The Biggest, Sweetest Smile-

Governor Schwarzenegger’s UC Merced 2005 Visit Recalls a Special Memory

On September 1, 2005, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger met this young fan while visiting the UC Merced Campus. Photo: (C) Roger J. Wyan, All Rights Reserved

Pictures from the 2005 visit by Arnold Schwarzenegger to UC Merced were recently posted to social media, and they show a side of the former Governor few have seen.

The photographs show the Governor getting the attention of a young and seemingly shy boy. The boy, likely a pre-teen, was among the hundreds of area residents who came to the campus on the Thursday before Labor Day weekend: September 1, 2005.

The young boy was Minhaz Azam, and like many in the crowd that day, he probably thought he might get a glimpse of the Governor.

After an amazing career starring in the first three Terminator movies, Schwarzenegger was elected in a memorable 2003 recall election that saw the office transition from Gray Davis to the actor-turned-politician.

The pictures were taken by professional photographer Roger J. Wyan who was on duty that day with his camera. “I was and I still am in a unique position to experience the development of the campus,” Roger said.

Roger’s connection to UC Merced began in the late 1980s when he was chief photographer for the Merced Sun-Star covering the story of how the tenth campus of the University of California system came to be located in Merced. His photographs have documented every major development of the new campus.

“I do not know why Minhaz was attending the Governor's visit except that it was The Terminator visiting,” Roger recalls. It appeared Minhaz may have had some affiliation with the University given his shirt.”

Roger was in a position to capture the image of the most important person in California at the time. The Governor stopped his hurried pace to meet the young constituent.

Roger writes in a recent social media post: “Arnold lifted Azam's chin and said a few words of encouragement which brought a smile. The Governor later met up with Azam away from the crowd.”

Shortly after meeting Minhaz Azam in the crowd during his 2005 UC Merced visit, the Governor was able to spend a little more time with the young visitor. Photo: (C) Roger J. Wyan, All Rights Reserved

It was that later encounter that really touched the people who witnessed it as well as Roger J. Wyan. From the same post, Roger wrote “The governor gave Azam a big bear hug.”

It was a special moment early in the first year at UC Merced.

A visit from the Governor, a promise of continued state support for the institution, and as Roger wrote, “It brought the biggest, sweetest and heartfelt smile I’ve ever seen.”

Efforts to track down Minhaz now have yet to pay off, but there’s little doubt it was a special moment for him.

Roger has been engaged with the UC Merced community since those early days. He taught photography there for a couple of years, and he’s been on the scene for such special moments such as the groundbreaking, the first graduation, and Michelle Obama’s commencement address as First Lady in 2009.

He’s nearing the twentieth anniversary of starting the Transitions Project, a study of the first UC Merced students. The project details what some students have been doing since attending the University.

Those students likely have some fascinating stories to tell, and the Transitions Project will share those stories in the coming years.

But for Roger, September 1, 2005, remains a special memory.

That’s when the Governor took a few moments from his busy schedule to greet and hug young Minhaz Azam. It remains a memorable moment.

“It was pure joy to witness then,” he says. “And still is to this day.”

Steve Newvine has lived in Merced for eighteen years.

One of the first invitations he accepted upon arriving in the City was from UC Merced to attend the first commencement ceremony in 2006.

Steve’s book Beaten Paths & Back Roads is available for sale at the Merced County Courthouse Museum Gift Shop, or online at https://www.lulu.com/shop/steve-newvine/beaten-paths-and-back-roads/paperback/product-emmv6r.html?q=beaten+paths+steve+newvine&page=1&pageSize=4

Filling Up the Space-

New Building Downtown Will Complete Property Across from City Hall

The new office under construction on West Eighteenth Street in downtown Merced. Photo: Steve Newvine

Before a grader can start clearing the property, before concrete can be poured, a lot of work goes into creating a unique cluster of buildings.

Another new office building is under construction on a key parcel of land in downtown Merced.

A two-story office that will house the Merced County Employees Retirement Association (MCERA) is expected to open later this year. The office is under construction adjacent to the Merced College Business Resource Center at 630 West Eighteenth Street.  

In recent years, downtown Merced has been the center of activity with new construction of office and retail space.  

The building will eventually house the Merced County Employees Retirement Association (MCERA). Photo: Steve Newvine

This particular block is the star example of that surge. A parking structure and the space where the West America Bank sits helped kick off the renewal of the block. 

The opening of the Merced College Business Resource building in the early part of the last decade added to the activity on the site.

In 2018, the University of California (UC) Merced Downtown Campus Center opened right across the street from City Hall. As noted in a column here six years ago, that opening solidified the link between the City and the UC with that strategic location.  

The new building under construction is in the same block as the UC Merced Downtown Campus Center seen here in a photo from the grand opening of 2018. Photo: Steve Newvine

Together with the rehabilitation of the Tioga building and the opening of the El Capitan Hotel just a short walk away, these projects have fueled new interest in downtown Merced.

This has been seen as a good sign by visitors to the City, the elected leaders, and the citizens who have lived here for years.  

Each new construction brings more workers downtown. Those employees generate economic activity in restaurants and retail establishments.

The Merced County Employees Retirement Association's new office will be next door to the Merced College Downtown Business Resource Center 

“Yes it will,” said Merced Mayor Matthew Serratto acknowledging the positive impact of this project. “(We) need more people down there.”

Downtown Merced suffered a hit last summer with the sudden closing of the Bitwise facility. But with new projects in the pipeline, there is cause for optimism.  

The area has seen more new construction than in any other time in recent history.

Little by little, the space is filling up.

Steve Newvine marks his twentieth year living in California, spending eighteen years in Merced.

His new book Rocket Reporter, looks back at his career as a television news reporter covering the first three space shuttle launches in the early 1980s. The book is available at ROCKET REPORTER (lulu.com)