Staff Idol Takes a Piece of the Audience’s Heart at All-Staff Picnic
Staff Members Support Sustainability at Event
Ioana Patringenaru | August 25, 2008
Candace Tarry, a staff member in Transportation and Parking Services, won this year's Staff Idol contest.
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Candace Tarry has been singing since grade school, but didn’t join a band until six years ago, when her children were all grown. Friday, the mother of three—and lead singer in two bands—saw her talent recognized when she became the UC San Diego Staff Idol during the campus’ annual All-Staff Picnic.
Tarry, a staff member in Transportation and Parking Services, sang “Piece of My Heart,” a Janis Joplin tune, and seemed to have stolen a piece of the audience’s heart with her performance. She earned loud cheers from the 4,000 staff members who attended the picnic this year.
The Staff Idol competition, modeled on the Fox network’s “American Idol,” came back as the picnic’s main attraction again this year. The picnic also included plenty of free food, raffles and a volleyball tournament and was funded by Chancellor Marye Anne Fox and the campus’ vice chancellors. Fox kicked off the picnic by thanking staff members.
“UC San Diego is you,” she said. “You are the people who make it work.”
The campus receives great rankings and was recently named the nation’s seventh best public university by U.S. News & World Report, Fox pointed out. “You should be proud of the rankings the university is getting,” she went on. “Without you, they wouldn’t be possible.”
In keeping with the theme of this year’s picnic, Fox wore a shirt proclaiming “Staff is the ‘s’ in sustainability.” Organizers raffled off solar-powered cellphone chargers and a solar attic fan. The picnic’s food was served on compostable plates, with compostable utensils. Recycling and composting bins were everywhere and staff members received a primer on how to use them at the beginning of the event. Staff members who brought their own beverage cups received raffle tickets and everyone could visit a green tent during the event, where they received information about sustainability and recycling.
Chancellor Marye Anne Fox and Vice Chancellor Steven Relyea pose in front of the picnic's green tent, which provided information about sustainability and recycling, while UCSD student Yuki Murakami looks on.
“It’s very good,” said Elizabeth McGee, a staff member in the psychology department, when asked about the picnic. “It’s a nice way to show appreciation.”
Meanwhile, four finalists for the Staff Idol title provided the entertainment for this year’s event. Robert Baca, an assistant community health program representative at the Moores Cancer Center, started things off with a brassy rendition of Wilson Pickett’s “Mustang Sally.” Then Mieke Byrd, who works in Human Resources for Housing and Dining, sang “Desperado,” a hit by the Eagles.
The competition heated up again when Cenon Mallari, from Temporary Employee Services, stepped onto the stage, armed with an electric guitar. “Are you ready to rock and roll?” he asked the audience. He then delivered a bracing medley of Roy Orbison’s “Pretty Woman” and Elvis Presley’s “Can't Help Falling In Love,” complete with sliding guitar chords.
Audience members applaud during the Staff Idol contest.
But Friday was Tarry’s day. She enlisted the audience’s help to sing Joplin’s chorus. Her voice rose, deep and rich, as she sang. Some of her supporters stood up and clapped when she was done. After her performance, Mike Hausberg, from the La Jolla Playhouse, asked the audience to cheer for each contestant. The one with the loudest ovation would win. “I want everyone to hoot, holler and wail for the person you want to win,” Hausberg said. The audience obliged and Tarry was crowned. “It feels great,” she said. “I was very, very nervous. This is a big, big crowd.” Tarry, who lives in Del Mar, said she performs in different venues all over San Diego, including Canes Bar & Grill in Mission Beach and Humphrey’s on Shelter Island.
“That’s my release, that’s my love,” she said when asked why she sings.
Seven staff members received scholarships from the staff associations at this year’s All Staff Picnic. They are: Cesar Figueroa, from Warren College; Mitzy Martinez, from Eleanor Roosevelt College; Zsuzsa Morgan, from BFS Disbursements; Courtney Purcell, from the HIV Neurobehavioral Research Center; Satomi Saito, from Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering; Stephanie Sapalicio, from the psychiatry department; Laine Vehar, from the School of Medicine; and Carla Wilson, from the Division of Arts & Humanities.
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