Sean C. Morgan
The Sweet Home Economic Development Group elected three new board members and re-elected two incumbents last week during the organization’s annual meeting held on March 14.
New SHEDG board members included Cindy Glick, Phyllis Osborn-Smith and Rachel Kittson-MaQatish.
Kellie Kem and Carol Cromwell were re-elected.
Other nominees included Joe Graybill, Bryan Hayes, JoAnn McQueary, Bill Nyara and Nancy Patton.
The 11 SHEDG board members are responsible for oversight and decision making for the nonprofit organization, which puts on the annual Oregon Jamboree country music and camping festival and some smaller concerts, and uses profits from those events to finance economic development in Sweet Home.
Carol Cromwell
Cromwell is a lifetime resident of the area in her 27th year at Linn-Co Federal Credit Union, where she is chief executive officer.
She holds an associate’s degree in accounting and a bachelor of science degree in business management.
She has been a volunteer for services and nonprofit organizations for many years. She has been involved with Altrusa International of Lebanon, the Credit Union Association of Oregon, the Lebanon Area Chamber of Commerce, the Board of Directors of Linn-Co Federal Credit Union and the Sweet Home Economic Development Group.
This will be the 14th Jamboree in which she will volunteer. She is the accounting director on the festival’s Management Team.
“From my involvement with this event, I have realized how many individuals have worked to make it such a benefit to the community,” Cromwell said. “The returning patrons speak highly of the event and many long-term volunteers take pride in being part of it.”
Her involvement in the Jamboree led her to join SHEDG and then its Board of Directors, where she is vice president.
“I see such opportunity for SHEDG to continue to make a positive mark on the future of the Sweet Home community,” Cromwell said. “My desire is to look forward with SHEDG as a strong positive organization. I believe there are some great opportunities in the future for long-term benefits to Sweet Home and would like to see the organization in a position to take advantage of projects that enhance Sweet Home and its citizens.”
Cindy Glick
With more than 25 years experience with the U.S. Forest Service, Glick moved to Sweet Home from Sisters last April to become District Ranger.
“I have lived in small towns,” Glick said. “I understand small community needs and involvement and have learned how to work with community members to develop consensus.”
She also has been involved with the Ford Family Foundation’s Leadership Development series and served on the Camp Fire USA Board in Central Oregon.
“Areas of interest to serve the city of Sweet Home are to help the community move forward in its plans to continue existing and new efforts to sustain the town’s livability for the long run,” Glick said. “Special interests where I might be able to assist community leaders include pursuing the creation of family wage jobs by attracting new business and industry; working to assure the provision of a quality education and upbringing for our youth; assisting to improve the physical health, welfare and infrastructure in our community; and working with citizens to continue to enjoy and steward the natural resources that surround us.”
Kellie Kem
Kem has been a Sweet Home resident for nearly 20 years.
She has volunteered with various local organizations, including the Sweet Home Chamber of Commerce, Sweet Home Rodeo, the Sweet Home High School equestrian team, 4-H, the Northwest Professional Rodeo Association Queen Contestant Board, the NPRA Adviser and the Oregon Jamboree, where she is a supervisor in the box office.
She serves on the SHEDG Board of Directors and the Human Resources Committee, which has created an Employee Handbook and established inter-organizational policies and procedures.
“Economic development is essential to a prosperous community, and I believe that we must make choices that implement what we claim to support,” Kem said. “Recently faced with the necessity to change the location of my employment, I chose to open my own shop in Sweet Home rather than move to a neighboring community. I now am a small business owner on Main Street.
“I wholeheartedly support the mission statement of SHEDG, which is to lead economic development efforts. To do this, we must also be committed to finding ways to help the Oregon Jamboree maintain its success. I would like to continue to serve and help nurture the Sweet Home community to its fullest potential. The best way I see to do this is to continue pursuing excellence within the SHEDG organization.”
Rachel Kittson-MaQatish
Kittson-MaQatish is an attorney and partner at the Morley Thomas Law Firm, LLC. She specializes in family law, represents small business and prosecutes misdemeanors for the city of Lebanon. She has been an attorney for seven years.
She attended School District 55 from kindergarten through high school, then graduated from Linn-Benton Community College with an associate’s transfer degree. She graduated Beta Gamma Sigma from Oregon State University with a bachelor of arts degree in business administration with a management option. She received the OSU Family Business Student Excellence Award, the Ford Opportunity Scholarship, the Dan and Daisy Ashton Scholarship and the Rotary Leadership Scholarship.
Kittson-MaQatish earned a Juris Doctorate at Willamette College of Law, where she graduated in the top one-third of her class and received the Pro Bono Honors Award. She also co-founded the Willamette College of Law Street Law Program, where college students, attorneys, professors and judges teach predominately teen parents about the law.
She serves on the Linn County Mediation Arbitration Commission and is a member of the Lebanon Optimist Club, Linn-Benton Bar Association and Oregon Women Lawyers.
She has lived in Sweet Home most of her life.
“I believe my skills and training are well-suited for business development,” Kittson-MaQatish said. “I would also like to formally be a part of a group that serves to communicate to others the abundant resources, recreation and people that make our community great. Finally, I would like the opportunity to repay some of the personal blessings I have received from our community.”
Phyllis Osborn-Smith
Phyllis Osborn-Smith, a retired educator, counselor and middle school principal, has lived in Sweet Home for more than 60 years.
“Having been involved with local organizations, I have personally seen how service can bring a positive impact on the community,” Osborn-Smith said. “I believe that I have good judgment as well as a willingness to see things through to the end and plan ahead rather than put them off for someone else to finish.”
Osborn-Smith’s time as a volunteer has included the Sweet Home Senior Center Board of Directors where she is treasurer, eight years with the Arts and Crafts Festival where she is chairman, nine years on the Beautification Committee, longtime membership in SHEDG and the Oregon Jamboree.
“As a member of SHEDG for many years as a liaison to the Arts and Crafts and Beautification committees, I am familiar with the board’s role and how they can have a positive effect on the community,” Osborn-Smith said. “Increased competition comes with changing times, and we have to face that. I believe people pay more to have a better, cleaner, more appealing event and setting, which we have. SHEDG and the Oregon Jamboree are doing a lot of good through the various ways the funds are distributed throughout the community. Success does not necessarily mean ‘profitable,’ it takes time to see the new efforts pay off. Success means that there are valuable results.”