Cindy Rice and Michael Hall, both longtime leaders in a wide variety of local public service activities, were named Sweet Home Chamber of Commerce’s Distinguished Citizen and First Citizen at the chamber’s awards banquet Saturday night, Feb. 28.
McKenzie Reynolds, lead organizer of the reincarnation of the Sweet Home Rodeo, which drew a standing room-only turnout last summer, was named Jr. First Citizen.
Sweet Home’s A&W restaurant won the Curb Appeal Award, and All Star Pizza was named Business of the Year.
Organization of the Year was the Road Maggot Motorcycle Group.
Dean Hummer, Christian Romero and Trinity Victor were named recipients of the Mona Waibel VIP Awards presented by the President’s Club.
City award recipients were Cindi Robeck and now-retired longtime City Attorney Robert Snyder.
A packed house in the Sweet Home Boys and Girls Club gymnasium, which was decorated in a patriotic theme to mark this year’s 250th birthday of the United States, enjoyed a meal served up by Angila Tack and a wide variety of desserts that were auctioned off.
Both the recently named Sportsman’s Holiday Court and the Strawberry Court were present, as well as state Rep. Jami Cate and most of the Sweet Home City Council.
Moore Family Vineyard supplied drink options.
Mayor Susan Coleman was out of town, so City Manager Jason Ogden and City Council
President Pro Tem Josh Thorstad presented the City Pride and Ownership Award to city Financial Services Manager Cindi Robeck and the Mayor’s Award to Robert Snyder.
The event was emceed by Dave Bauer, who presented all but one of the chamber awards, with assistance from Chamber Executive Director Lagea Mull.
Chamber Awards
Distinguished Citizen Cindy Rice
Bauer described Rice as an individual who had devoted many years, “not just hours,” to strengthen Sweet Home.
He listed some of her “countless” fields of involvement over the past decades: as a volunteer in schools, Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, and 4-H while her sons were young; Linn County’s Peer Court program – “and when that program was defunded, she didn’t step away from service. She went back to school. She designed her own degree program at Oregon State University focused on facilitating and supporting healthy relationships with the community, because she believed in social justice in helping others.”
He noted that Rice has applied that education “and her heart” to Sweet Home Emergency Ministries, where she manages inventory, writes grants, stocks shelves, coordinates volunteers, and provides the needs of “vulnerable” people.
“She once spent over 300 hours completing a grant application to secure funding for a generator, because even during a power outage people still need food,” he said, adding that “when someone walks through the doors of SHEM, they’re often in crisis.
“Her question is simple: ‘How can I lessen their load so they leave knowing they’ve been cared for, not judged?’
“Tonight, we recognize a woman whose compassion, persistence and quiet leadership have strengthened Sweet Home for decades.
First Citizen Michael Hall
Bauer described Hall as someone who “grew up here” and started working at a local business as a teenager, “learning the value of hard work from the ground up.”
Eventually, he said, Hall became owner of The Point restaurant, also serving as a City council member, and has served as a board member for Sweet Home Economic Development Group, the Chamber of Commerce and Sunshine Industries.
During COVID and other emergencies, he has made sure local families have been fed and “he personally delivered meals to those who were home-bound,” Bauer said.
Hall “invested in infrastructure to keep his doors open during outages so the community could continue gathering and being served. He encourages other business owners. He gives his time, his resources and his energy to this town. His heart and soul are here in Sweet Home.”
Junior First Citizen McKenzie Reynolds
“This year’s recipient didn’t just participate in community events; she helped bring one back,” Bauer said in introducing Reynolds, who was instrumental in restoring the Sweet Home Rodeo last year after a 13-year hiatus.
“Providing a rodeo isn’t a small undertaking,” Bauer said. “It takes leadership, persistence, coordination and the ability to rally a community around something meaningful.”
He also noted that Reynolds has been involved in multiple scholarship initiatives for Sweet Home Alumni Foundation, as well as volunteering through various sports and Scholar Day activities. She has also organized trunks or treat events with O&M Point S Tire and Auto.
“In other words, she shows up not for recognition, not for applause, but because she believes in this town, that’s exactly what emerging leadership looks like,” Bauer concluded in presenting the award
Curb Appeal Award – A&W
Bauer said the award “honors a business that understands that their storefront reflect the spirit of our community,” crediting owners Josh and Patty Hankins’ continue investment in their historic facility – continually upgrading the restaurant’s interior, keeping the outdoor freshly painted, and preserving its “nostalgic” nature.
“This year, they went above and beyond by purchasing and installing the complete Burger Family – Papa, Mama, Teen and Baby Burger.
“What makes it special isn’t just the statutes, but the intention behind it, through dedication, restoration and genuine passion for legacy.”
Business of the Year – All Star Pizza
Bauer said All Star, founded and owned by Brad Newport, who was out of town during the banquet, “exemplifies consistency, success and service” in serving Sweet Home for over 16 years.
“They built something more than a business,” he said. “They built a place families gather, where teams celebrate and community connections are made. Their longevity speaks to resilience. Their customer loyalty speaks to quality. Their continued presence speaks to commitment.”
Organization of the Year – Road Maggot Motorcycle Group
Mull presented the award, noting that the motorcycle club has held toy runs at Christmas time for the past 18 years and has helped the City of Sweet Home with its Harvest Festival, organizing and putting on the Chili Cookoff, which raised money for local young cancer patient Lexi Vineyard. .
