Claremont Insider: Pilgrims Honored

Monday, June 15, 2009

Pilgrims Honored

Pilgrims were back in the news yesterday. Not in the way you might think.

Pilgrim Place honored Al and Ruby Beilbys as the retirement community's 2009 Volunteers of the Year. The Daily Bulletin quoted Pilgrim Place spokesperson Sue Likens talking about the recipients:

....Likens said volunteers who serve in a variety of capacities usually are recognized, but this year it was decided to honor the Beilbys, who together represent 26 years of service.

"Al is a retired Pomona College professor who has served on our board and as treasurer/financial coordinator for years and Ruby has used her expertise as a professor of food and nutrition at Cal Poly Pomona to help us for many years," said Likens, director of communications for Pilgrim Place.

"We have support from the community, with at least 1,000 people helping out alone at the annual Pilgrim Place Festival. This year we just couldn't overlook the time and energy the Beilbys give us."

Together, the couple has served on many committees always with an eye toward helping the community wherever it could. During the years when Ruby's mother lived at Pilgrim Place, both husband and wife served as unofficial advocates for quality resident care, she said.