By Terra Avilla
There we were. My husband and I, a night free of our children and Frankie and I went to eat some sushi. Low and behold, who did we see? One of my favorite humans of all time, Gary Bridges.
We walked into the restaurant and immediately saw a huge beaming smile from the table, the smile and warmth that comes only from a Gary smile.
Over the years I have had hundreds of encounters with Gary, and he always has the same response. He has this way of making you feel very important and precious to him.
He has never not said hi or stopped what he was doing to come give me a hug. Often taking even more time out of his day to do his silly voices for my daughters if they are with me. (And boy do they love his Donald Duck impression)
By how friendly and humble Gary is, you would never know how involved Gary is in our community and all of the titles and positions he holds. I am fairly certain that you all probably already know Gary through one of the million things he has done, or does, for this county of ours.
Aside from being a County Supervisor, Gary’s resume is extremely impressive, and it all revolves around the same theme, service to others.
Which brings me to how I first met Gary, in his role in Neighborhood Watch.
Instead of complaining about a problem, Gary was very, very proactive in trying to come up with a community solution. Gary would sit at meetings and brainstorm, as well as attempt to work with other agencies to make things better.
Whether it be putting in manual labor at all of the river cleanups. (Yes, he literally helped me pull copious amounts of garbage out of the river, like a hands-on kind of approach)
Sitting on the board for Lassen Family Services, making chili at the chili cook off- supporting every-single-community event, or sitting on the Grand Jury, Gary makes it a point to give back. And he does not do it for any sort of recognition or kudos.
When Officer Barham passed away, Gary came into the PD and wanted to know what he could do to help and I know at that moment, I could have asked Gary to do the most mundane task and he would have done so with a joyful heart. He just wanted to help.
When the riots of 2020 were happening, I remember seeing Gary and he gave me the tightest hug and asked if we (the police) were okay. He got teary eyed and he told me he loved me, and worried every day for the law enforcement in this county. When I say I love this man I mean it.
With the purposed closing of CCC, Gary has been aiding the wonderful Kerri Cobb in the efforts to keep CCC open. Gary is hardworking and genuine and one of the nicest human beings I have ever met.
Which brings me back to the beginning of my story.
After my husband sat down from getting our Gary hugs, we were surprised later in our dinner that *someone* had paid for our very expensive meal.
Obviously despite him not giving his name, Frankie and I instantly knew who had covered our dinner. We looked at Gary who gave us a huge grin.
That man, I tell you. He is somehow able to be in a million places at once, is always in a good mood, and still has time to dote on his wonderful wife. He is who I should be buying dinner for, (and I will one day Gary!), after all it would be a very small thank you for you being you – and for being one of the reasons I love the place we live.