This past Saturday, the Sertoma Club of Northern Virginia donated a chair to Shuman's Bakery in Alexandria in memory of Jim Seitzinger, a former president of the club and a regular at Shuman's who passed away Nov. 24.
The chair, which has a plaque on the front commemorating Seitzinger, was unveiled by Seitzinger's wife, Margaret, and Sertoma Club member Jim Bolton. The plaque reads "Presented by the Alexandria Sertoma Club in honor of Jim Seitzinger for a lifetime of service to the community."
"We needed to do something, because Jim was such a community-oriented person," Bolton said.
Seitzinger, a retired banker, served as president of the Sertoma club for two terms, and came to Shuman's almost every day. In 1995 he was named Sertoman of the Year.
"We were really flattered they wanted to honor Jim by giving a chair to us," said Lonny Marchant, Shuman's owner.
The Sertoma club raised the money for the chair, and Sertoma member Charles Fletcher first proposed the idea to the family.
"We thought [the chair] was a great idea," said Seitzinger's daughter Beth Seitzinger.
"Sertoma" stands for "service to mankind." The club, which serves Northern Virginia and is one of 700 clubs nationwide, is involved with many service activities. They do hearing screenings for preschoolers, give out copies of the Declaration of Independence to new U.S. citizens, and collect food for the needy, among other activities.