Photo by Dan Ocampo
loss. Together we discovered that sometimes rainy days become hurricanes that wipe out your savings, your house and plans. Luckily we recently learned he will start the new year with a new career. As for me in 2010, I hope to stop fighting against and instead embrace two facts I’ve known since childhood: Everything is temporary and the sun will come out tomorrow. Gary D. Frazier Vice president of business development, Bakersfield Memorial Hospital
“New” was the theme in 2009. I became a VP at a prominent hospital and moved from Long Beach to Bakersfield. Adjusting to a new job and a new city was stressful at times, but overall the transition has been very positive. Memorial Hospital’s year has been equally as exciting as my own, with the opening of the new patient tower, a new neonatal intensive care unit and the new Ronald McDonald House. Now as a new member of the Bakersfield community I am vested in ensuring that Memorial continues to create programs and services that meet the community’s needs in 2010 and beyond. Memorial’s New Year’s resolution is to address the needs of the children in our community by opening the only Pediatric Intensive Care Unit in Kern County. Our sickest kids will receive the care they need close to home, reducing the risks associated with transporting our children out of town. Joey Porter Linebacker for Miami Dolphins
Each year brings new challenges to people everywhere and in all walks of life. Bakersfield is no different. 2009 has presented some real financial challenges in many people’s lives. I have seen and lived it through my own friends, family and community. What I have also seen is that opportunities and hope arise from hardship and adversity. Hard work, unselfishness and persistence do pay off. It may not just be at work, but in your personal life. I believe that having less money can change people’s priorities, and that can be a great thing. Maybe we don’t worry as much about that new iPhone, or the new clothes and going out, but take more time to work on relationships with family and friends. Treat the people closest to you best
… don’t take them for granted. It’s time to focus less on ourselves and how much “we” are suffering, but to look around and see what we can do to help others. Prioritize the things in life that matter. That’s what I am working on and will continue to do in 2010. I hope we, as a community, can too. Pastor Ron Vietti Valley Bible Fellowship
As I look back on 2009, I have a lot to be thankful for, being a two-time cancer survivor. I had an awesome year in regards to my health, and the church had some good solid numerical growth. I think that one of my major disappointments that I want to improve on in 2010 is the creating of more margins in my life. A margin is the space between your load and your limit. I lived with too much stress in my life in 2009, by taking on too many small things and being the proverbial "Jack of all trades and the master of none." I want to make my life more about people than things, and by God’s grace I think I can do that. I want to wish all my Bakersfield friends and family a great and fantastically prosperous new year. Sandra Serrano Chancellor, Kern Community College District
2009 has been a year of ongoing financial crisis and political turmoil, punctuated by a public health emergency and other adverse consequences of nature. Nonetheless, the year is ending with some positive indicators; the Dow closed above 10,000 for the first time in a year and the H1N1 influenza public health emergency is in decline. As I reflect on the past year and look to the future, what comes to mind is a quote by Mahatma Gandhi: “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” To be the change I wish to see in the world, in 2010, I resolve to have a heart for youth development and adult literacy because giving another encouragement and assistance to become self-supporting can be life-changing and promote community development. In addition, to create the change I wish to see in myself, like millions of others, I resolve to exercise more and weigh less, as well as to always do my best, but try to do better. www.BakersfieldLife.com
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