium #301 THURSDAY Frazier Park Rotary - 5:30 p.m. Los Pinos Restaurant Bakersfield Downtown - Noon Bakersfield Art Museum Tehachapi - Noon Kelcy s Restaurant Delano - Noon Kong s Dynasty Kern River Valley - 6:00 p.m. Ewings FRIDAY Bakersfield East - Noon Veteran s Hall ROTARY OFFICE Continued on page 5.

Continued from page 4. donated by Three Way Chevrolet. The unit is self contained and can be set up in less than five minutes.

President Harvey adjourned the meeting a little later than usual, at about 1:12 p.m. Harvey McCown... President David Price... Secretary Neil Sawyer.

..Carla Musser...Ben Taft Past President...Daphne Harley President Elect 2009-2010...Duane Keathley R.I.

5 Continued from page 4. donated by Three Way Chevrolet. The unit is self contained and can be set up in less than five minutes. A central focus of the exhibit is the mangled car involved in the 2006 fatal accident at the intersection of Panama Lane and Ashe Road. President Harvey adjourned the meeting a little later than usual, at about 1:12 p.m. Harvey McCown... President David Price... Secretary Neil Sawyer... Treasurer Steve Sanders... Sgt.-at-Arms Board of Directors 1 year...joe Drew...Ed Paine...Steve Roach...Mary Trichell 2 years...eric Matlock...Colleen McGauley...Carla Musser...Ben Taft Past President...Daphne Harley President Elect Duane Keathley R.I. President Dong Kurn Lee Korea District 5240 Governor Anil Garg Simi Valley, California Assistant Governor Brad Henderson Bakersfield West Group Representative Frank Trippichio Bakersfield South Rotary Office P.O. Box 1628, FAX: (661) evelyn@bakersfield-rotary.com

Club Assembly: Staying on Track

Club Assembly: Staying on Track A Publication of the Bakersfield Breakfast Rotary Club September 26, 2007 President Ed Knudson, 2007-2008 Special Edition! Look inside for the photo gallery from Tuscany at Twilight! October 3 Program