Chamber Awards recognize community leaders

“I was truly looking forward to celebrating this amazing event in person, but like everything over the last couple of years, we have learned to pivot,” she said.

Each year, the chamber asks for nominations from the community for people or organizations that have gone above and beyond for the community and never look for credit. The chamber awards were presented a range of categories. Mid-Columbia Health Foundation also presented the Philanthropic Excellence Award.

Woman of the Year

Dr. Mimi McDonell was named Woman of the Year for 2021.

Without wavering one bit, McDonell has been “at the forefront of the COVID-19 vaccine coordination within Wasco County” since the pandemic began, Lisa Farquharson, chamber director, noted. As the health officer for the North County Public Health District, McDonell has been working across multiple agencies, and rolled out $50 gift cards for vaccine recipients as an incentive to encourage vaccination. “As a direct result of this person’s efforts in tandem with the North County Public Health Department, vaccination rates in Wasco County are at 73.2%,” she said.

Her work has been complex, Farquharson noted. “She has been in virtually every corner of the fight against this virus locally. She oversaw the distribution of backpacks provided to youth who received their vaccine doses and been a core part of the county’s community outreach. Additionally, she helped coordinate distribution of vaccines through extended hours at The Dalles Readiness Center; this ensured more vaccinations in the local Latinx population,” she said.

Man of the Year

“This year’s man of the year is the true definition of why we host this event and honor people in our community,” Farquharson said in introducing this year’s winner, Hew Hillis.

“Many people give, work, and orchestrate many tasks, events, helping individuals in need, lifting a hand for our non-profits, or even giving from their own pocket while most of us aren’t even aware that they are here in our town,” she noted. “He is a leader by action and example. He has taught many generations hunter safety courses which is really teaching them how to handle firearms, proper methods of shooting, and most of all the responsibilities of owning and using firearm properly.”

Hillis works with the local Lions club, The Dalles Sister Cities, The Order of the Masons, the Shriners Club, and his church on many projects at our Senior Center. “He never hesitates to lift a hammer, loan a horse, or teach someone to ride or how to care for a horse properly,” Farquharson noted.

Outstanding Youth Award

The 2021 Outstanding Youth of the year was Maddie Dollarhide.

Today’s youth have shown resilience, imagination, inventiveness, and a spirit of determination while still trying to be just a kid during this strange time, and Dollarhide has been an example of these traits to their family, school, youth organizations, church and their community, Farquharson said.

She had a goal for their local FFA chapter to go to the FFA National Convention before she graduated, and that goal was accomplished, the money needed raised within two months. Dollarhide serves as FFA Chapter President as well as District Officer for the Central Oregon Region.

First Responder of the Year

The First Responder of the Year is “not your typical First Responder but reflects thinking outside of the box and an indication of our digital world and the difference it can make every day for our community members and our men and women fighting for us!” said Farquharson prior to naming Mack Lamb and Darlisa Black as recipients of the First Responder of the Year award.

The Dalles is on the wildland fire interface and the need for accurate and timely information on fast-moving fires has become critical for residents. As a result, in 2015, a regional resource — the Columbia Gorge Wildland & Fire Information Page — was created on Facebook. The page has since bloomed as a resource for nearly 23,000 followers, offering a one-stop shop for rapid updates to information about fire locations, resources, size, weather, threatened structures and evacuation notices across the entire region. The site has now become the trusted go-to resource on fire information, Farquharson said.

Lamb and Black were honored with the award as co-founders of the Columbia Gorge Wildland & Fire Information Page.

Volunteer of the Year

Rachel Carter was named the 2021 Outstanding Volunteer of the Year.

Carter moved to The Dalles 3 years ago and is proud to call it home, Farquharson noted. She is “always looking for opportunities to contribute with their energy, time, promotion, smiles, hugs, ideas and to be a part of the solution! So when they saw that we needed and wanted community clean ups to improve the public face of our community and encourages pride throughout the town, they got involved. Not only did they orchestrate monthly clean ups across our community, but they engaged businesses, individuals, and employees to join in and helped made our home cleaner, brighter, and they had fun while they were doing this.” Carter also worked closely with the Northern Wasco County Parks and Recreation District, serving on the board, and started a Thanksgiving Day fun run.

Outstanding Educator of the Year

Kim Koch, principal at St. Mary Academy, was named as the 2021 Outstanding Educator of the Year.

Koch has “worked tirelessly with Oregon Department of Education and the local health department to ensure kids were able to attend school daily during the 2019-2020 school year, and adhered to and exceeded all policies and practices that COVID brought on while continuing to take care of students, staff and families concerns and daily operations of the school,” Farquharson said. “She is always encouraging her students, families, and teachers to be good stewards of our community by being involved service projects for The Dalles and various programs.” Food Boxes, Meals on Wheels, clothing and diaper drives for St. Vincent de Paul and clean up days are just a few examples of her involvement.

As principal at St. Mary’s Academy, Koch returned to the classroom to teach third graders when staff was shorthanded, and is still currently co-teaching third grade until a permanent hire is full trained.

Outstanding Ag Achievement

Ken Bailey honored with the Agricultural Achievement Award as a strong advocate for agriculture, and continuing to bring agriculture awareness to help others to understand and appreciate what agriculture means for our area, Farquharson. Bailey is a third-generation cherry producer, and is still involved in the family operation.

He has represented producers on many boards, agencies and task forces. He was part of the Columbia Gorge Fruits Growers, and served on the Oregon State Farm Bureau and the National Council of Agricultural Employers, all of which give a voice to agriculture employers, thereby helping to address their concerns and questions.

Business of the Year

Columbia Bank was honored at the 2021 Business of the Year for its community focus and commitment to service, Farquharson said.

The bank encourages their entire staff to volunteer their time with non-profits to offer support and leadership, and many of their team sit on boards for nonprofits and education organizations in our community, Farquharson added. “The team enjoys what they do, and it shows,” she said. “We have heard so many times how much this business cares about their clients and their community, that they seem more like family to their customers instead of a business."

Columbia Bank has been a strong supporter of the Backpack Program for disadvantaged youth, both by collecting items but also helping to fill those backpacks, she said. In winter, they engage to collect items for Helping Hands.

During the pandemic, the bank worked with chamber members and staff to help box cleaning and related supplies for the area’s businesses, and even delivered some of the orders, Farquharson said. “We can’t say thank you enough to this team and business,” she said.

In addition, the bank had arranged to sponsor and number of community events, and did not pull that sponsorship when events were canceled. “Instead, they sent the check to the organizations and said, ‘Spend it where you need it!’” Farquharson said.

Mid-Columbia Health Foundation Philanthropy Awards

The 2021 Philanthropy Award to Vesta Smith. The award was presented by Amanda Evans, executive director of the Mid-Columbia Health Foundation. “(Vesta Smith) never fails to surprise me with her generosity,” Evans said. Smith has been a donor to the Mid-Columbia Health Foundation for more than 17 years. In that time her donations have helped pay for nursing scholarships, new equipment for Mid-Columbia Medical Center, assistance for patients in need, and more. “She has been a constant source of encouragement, positive energy, and knowledge,” Evans said.

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Title sponsor for the event was ISU Insurance Services–The Stratton Agency. Partnering sponsor was the Mid-Columbia Health Foundation. Production partners included Great Skot Productions, The Dalles Dance Academy and, behind the scenes, Rage Graphix, Sigman’s Florist and Bohn’s Printing.