As staff at the annual Oregon Jamboree tighten down in preparation for this year’s musical event, Heather Search is settling in her new role as president of the umbrella organization.
Search has been serving on the Sweet Home Economic Development Group Board of Directors for 10 years and was recently appointed as its president. Her main goal starting off is to kind of reinvigorate the nonprofit’s mission and “be more present” in the community.
Search started volunteering for Oregon Jamboree about 13 years ago, serving for crowd management and in the beer garden, and has about 10 years of service on the SHEDG Board. For a time, she volunteered concurrently at Jamboree and on the board as treasurer, but later made the decision to focus her efforts serving on the board. Last year she was appointed to vice president before accepting the principal position this year.
As president, Search is uniting with board members – some who are still relatively new – to reexamine SHEDG’s foundation and core values, she said. She sees the board’s desire to evaluate the organizational goals and rediscover the true meaning behind SHEDG.
“We have amazing people on our board,” she said. “I can’t say enough about the skill set that we have on the board, and how engaged they are and want to be. I am so very blessed to have such great people on the board that care about this community.”
With a new logo already drawn up, the board is also examining whether the bylaws and mission and vision statements need to be redefined. The current mission statement is “to effectively lead efforts to enhance and promote thriving diverse economic development in the Sweet Home community,” by using partnerships and economic development resources “to unleash Sweet Home’s potential.”
But as the board redesigns itself, Search is certain part of that effort involves making SHEDG more actively visible and more transparent to a community that sometimes seems to think the organization is kind of hidden or obscure.
“I would like to change that perception,” Search said. “I don’t think there’s a lot of people in the community that really know what the Sweet Home Economic Development Group is.”
While it’s fairly common knowledge that SHEDG is the force behind Jamboree, there’s more to the nonprofit than that, she said. Ultimately the organization was formed to create or lead efforts to bring economic development into Sweet Home.
In the aftermath of the spotted owl controversy that tore apart the logging community’s financial stability, a group of people decided they wanted to do something to boost the economic development of the city, and that essentially is how SHEDG was born.
The Oregon Jamboree was founded in 1992 to support SHEDG, Search explained. Founders Marge Geil and Leslie Ancke combined their love of country music and community service, and recruited Wynonna Judd to play at the inaugural event.
Next to Jamboree is another arm to SHEDG: Sweet Events. Jamboree Festival Director Robert Shamek boosted Sweet Events by bringing in smaller but packs-a-punch entertainment to the community through Tune it Up Tuesdays, Music & Brews, and the Icebox Cookoff.
But it’s not just about providing an All-American experience to people. Rather, the experience is meant to stir up the economic potential in a city that’s still trying to recover from endangered species-related wounds.
“The goal is to bring people to Sweet Home, be able to have people come, spend money in Sweet Home, support local business,” Search said.
Through SHEDG’s efforts, out-of-towners spend money that supports local business and community organizations. Vendors are invited to sell at SHEDG events, nonprofits find opportunities to fundraise, Jamboree profits have been donated to organizations, and even the school district benefits by renting property for the event. Last year, SHEDG tallied a donation of more than $40,000 to local sports programs.
And according to a 2022 economic study regarding SHEDG’s impact on the community, approximately 14,500 people attended Jamboree and spent an estimated $14.5 million at the event and in the city that year.
“I cannot say enough about Robert and the staff and his management team,” Search said. “They do an excellent job putting on events.”
But there’s always room for improvement. While Shamek and his team make their events bigger and better, Search and her board will seek ways to put themselves more in front of the community they are ultimately trying to serve.
“I love my community,” Search said. “I volunteer in other ways too, but this is my heart; it always has been. I love this community and this community has been amazing for me. It’s a way for me to give back.”
As the board president navigates her new responsibilities, she asks the community to be patient while the board redefines how they are going to take SHEDG into the future. Her biggest goal, she said, is to put things into motion to change any potential negative perception people may have.
“I’m excited for the things that we are gonna focus on and the events that are being put on. I’m excited about the growth and how that can expand. And I’m excited about being more engaged with the community. I’m hoping people can see our action.”