Stewart A. Resnick, owner of Paramount Citrus and Paramount Farms who is active in a broad range of philanthropy, will be the 2012 honoree at the Ag One Community Salute March 2 at the Fresno Convention Center, Exhibit Hall.

Proceeds from the $125-per person fundraiser will establish the Ag One-Stewart A. Resnick Endowment to support deserving students and/or programs in the Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology.

“We are delighted that the Ag One Foundation will bestow its 2012 Community Salute distinction on Stewart Resnick,” said Fresno State President John D. Welty. “Stewart and his wife Lynda have developed the Paramount group of agricultural companies into one of the San Joaquin Valley’s most significant agribusiness enterprises.”

Welty added, “Fresno State agriculture students have greatly benefited from Paramount’s generosity as have so many other individuals and organizations, thanks to the Resnicks’ many innovative initiatives.”

Paramount Citrus and Paramount Farms are the world’s largest growers, shippers and packers of citrus, pistachios and almonds, with operations throughout Kern, Kings, Tulare and Fresno counties.

Besides Paramount, Resnick’s enterprises are POM Wonderful pomegranate products, FIJI Water, Teleflora flower delivery, Justin Vineyards & Winery and Landmark Vineyards.

A New Jersey native, Resnick earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration and Juris Doctorate from UCLA.  He first came to the Central Valley in the mid-70s, when he bought citrus acreage and a packing plant in McFarland. Since then, he has added pistachios, almonds and pomegranates to his farming operation.

In 2009, the Modesto-based Great Valley Center’s Giant of the Valley Award was awarded to Resnick for his philanthropic work in the region. Beneficiaries include Children’s Hospital Central California in Madera; the Paramount Bard Academy, a public charter school in Delano; and Fresno State’s agriculture program.

In 2007, a $200,000 donation by Paramount Citrus established the Advanced Teaching and Research Field Laboratory for Citriculture to help diversify citrus varieties at Fresno State and establish a competitive undergraduate student fellowship.

Resnick serves on the executive board of UCLA, Medical Sciences and the J. Paul Getty Trust. He is a trustee of Bard College in New York, Conservation International and the California Institute of Technology.

The Ag One Community Salute’s principal sponsor is Wells Fargo.

Through Resnick’s philanthropy, 450 students of San Joaquin Valley employees have been awarded more than $2.2 million in scholarships. Paramount’s educational commitment includes the Paramount Child Development Center, which prepares employees’ children for school, and the Paramount Bard Academy, whose college-prep curriculum encourages academic achievement after high school.

Past Ag One Foundation Community Salute honorees are Ed Baloian (2010), Fred R. Ruiz (2007), Jack Woolf (2006), Virgil E. Rasmussen (2005), Fred Machado (2003), Bill Jones (2003), Sid Cox (2001), Rodger B. Jensen (1999), Vernon Conrad (1996), Vince Petrucci (1994), Harry Kubo (1991), Dick Markarian (1990), Joe Souza (1988) and Fred Rau (1987).

The Ag One Foundation, begun in 1979, encompasses nearly 100 named funds totaling approximately $14 million that provide approximately $475,000 annually to deserving students and programs.

For more information about the event, sponsorship opportunities or reservations, contact the Jordan College Development Office, at 559.278.4266.

(Copy by University Communications news intern Nicole Maul.)

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