Sweet Home residents who help keep the community humming were honored Saturday during the 57th annual Chamber of Commerce Community Awards Banquet held for the first time at the Boys and Girls Club.
The 2000 awards were presented under the theme of “Catching Dreams For a Brighter Future” under the direction of emcee Dave Holley. Program committee members included Billie Weber, Karla Hendrickson, Jody Van Eck, Don Hopkins, Teri Spier, Glenda Moore, Debbie Jones and Larry Blem.
Honored were Les Schwab Tire Center, managed by Mitch Johnson; Glenda Hopkins, BPW Woman of the Year; Todd Gestrin, Junior First Citizen; Mollie Andrews, First Citizen and Carla Healy, Distinguished Citizen.
Chamber president Larry Blem said that although the country may be worrying about an energy shortage, “there’s no shortage of volunteers in Sweet Home. All of the people in this room have been, or will be, volunteers. We start them young–as you can tell by the young people helping here in several ways.”
Blem pointed to the active community building spurt as a positive sign for Sweet Home.
Business of the Year
Les Schwab Tire Company
Manager Mitch Johnson
Presented by Mary McDonald
Les Schwab Tire Center has played an active role in the business district since 1967, starting with three employees (including Phil Wick who is now the company’s president). Les Schwab employs 12 here and numerous employees who started while in high school have worked their way into management positions throughout the company.
Les Schwab supports the community in numerous ways, sponsoring tables at the awards banquet, golf teams in the annual C of C and Boys and Girls Clubs tournaments, helping sponsor the Sportsman’s Holiday court, and offering their parking lot for community fund raising projects.
Dozens of community activities benefit from Les Schwab donations including the Husky sports teams, Sweet Home Ambassadors, the yearbook and school newspaper.
The Singing Christmas Tree, Boys and Girls Club auction and Linn County 4-H fair also benefit from the business’ generosity.
BPW Woman of the Year
Glenda Hopkins
Presented by Jean McKinney
Born in Colorado, Hopkins was reared on a small farm outside Klamath Falls. She was active in high school in the people squad and with music and graduated valedictorian of her class. She received degrees from Northwest Christian College and the University of Oregon and taught at Junction City and completed a Masters Degree before moving to Sweet Home.
Married to her former principal, Don, Hopkins taught at Cascadia and Long Street schools.
The family reared three daughters, Kimberly, Kathleen and Jennifer.
She was a school volunteer and substitute taught while her daughters were young.
Mrs. Hopkins is active as secretary of Kappa Delta Gamma Sorority and the Sweet Home Museum board of directors, the Literacy Council and the Youth Initiative.
She teaches kindergarten at the Community Chapel and the GED program for LBCC’s Sweet Home center.
Her hobbies include gardening, computer design, sewing for her three granddaughters, reading, collecting antiques, and playing pinochle and hoof and foot.
Junior First Citizen
Todd Gestrin
Presented by Sam Shipp
Born in Lebanon, junior first citizen Todd Gestrin has worked since the age of 12 when he painted flags on mailboxes for 50 cents each.
A 1983 LUHS graduate, Gestrin focuses his career on banking starting as a proof operator for First Interstate. He spent two years in Salem, then entered the company’s management training program. Gestrin came to the Sweet Home branch in 1992 as operations manager. He worked here four years before becoming chief operations offers at Linn Co Federal Credit Union in Lebanon where he remains.
Married to his high school sweetheart, Edie Bell in May 1986, Gestrin is daddy to Miranda and Molly.
Gestrin has been a dedicated community volunteer since he first stepped into Sweet Home. He has helped coordinate ticket sales, cash handling and accounting for the Sweet Home Rodeo, Oregon Jamboree and Foster Mud Flat Races. He was treasurer of the Linn-Benton Employer Council and served on the Board of Directors of the SHEDG. He has worked with the Senior Alcohol Free Entertainment (SAFE) all night party, the Business Education Partnership and Sportsman’s Holiday parade. He serves as a resource persons on banking for the SHHS business department.
First Citizen
Mollie Andrews
President by Mary Betts
Everyone loves Mollie.
That could sum up the life of Mollie Andrews, owner of Mollie’s Bakery, a mainstay of the Sweet Home business district for decades.
Born in Bend, Andrews’ generosity is massive, whether it is helping the Boys and Girls Club, raising funds for the Husky wrestling team or the SAFE party.
“Honest and open, you never have to question where you stand with this individual, they will let you know,” Betts said of the honoree. “Normally it is with a wink, a sunny smile or perhaps a hug.”
Andrews enjoys traveling, whether it’s to the Oregon coast or to China.
Andrews has a long standing love affair with sports, especially for the Huskies. She has owned Mollie’s Bakery for 39 years and has loyal customers who wouldn’t think of starting their day without biscuits and gravy there.
Spelling out her name, Betts said Andrews was: Modest, Outgoing, Lovable, Loyal, Imaginative, Enthusiastic, Artistic, Nice, Delightful, Respected, Energetic, Wonderful and Special.
A mother, grandmother, great grandmother and great great grandmother, Andrews mothers the entire community.
She enjoys painting, sewing, crochet, making jewelry, reading romance novels, watching sports on TV and joking with her customers.
For many years, Andrews fed the Husky football team breakfast on game day. She has donated sandwiches for firefighters, countless cookies and meals.
“She’ll probably never be rich monetarily, but she has untold riches from the love that unfolds anytime you ask anyone to describe her. She is truly Sweet Home’s queen and sweetheart,” Betts said.
Distinguished Citizen
Carla Healy
Presented by Clinton Bennett
A 1949 Sweet Home High graduate, Carla Healy has been married to Gene for 52 years, reared four children, is grandmother to 11 and great grandmother of two in addition to being a former local business owner and mainstay for the Sweet Home Genealogical Society.
Healy has been active with the Genealogical Society for 25 years. She has held every office several times within the Society and was instrumental in helping make Jerry Mealey’s dream of a Genealogical Library a reality in 1999. The research room has been named in her honor and serves many hours each week helping share her passion for family history with anyone wanting to research his or her family tree.
Active with Royal Neighbors for more than 50 years, Healy has helped with many class reunions and the Chamber of Commerce decorations for many years. A New Era volunteer of the week, Healy continues as a faithful Red Cross blood donor, working on her fifth gallon.
“You may find this lady helping an elderly person with their grocery shopping, taking them to the doctor or maybe out to lunch. No matter where you meet her, you will always find a friendly smile, a king word and a giving heart,” Bennett said.
VIP Awards
Jesse Barr, Dennis Speck, Sylvia Stock, Richard Lillich, Mary Mansfield and Jim Melcher were named VIP award recipients by the Sweet Home President’s Club. See related story this issue.
Special Awards
Mr. and Mrs. Jim Delano presented the Boys and Girls Club with a check for $500 from fund raising projects sponsored by the local veterans and auxiliary organization.
Hixon Award
Kiwanis Club members Lloyd Sheldon and Keith Gabriel were presented with Hixon Awards by Kiwanis Lt. Governor Kris Wilder.
The award signifies $1,000 in donations to the Kiwanis International project to provide machinery to add iodine to salt in third world countries around the world. A nickel’s worth of iodine can protect children and adults from numerous health problems, including mental retardation.
In 1993, Kiwanis International set a goal of raising $75 million along with UNICEF to reach 1.5 billion adults and children worldwide.