It all started when I met Yvonne Flores, Branch Manager at the Wells Fargo Bank where I did our Club’s banking while serving as Club Treasurer for 2004.

Yvonne expressed an interest and curiosity when she pulled up Desk and Derrick on the computer and noticed other clubs in California and New Mexico were affiliated with the bank. She asked what Desk and Derrick meant, what kind of an organization we were and how did we get started. Well, just ask any member to talk about Desk and Derrick and there you go! She was very impressed with our history and that so many people were that interested in the industry in which they were employed.

I was very impressed with Yvonne’s customer service approach in that she cheerfully took care of any and all questions and requests that I had.

Then one day she informed me that Wells Fargo has a program where they contribute more than $10 million each year to nonprofit organizations in the greater Los Angeles area. Yvonne and her staff wanted to contribute to a smaller, local community organization and were very enthusiastic about the educational goals of Desk and Derrick. She asked permission to submit our Club for consideration - and of course I said yes. After completing the necessary forms and submitting the documentation that Val Williams sent me confirming our nonprofit status, we sat back and waited. It took several months to be notified that we were indeed to be a recipient of an award.

All of the organizations are awarded the same amount, and the presentation is made at "The Community Partners" breakfast. This breakfast was established in 1999 to give the Wells Fargo team members the opportunity to make a charitable contribution to a nonprofit organization of their choice.

The breakfast was hosted by Mr. Chris Rommel, Senior Vice President of the South Coast Division in November 2004. And what a breakfast it was.

We were served bacon, sausage, ham, eggs, and potatoes, all kinds of rolls and fresh fruit and juices. I met some pretty wonderful representatives from the organizations who were the recipients of these awards. Included were the Tiger Woods Foundation, Kid Care of Southern California, Make A Wish Foundation, Beacon House, Happy Hats for Kids, Su Casa Family Crisis & Support Center (which our Club has supported in the past), Soroptimist International of the Americas, Habitat for Humanity-Long Beach, City of Torrance and Redondo Beach Police Departments, YMAC, to name a few.

We were all called up to the stage with our sponsor and handed an envelope with the check by Mr. Rommel and were also presented with a Certificate of Recognition from the California Legislature Assembly in honor of receiving a Wells Fargo 2004 Community Partners and Foundation Gift. The certificate was signed by Jenny Oropeza, Assembly member, 55^th District.

I was so proud to see Desk and Derrick Club of Long Beach listed among all these wonderful organizations, and only wished that all of our members could have attended.

Oh, and I did meet Bosco, a 95 pound German Shepard police dog, who with his human partner had just come off a night shift and were there to receive their award. I think Bosco could smell the breakfast meats because we could hear some very low semi-growling noises from the rear of the room.

Our funds are posted to our Education Committee and some have already been allocated to a field trip and seminar for 2005. We were also able to make a donation to the Educational Trust and ADDC Foundation as well. The remainder of the funds will be kept strictly for educational purposes and hopefully more interesting educational events for 2005.

Thank you Wells Fargo for the opportunity to expand our educational horizons.