Like running fast at Santa Maria High School in the 1940s, giving back to the community where he was born and raised came naturally to Jack Adam.

“A lot of this stuff is in the genes,” he said. “You are born with it or not.”

For a long and distinguished career as a local farmer and for decades of community service, John “Jack” Adam Jr. will be honored tonight at the noontime Rotary Club of Santa Maria’s Harvest Gala at the Santa Maria Fairpark.

It is the first time the club has recognized a community member for contributions to the Santa Maria Valley.

The gala with dinner and auction — the Rotary Club’s largest fundraising event of the year — is scheduled from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. in the Park Plaza Building at the Fairpark.

On Friday, Adam said he was uncertain what his remarks will be after accepting the award.

“I’m going to wing it,” he said by phone. “ I don’t exactly know what to say.”

Advertisement

Adam, 80, founded Adam Bros. Farming in 1955, shortly after his two years of military service in a Pentagon intelligence unit ended. His brother, Richard, joined him a year and a half later.

The Adams were local leaders in transplant growing of broccoli, lettuce, cauliflower and other crops. The company has grown into one of the Central Coast’s leading grower-packer-shipper businesses with 1,500 acres producing vegetables sold throughout the U.S. and the world.

Before graduating in 1946 from Santa Maria High School, Jack Adam was one of the fastest high school athletes in the country; he nearly qualified for the 1948 Olympics in track. The trait of running fast has been passed down through the generations, he said.

“All our kids and grandchildren have been great runners,” Adam said.

He and his wife of 55 years, Dena, have five children and 17 grandchildren.

Jack and Dena Adam and other family members were supporters of a new all-weather track at St. Joseph High School.

After high school, Adam attended UC Davis and UC Berkeley, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in agriculture economics.

His community service group involvement includes more than 50 years of membership in local Elks Lodge No. 1538 and more than 30 years as a Rotarian. His father, also named John, was an Exalted Ruler of the Elks.

The Adam family has deep roots in the Santa Maria Valley, with their ancestors first settling here in 1869.

Adam is a “walking history book of agriculture and water in Santa Maria,” said longtime friend Jim Glines, president and CEO of Community Bank of Santa Maria.

Glines, who will serve as the auctioneer at the gala, described Adam as a successful farmer and outstanding family man who has always had the well-being of the community on his mind.

“I think it’s tremendous,” Glines said of Adam’s award. “It’s long past due. He’s very deserving.”

As a member of the Santa Maria City Council from 1976 to 1988, Adam said one of his proudest accomplishments is bringing state water to the city during his time on the council — a move that has paid off in the years since.

“Time has proven that was quite fortuitous,” he said.

He also served on the county Planning Commission from 1972 to 1976, and was a member of California Coastal Commission in its early days and a member of the Local Agency Formation Commission.

Royce Lewellen, a retired judge and one of the founders of Lucas & Lewellen wines, said he first got to know Adam from his appearances before the planning panel when he was a practicing attorney. When Lewellen moved to Santa Maria after being appointed a judge, they became longtime friends through the Rotary Club.

“When you see Jack, he smiles and greets you warmly,” Lewellen said. “He enjoys meeting and greeting people.”

Lewellen described Adam as an outstanding citizen and community leader with few peers.

“He’s one of the rocks of the community,” Lewellen said. “One of the leaders among that group.”

November 1, 2008