Chamber awards Mike Borges as ‘Citizen of the 12 months’

Mike Borges’ many years of service to the neighborhood and fervour to make life higher for others in Ceres prompted the Chamber of Commerce to award him the “Citizen of the 12 months Lifetime Achievement Award” throughout Friday’s 54th annual Ceres Group Service Awards & Set up Dinner.

The event allowed the Chamber to put in board members for the brand new 12 months in addition to single out a variety of companies and people for varied awards based mostly on voting of members.

Borges’ choice was made by previous Citizen of the 12 months recipients.

His life has been devoted to serving his nation and neighborhood.

After graduating from Modesto Excessive Faculty in 1974, Borges discovered tips on how to be a restaurant prepare dinner and determined to hitch the Military the place he turned a navy police officer. He labored as an MP at Fort Benning, Ga., for practically 4 years.

Following his discharge in 1979, Borges returned to Ceres and started working as a Ceres Police Officer. In his 34 years of service to the badge, he confronted a variety of harmful conditions in addition to offered for a safer Ceres. He labored in each space of the division and led the company because the Deputy Chief till his retirement after 34 years of service.

Shortly after Borges retired from Ceres Police Division in 2014, he was employed as Escalon’s police chief, serving for six years earlier than deciding to lastly retire.

All through his skilled profession, Borges’ dedication to household and neighborhood has by no means wavered. He has served as a Lions Membership member and is at present its president. Borges additionally coached for Ceres Youth Baseball and was a member of its board. He additionally served as a member of the Ceres Booster Membership, Ceres Wrestling Membership and the Ceres Road Faire Committee.

“Mike tends to put on multiple hat at a time corresponding to when his boys had been attending Ceres Excessive and he would go from barbecuing linguiça as a Booster member, to cheering his sons on from the stands to teaching youth with Ceres Youth Baseball even when his youngsters had been grown,” stated Lisa Mantarro Moore in presenting the award. “Mike has volunteered for over a decade to assist Ceres athletics, most notably serving as a member of the Soccer Chain Gang on Friday nights in addition to volunteer, together with Susan, for all of the Ceres Wrestling tourneys. He even took on a workforce of tee-ball youngsters for certainly one of his officer’s kids the place he once more led by instance all for the betterment of children and his neighborhood.”

He and spouse Susan have raised three sons, all who dwell in Ceres. They discovered to emulate their father’s instance of neighborhood service, from regulation enforcement to teaching soccer and wrestling.

Different nominees had been Bret Durossette and Brandy Meyer.

Rocky Fisher honored

The Chamber occasion took on an emotional flip when Rocky Fisher was posthumously awarded with the “Distinguished Service Award,” an award accepted by his widow, Sharon, and his household. Many within the viewers knew Fisher and nonetheless grieving from his sudden dying on Nov. 8.

Fisher moved to Ceres in 1957 and fostered a deep sense of dedication and neighborhood service. The 1969 Ceres Excessive Faculty graduate volunteered for many years, largely as a member of the Ceres Lions Membership, the place he served in quite a few workplaces and was as soon as named “Lion of the 12 months.” Rocky had been a principal organizer and employee at many Ceres Lions fundraising occasions, together with the Lions Omelet Breakfast in Ceres and Crab Feed. His barbecue expertise had been put to good use to assist increase funds for Ceres colleges, Soroptimists, Boy Scouts, Lady Scouts, Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Division and the American Most cancers Society. He additionally labored for the Stanislaus County Truthful parking zone fundraising effort and upkeep at Camp Pacifica, a camp for listening to impaired kids. Fisher additionally served because the Lions’ president, vice chairman and tail tornado. 

Rocky usually volunteered to man the Arrowhead Membership sales space on the Stanislaus County Truthful, cooked for the Ceres Relay for Life Breakfast and helped with development tasks at Ceres parks and each the Daniel Whitmore Residence and Clinton Whitmore Mansion.

He additionally coached Ceres Youth Baseball and delivered meals and staples to the needy by the Salvation Military. 

He additionally helped preserve the Howard Stevenson Grove on the Ceres River Bluff Regional Park and served on the Ceres Road Faire Committee and Whitmore Mansion Committee.

Sharon Fisher stated the qualities that made her late husband “such an excellent human had been he cherished unconditionally with all of his being. As he cherished, he was additionally cherished and revered by many and by no means met a stranger. All through our life collectively he was one hundred pc gentleman, supplier, father, husband and pal – and he did all that with a smile that brightened his comfortable character and people true blue eyes.”

She stated Rocky was at all times keen to assist and lived by the motto of “get ‘er carried out.”

The opposite nominee for the award was Sherill Petersen, proprietor of Sam’s Cafe in Ceres.