“They’re just dedicated. They are good, hard workers,” she said, adding, jokingly, “This will probably be the only time you’ll hear me say this phrase at a banquet: ‘The Road Maggots motorcycle group,’” drawing laughter from the crowd as she presented the award.
VIP Awards
Dean Hummer – Robert Snyder introduced Hummer as “a talented seamstress,” has “lived a life defined by generosity, service and devotion to her family and community” for more than six decades.
Hummer, he said, since the 2010s, has sewn and donated some 3,000 baby blankets and quilts to shelters in east Linn County and Albany.
She also volunteers at SHEM, where she spends “multiple mornings each week organizing and distributing food and clothing,” he said.
Hummer also was involved in Sweet Home youth baseball in the 1970s, serving as president of the organization, and was a Boy Scout den leader, president of the Sweet Home Booster Club, and was named Junior First Citizen in 1984.
“She has put in countless hours fundraising, running Halloween, Easter and other celebrations for youth,” Snyder said. “She has baked pies, cakes, done bake sales for fundraising for school and sports fundraisers, and this, again, is years and years of service.
“Her kindness has touched generations of kids who played ball. Her legacy is not measured in quilts, sewn dresses, altars or meetings led, but in the lives she has quietly made better.”
Christian Romero – Romero, a freshman at Sweet Home High School, is a devoted volunteer at SHEM and other local organizations, Snyder said.
As a member of the Interact Club at the Junior High, he conducted a sock drive for the needy, made dog biscuits, and grew vegetable seedlings for SHEM clients, while also volunteering at elementary school carnivals and the All School Track Meet, helped with school band fundraisers and the purchase of sand for the high school long jump pit, as well as serving as a Salvation Army bell ringer and the Back to School backpack program, assists with blood drives at the high school and helps out at the Booster Club Snack Bar.
“He has the goal for high school of doing at least 1,000 volunteer hours and in ninth grade he has already done 400 – he volunteered all summer at SHEM and continues to do so on Saturdays.”
Hummer and Christian Romero.
Trinity Victor – Snyder described Victor as “an outstanding individual who has a heart for helping others. Victor, a senior at Sweet Home High School, where she is student body president, has spent “countless hours lifting others up.”
She started volunteering in junior high at her church’s kids camp, and now leads Bible studies for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and at her church. She has also gone on several missions trips, teaching English in Romania and fixing buildings in Mexico, he said.
Victor also volunteers as a volleyball coach for junior high-aged girls.
She actively participates in annual Thanksgiving basket, food and money drive, shops and delivers gifts for Sweet Home Fire’s Sharing Tree at Christmas time, helps clean up the high school campus and volunteers with the district Clothing Closet, sorting clothes.
She also has organized several Spirit Weeks at the high school and “works tirelessly to spread school spirit,” he said, in presenting the award.
Mayor’s and City Awards
City Pride and Ownership Honoree Cindi Robeck
Ogden, working off notes provided by Coleman, described Robeck as “someone whose work often happens behind the scenes, yet whose impact is felt in every department, every budget discussion, and every municipal service we provide” at City Hall.
Robeck oversees the city’s passport program, and “every day” ensures that the city’s budget “is carefully tracked, faithfully followed and clearly understood,” Ogden said.
She has provided “innovative leadership” in the city’s financial processes, he said, adding that Robeck often is in the office during off-hours, particularly during city leadership transitions, and often assists residents who need help when City Hall is closed.
She also teaches children’s church, helps with city events and has been known to purchase items “without reimbursement” simply because they were needed.
“One of the qualities that I admire most about Cindi is that she pays attention,” Ogden said. “She understands not only her own responsibilities, but what is happening across departments. Because of that awareness, she often provides clarity and guidance to others,” consistently prioritizing the city’s best interest.
Mayor’s Award Honoree – Robert Snyder
Snyder, who stepped down in 2023 after some 40 years as city attorney, “may not always make headlines, but (his) sturdy presence shapes the culture around us in other ways,” Ogden said, again working off Coleman’s notes.
“He is a man of his word who remains calm in tense situations. Has a long history of bringing civility to emotionally charged moments. He’s reliable. In the world we live in today, that quality is invaluable,” adding that Snyder “ensured that our local government operated with the same integrity he practices in his own life.
Snyder has also been very involved in the community beyond City Hall, serving on the Highway 20 Committee that played a key role in expanding the highway to four lanes, in the Lions Club, the Presidents Club, the chamber Board of Directors, and as an Eagle Scout himself in Wyoming, where he grew up, “invested deeply in the next generation as a Cub Scout leader and scout master for Trooper 362, mentoring many young men.”
He helped found the Sweet Home Pregnancy Center, continuing to serve as a board member, and is a faithful member at Hillside Fellowship, where he is known as “ the quiet handy man, and shows up without fanfare, cleaning gunners, painting, repairing, turning trees and just serving wherever it is needed,” Ogden said.
“Robert’s legacy in Sweet Home is not defined by one title or one accomplishment, but by decades of consistent principles and because of his faithful service, integrity, quiet leadership and lasting impact on Sweet Home,” he concluded.
