September 6, 2021
“The sweet quiet communion as they sat at the small table by the south windows reading the morning news.” This observation by a resident captures the quiet couple who have given so much to Bayview’s community.
Because of their dedication, the Bayview Manor Board of Trustees at their annual meeting on August 25, 2021 formally endorsed a proposal to name Bayview’s library The Jens and Marion Bakke Library.
For over a decade, Jens and Marion have been very involved in participating and planning activities at Bayview as members of the Party and Program Committees. At times, this outwardly dignified and reserved couple reflected a wonderful sense of self-deprecating humor. For example, at the legendary chicken party, Jens seriously read poetry related to chickens while wearing a chicken hat. The Bakke’s always came to the Halloween Party wearing complementary costumes. They adopted sponsorship of the Shakespeare reading program when the original sponsor left. For years, Marion researched and selected innumerable movies that reflected specific themes for the evening film showing – that is until COVID brought it to a halt. The dog shows and chess-demonstration resulted from their initiatives. Jens edited Bayview’s monthly internal newsletter, working very closely with the then-Director of Activities in the process, chaired the Legislative Committee, and presented a weekly news summary for years. All this time, Marion quietly delivered the newspapers to the library each morning. All this and more were done quietly and without fanfare.
The preceding merely gives a flavor to what the Bakke’s have given to the Bayview Community. To cap it off, the Bakke Family has contributed a very generous legacy gift to the Foundation. This gift not only helps ensure the sustainability of the Foundation to support its core mission of subsidizing residents in need, but also its secondary missions of enhancing resident life and supporting Bayview programs. For all they have done, the library will be named in their honor at a date when Covid-related restrictions permit a personal gathering.
Stay tuned for updates on the library dedication ceremony.