I wanna be, wanna be like … Sherm
Posted by Kris HenryContrary to what you may have heard, there isn’t a lot of money in the newspaper biz.
I know, I’ll give you a moment to digest that while I clean out the moths in my wallet and make room for my Megabucks ticket — correction — my WINNING $5.8 million Megabucks ticket (you’ve got to think positive).
I’m sure many of you out there are like me in that you know you would make an excellent lottery winner. I’ve thought for years about how much I could do for my community if only I had the funds: safer schools, better sports fields, free ice cream days in the summer, etc.
But whereas those things are a fantasy for me and my modest lifestyle — until I win tonight, of course — giving back to this community is a reality for Sherm Olsrud and his wife Wanda. The local philanthropists have had a hand in just about everything that’s right with the Rogue Valley, and shy away from credit like a little leaguer facing their first fastball.
The Olsruds — unwillingly I’m sure — were at the center of attention Friday night during a net-cutting ceremony to celebrate the new gymnasium at Kids Unlimited in Medford tabbed “Olsrud Court.” A $250,000 donation by the Olsruds got the ball rolling on the 34,000-square-foot complex that provides activities for at-risk, low-income youth.
But if you think that’s the first good deed by the Olsruds, you must be new to town.
We’re covering some boxing championships tonight at the Olsrud Arena at the Jackson County Fairgrounds. A few months ago some of the 30,000 pounds of food donated to ACCESS’ Food for Hope drive by the Olsruds, who own Sherm’s Thunderbird markets in Medford, Klamath Falls and Roseburg and Food 4 Less in Medford, most likely went by that same venue.
The Olsruds have a history of benevolance that includes donations for field turf at Spiegelberg Stadium, funding for rooter busses during South Medford’s state-championship run in boys basketball, various participation in 4-H activities at the Jackson County Fair and so on and so on.
When a winning Powerball ticket was sold last year at Sherm’s Thunderbird, the company namesake donated all the funds the store received in its payout to Jackson and Washington elementary schools because “we felt those two schools could use it.” When McLoughlin Middle School was struggling to raise funds to erect a fence around the facility to offset safety concerns, Sherm went straight to his personal checking account and wrote out an $18,000 check to cover the expense.
So while my son Nick dreams of becoming the next Kyle Singler or Steve DeClerck, I’m holding out hope on being the next Sherm Olsrud — because the Rogue Valley won the lottery having the Olsruds as their neighbor.
March 25th, 2007 at 12:07 am
I had the pleasure of working for sherm at FOOD 4 LESS many years ago,
the one thing that still sticks in my mind is,the day that i was trying to
get more product out on the floor . And sherm helped me untill we got
enough of the items on the shelf that we could take a break .
thanks and god bless sherm
March 26th, 2007 at 9:21 am
The Olsrud’s certainly are very philanthropic. I’d love to have millions or billions. It’d be fun developing new games to give it all away…
March 26th, 2007 at 9:37 am
It is good to see that we have good people in the valley that help where needed. Often donations go to obscure charities or to some charity that is more global and little if any stay here!
Someday when my ticket comes in I hope I will remember the example they have set.
March 27th, 2007 at 7:23 am
Sherm and Wanda are the most generous people I know and this community is so lucky to have them. They are such an examole to us all. I find it interesting that there are a lot of people that live here of far greater financial means that put very little back into the community that made them prosperous-I’m thinking of developers and car dealers.