Unsung hero

In July we reluctantly said good-bye to an unsung hero of Main Street Orrville when he resigned from our board of directors.  We've had board members come and go over the past six years, and I'm not trying to lessen their service as they have all made a lasting contribution to our downtown, but this one was different. Someone who gave 200% when all he may have had time for was 10%.  Someone who was always there, no matter the task.  Someone who gave this level of commitment to anything he was involved in, and yet, still managed to operate his own successful business downtown.

Jack Runion stands out as one of the few people I remember from my initial interview for the position of executive director almost seven years ago.  I don't know if it was anything that he said as much as seeing him drive away in the big, blue Dodge camper van at the end of the interview.  Truly a memorable image!  From the moment I arrived in town Jack  rose to the short list of "go-to" people.  I could always count on him for ideas or to talk me down from saying or doing something stupid.  And from this, a friendship developed.  We quickly discovered that we share a love of cooking, food, and music.

As a charter board member Jack helped build a solid foundation for the organization as we journeyed from fledgling start-up to where we are today.  Jack has been idea man, advocate, the rational voice in the storm, and many times over the worker bee.  So you see, accepting his resignation wasn't easy.  But the board understood that no matter how stretched his time was before, Jack needed to have one priority now- rebuilding Runions' Furniture after the early morning fire on June 30th.  

So with that we say thank you, Jack.  And I say I couldn't have done it without  you, friend.  Three cheers to you.

We celebrate that Runions' Furniture is back open in downtown Orrville, at least partially for now, and look forward to the day when the entire store is back operational.

With deepest admiration and respect,

Darrin