Quiet Saturday morning, 39 degrees. Relaxing with coffee and Noah’s bagel and reflecting on the past week. Crazy, yet hugely satisfying. Lesley Bond’s tweet says it all.
Check out my previous Life at BC post at
http://bcpresidentblog.com/2015/11/22/life-at-bakersfield-college/
Last evening was the Culinary Christmas Carol event at BC. True to her November 29th email, Jen Garrett and her students transformed the Fireside Room into a winter wonderland. 
The table decor had carefully hand written the names of those attending carefully hand written. Here is an example of the beautiful work. The food was yummy with wonderful salads. Chef Eric Sabella and his Food Services team did an outstanding job.
It was a treat seeing Joe Huszti at the event. Jen Garrett at the end of the evening mentioned that she had been really nervous to perform because Huszti was going to be in the audience 🙂
One of my favorite Herb Benham pieces was on the BC 1965 choir. You will really enjoy it; I promise.
They broke all the rules, they broke some of the rules, they broke enough of the rules to prove they were 18, human and in the midst of a grand adventure.
“They” were the 1965 Bakersfield College choir that spent six weeks, 50 years ago, in Ireland, Scotland, England, Wales, Holland, Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland and France and shocked the choral world by winning first prize at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in North Wales.
For more check out….
http://www.bakersfield.com/entertainment/2015/07/08/broke-some-followed-others-won-anyway.html
or my July 22, 2015 blog on the 1965 choir at
or my October 23, 2015 Community Voices. For some reason the Californian does not seem to have it online. Thank you Amber for uploading the pdf of the newspaper version on the website under the tab “Outreach and Advocacy”
https://www.bakersfieldcollege.edu/president/communications
The music at the Culinary Christmas Carol event was magnificent. The students and Jen got a standing ovation.
I loved all the pieces in this music-packed evening, non-stop from 5:30 to 8:00 pm. I really wished we captured it all on video. There were so many that were so beautiful. One of my favorites was Mary Did You Know, a solo sung and played on the ukulele by Kelsey.
Another that was completely different was Peter Schickele’s P.D.Q Bach piece Throw the Yule Log On, Uncle John. It was a fun song and really well performed; my ear especially picked out the bass. I so loved it. Since I do not have the video to share, here is one that I found on Youtube by the UC Berkeley Choir. I must say however, BC’s choir was much much better.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUbkboxMXdU
Then there was the one and only Patt Davis who did a captivating rendition of Santa Baby and threw in “needing a raise” to Dean Mourtzanos.
And there was so many more. My heart was so full at the end of the evening and that sense has stayed with me through this morning as I listen to several of the songs as I blog.
– Georgia on my mind
– Lily’s Eyes (Ken and Brady)
– He’s Got the Whole World (Regina)
– You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch (Mike)
Towards the end there was a sing-along with lyrics provided at each table. What a magnificent way for Dr. Garrett to wrap up her fall semester. One that has been fraught with difficulties; yet, she has stayed engaged giving of herself generously to the students she loves.
Our Choir has been invited by the Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra, thank you Bryan Burrow, to perform with them on December 19th. I plan to be there. How about you?
College Council and Co-chairs: Earlier in the day we had the last College Council meeting with the co-chairs of the 12 campus-wide committees and councils on campus. The presentations and discussions had rigor and depth. All of our committees are doing real serious work and it looks like they have a great deal of fun moving large quantities of work with quality. We also had our student panel on chapter 5 of Redesigning America’s Community Colleges put together by Nicky Damania. Epifania Mendoza, Wesley Lyons, and Clayton Fowler (SGA President) had keen insights and engaged in an interactive discussion with faculty and staff.
And these were only the events I attended. So much happens in a day – we are BC after all – from the seriously fun to the serious. For example, we had the Active Shooter training with BC’s Public Safety Officers partnering with the Bakersfield Police department.
On Thursday, December 3rd was the Bakersfield College Holiday Party. Great fellowship after a long hard and productive semester. Thank you to the team that made this happen– Susan Pinza, Anna Agenjo, Leah Carter, Alice Desilagua, Kristin Rabe and Pat Smith. Chef Eric Sabella and team again did an outstanding job with hor d’oeuvres and sweet treats. My favorite was the Cauliflower preparation. Chef, can we have it back again next year? And Vienna Battistoni thank you for your dedication to BC for over 30 years.
Sonya Christian with Emily
I don’t think I mentioned that our Men’s Basketball team is having a great season. Went to their games over the Thanksgiving break. Just phenomenal. Here I am at the Basketball game with Pam Boyles’ granddaughter, Emily takes after her grandma. Smart, engaged, and with tons of energy. Seriously, it is always wonderful see Pam and Robert out there, supporting our BC programs.
Oh, btw, before I wrap up and head out to my exercise class this morning, i must mention the wonderful work that our Outreach Office continues to do. I walked in Monday morning and saw this banner in the the lobby area of the administration building. It had the final exam schedule for next week. The banner, done remarkably well, in BC colors, so helpful to have front and center for students. We are BC!
Tagged: Bakersfield College, choir, Culinary Christmas Carol, Guided Pathways, Jen Garrett, Redesigning America's Community Colleges, Sonya Christian
We have such talent and heart at Bakersfield College. Our students, faculty, staff and administrators reflect the our BC values of Learning and Community. Our President’s leadership continues to inspire all of us to reach a little higher and give a little more every day. “Its a good time to be at BC!”
Yes indeed. It is a good time to be at BC!