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Written by President Rose

This year our club lost our Gentle Giant Steve Barnett. Steve Loved Rotary, he was a Past President 1997 -1998. He and his wife Lynn went on an international trip to Guyana to give polio drops to the children and he was the leader of our bad joke contest. Steve and I share a Birthday, June 4^th but soon after I joined Rotary I realized we shared something else, a heart for people, especially people in the shadows of our community. The first community service project we did together was “Feed the Hungry.” Our club would purchase meat loaf gravy and all the fixin’s from then Lucia’s and take it to the Free dining room. Our guests ranged from families that were struggling or just need a hot meal before the end of the month to the homeless and marginal adults. Steve and Lynn were always there. On December 29, 2016 Steve and Lynn celebrated their 55^th Wedding anniversary at the Free Dining Room with their Rotary Family serving others.

Steve was instrumental in organizing our Pizza with Santa project. Long story short, we created a party for families in need and called it Pizza with Santa. Guess who our Santa was? Selected families arrive at the Free dining room in Fremont and began the day with crafting, a bounce house, and horseback rides. While this was going on Steve would move through our guests talking with all the kids, asking questions. He always had a pen and as he would move from one child to another you would see him writing on his hand. Steve would disappear about 11:30 and Santa showed up. The kids would jump up especially the little ones and run up to hug him and he would hug them back and call them all by name as he peeked at his hand! They just knew he was the real deal. One year we had a little girl named Gianna. She wrote a note to Santa saying that she wanted a unicorn bike and drew a picture of it. Her mother passed the note to us and, we in turn passed it to Steve. We called the family up and Gianna with wide eyes approached Santa. Steve looks at her and said, “Hey aren’t you Gianna?” Gianna anxiously said YES, I am! As she jumped onto his lap, Steve said I think you wrote me a letter. Shaking her head rapidly she said, “Yes I did.” Steve reached into a pocket and said, “Is this the letter?” With the biggest smile she said, “YES, it is.” Steve then yells “Where are my elves, bring Gianna her gift” and yes you know it, it was the purple Unicorn bike she had drawn a picture of. There was not a dry eye in the place. Pizza with Santa has been going for about 18 years now and Steve has been our Santa most of those years. He had such a unique way of touching parents, bored teens, that were not bored after talking to Steve, and especially the little ones. I will miss his jokes, his laughter, his friendship, and his amazing prayers. Steve and Lynn will always be a treasure to our club and in my Life.

Niles Rotary Club member Beth Booth passed on Sunday morning, May 28, 2017. Beth had joined Niles Rotary in 2007 with the classification “Art, Dealer” (Beth’s late husband Hal was a well known artist in the area). Hal was known for doing art reflecting local scenery and many of his art pieces included the famous Mission Peak. Beth was a Rotary pioneer, having been the first woman admitted as a member by the Rotary Club of Hayward where she had worked as an adult education teacher.

We want to thank Mary Lynn Pelican, who went out of her way month after month to bring Beth to the club in her final years when she felt well enough to attend.

The following message was presented by Mary Lynn Pelican at Beth’s memorial service on June 24, 2017:
“I, Mary Lynn Pelican, had the delightful pleasure of getting to know Beth in 2006 when she joined American Association of University Women during my presidency and we became best friends forever immediately! In 2007 Beth helped me get hostesses for our AAUW’s First Friday Socials.

Both of us had previously been invited to be Rick Hood’s guests for lunch at the Rotary Club of Niles (Fremont). She told me that she was the first women to join the Rotary Club of Hayward in 1987 (a men’s service organization) and was so proud to be a Rotarian. Beth always enjoyed sharing they story that when she joined Hayward Rotary, there were several men that were not on board with allowing women to join – even after the big lawsuit with Rotary International that allowed it. Then the local sheriff, literally took to the stage and told the membership that if anyone had a problem with her joining Hayward Rotary, they would need to deal with him personally. And that was that – Beth was the first woman member of Hayward Rotary.

At one of AAUW’s First Friday Socials, Membership Chair Rick Hood gave her a membership application to join Niles Rotary, and she told me she knew all the answers on the application. I told her that if she knew all the answers, then I’m sure I would know all the answers, so I asked the hostess to make me a copy of the Membership Application; as a result we joined Niles Rotary on August 8, 2007.

I also had the pleasure of getting to know her better by being her roommate at two International Conventions.

Beth & I for the past 5 years attended the Annual Senior Night Out dinner at the Doubletree Hilton sponsored by the Tri-City Health Organization, and I have enjoyed being her advocate and support in driving her to the weekly Rotary meetings when she had stopped driving.

Beth & I enjoyed each others company and our shared positive energy, enthusiasm, helpfulness, service above self, friendship, and capturing our weekly meetings by taking photographs and posting them on Facebook.

She wanted so much to do something to thank me for the rides. I told her that her best gift to me was knowing her and being her friend. I know she’s at peace living out her final performance with her Heavenly Father, her loving husband Hal, son-in-law, and other loved ones. Beth, I loved your positive spirit and for being so transparent. Thank you for being my favorite cheerleader!

With my deepest sympathy to family and friends,

Mary Lynn Pelican
The Ambassador of FUN “
Niles Rotary Club Member