“Joining the Jaycees was one of the best things I ever did,” said Fernandina resident Beano Roberts. “At Jaycees, they teach leadership and community involvement.”
Roberts not only went on to earn Jaycee Distinguished Service and Man-of-the Year Awards, he served on the Fernandina City Commission for 10 years, including a term as mayor and on various government committees. He was a member of the Shrimp Festival Committee for 49 years, chairman of the Nassau County Salvation Army for 27 years, executive director of the Chamber of Commerce for 16 years and a charter member of both the Historical District Council and Amelia Community Theatre. And the list goes on.
Roberts celebrates his 95th birthday today, May 22.
The Jaycees may have honed his leadership skills, but Roberts brought a big heart with him to his adopted home of Fernandina. Roberts grew up on a dairy farm in Utica, N.Y. Serving as a Navy Corpsman at Bethesda Naval Hospital in the 1950s, Roberts met a young man from Fernandina named Tommy Hernandez, who was a quadriplegic as a result of a motorcycle accident. Hernandez’s parents struck a deal with Roberts that when he was discharged from the military he would come to Fernandina to help Hernandez adjust at home. After a year of duty aboard the U.S.S. Missouri as a medic, Roberts came to Fernandina in 1952 to fulfill his promise to the Hernandez family. He never left.
About the name Beano, Roberts explained, “When I was five years old, my older brother called me a ‘bean’ and someone stuck an ‘o’ on it and I became ‘Beano’.” The nickname followed him through the Navy, into civilian and public life and eventually onto his driver’s license and other official documents. His given name is Donald.
Once Roberts moved to Fernandina, Tommy encouraged him to join a baseball team. “I had a pretty good arm and I had been a pitcher for the Navy team,” said Roberts. He recalls segregated Fernandina had two baseball teams then, one for white players and the other for black. He played pitcher and short stop on the white team.
Roberts later served as manager, coach and assistant coach for Little League and Babe Ruth League for local youth for 30 years. “I was the first to integrate teams with the addition of a black player and later a girl,” he said. When the teams had difficulty finding a place to practice, Roberts took the initiative and worked out a plan to lease unused land from the school board and negotiated funding from the city and county to build the Hickory Street practice field complex.
After Hernandez married and no longer needed him as a caregiver, Roberts embarked on a series of occupations. Over the years, he managed a movie theater, owned a Putt-Putt golf course, owned and managed the Ocean View Motel and brokered real estate for Century 21.
He raised four biological sons, Steve, Don Jr., Mike and David, and was surrogate father to a fifth son, Andrew. Just to make things confusing, his biological sons use the nickname “Beano,” as well.“Phone calls to our house used to be interesting,” admitted son David.
Roberts has demonstrated a lifelong commitment to youth. Beyond his years coaching baseball, Roberts has been involved in 4-H and local schools. He has volunteered as a teacher’s aide at Fernandina Beach Middle School for more than 25 years, winning multiple awards for his volunteer work. He was especially gratified when a former student from a special education class, then an adult, hailed him on the street and shared, “Mr. Beano, I would never have survived special ed without your help. I would not be here today but for you.” Roberts is still emotional about the encounter.
While Roberts will leave a legacy of countless individuals touched by his many hours of volunteerism and community service, he also made an indelible mark on the face of downtown Fernandina. Roberts, as president of the Chamber of Commerce, and local attorney Buddy Jacobs obtained a $1.5 million grant for renovations along Centre Street in the 1970s to give downtown the quaint, charming façade visitors enjoy today. The grant was based on the well-documented historical significance of Fernandina. Roberts made trips to Atlanta and Tallahassee to present the proposal in person. In January 1977, the grant was approved containing additional monies to build a library.
The proposal obtained ideas from architects in historical renovation as to improvements business owners could make to their own buildings to improve aesthetics. “People were really onboard with the ideas,” said Roberts. “We never required the improvements but businesses went ahead and did it on their own. The architect suggested things like adding a bit of trim here or framing a window there, and people welcomed the ideas. What they didn’t like were initial plans for a pedestrian mall downtown, so that was changed. And they really didn’t like the idea of tearing up the street and limiting access to put in new center drains. We had been told the old curb drains would be prone to flooding during storms and that one large center drain would be better.” The latter proceeded despite protests. Naysayers admitted later that it had been a good idea after all.
Roberts treasures a letter of commendation dated 1982 from George Crady, then a state legislator, on how he handled his job in advocating for citizens of the county, “… no one can doubt your integrity, (sincerity) or devotion to your job,” Crady wrote. Roberts officially retired from the city commission in 2006. He simply chose not to run again for the office.
At 95, Roberts continues to inspire. He works out at the gym six days a week and continues to volunteer as a teacher’s aide at Fernandina Beach Middle School.
pbushnell@fbnewsleader