In the absence of Chamber president Mike Stallings, first vice president of the Chamber Greg Fassett presented the volunteer of the year award to Rick Tompos, controller at Culver Academies and a great deal more, said Fassett, who listed many of Tompos’ local accomplishments.
Besides membership in the Chamber, Fassett said that Tompos has been a leading volunteer in the Culver community with the Second Century Committee, the Kiwanis Club, the Knights of Columbus (in which Tompos is a Grand Knight), St. Mary of the Lake church council, Heart and Hands of Marshall County (of which he is co-founder), St. Joseph Regional Medical Center development committee, and a United Health Services committee member.
“He has a lot of great personal attributes, a lot of high energy…he is involved in this community because he loves it, and he does a phenomenal job,” said Fassett.
After accepting the award and singling out his wife, Cheryl – who attended the dinner as well -- for her support and assistance, it was Tompos’ turn to introduce an award winner. He noted that the annual award typically given to a business person of the year, was given instead to a business of the year, which this year is Miller’s Merry Manor nursing home in Culver, with Fassett as its administrator.
Tompos gave a brief history of the Miller family’s business, which began in 1964, with Culver’s facility opening in 1981.
In 2007, Miller’s transitioned from being a family owned business to an ESOP (Employee Stock Option Plan), which allows all employees to be partial owners of the business. Tompos explained that of the 11,000 ESOPs in the United States, Miller’s – with 3,000 employees – is the 39th largest of its kind in the country. “Miller’s and Culver are joined at the hip,” said Tompos.
Greg Fassett accepted the award on behalf of Miller’s and insisted that “this is a staff award, not mine. I’m lucky to get to work every day with a group of individuals as caring and professional as they are…the attitude, the professionalism, and the compassion this staff has for our residents and families is second to none.”
Fassett also introduced the winners of the lifetime achievement award, Jim and Rosalie Bonine of Culver.
Fassett described the couple’s initial meeting at a funeral home in Warsaw where both were employed.
After their marriage, the Bonines moved to Culver in 1960 and were associated with the operation of the Easterday funeral home at 108 N. Main St., which they purchased in 1963.
“In 1965,” said Fassett, “they purchased a Culver landmark, the former Goss property, which they remodeled and enlarged, and they relocated the funeral home to the corner of N. Main and Lake Shore Drive. In addition, they were engaged in the 24/7 operation of the firm’s ambulance… prior to the Union Twp. EMS, which started in 1979.”
Fassett also noted that Jim Bonine will be recognized in May, 2008 by the Indiana branch of the National Fu-neral Directors’ Association for 50 years of service, and that he is also a past Master of the former Henry C. Culver lodge 617 of Free and Accepted Masons, past president of the Culver Chamber, served 21 years with the Culver-Union Twp. volunteer fire department, and has been involved with Culver’s Lions Club, the Second Century Committee, and the former Culver Jaycees, among other work.
Rosalie Bonine has also been heavily involved in the Culver community, including the former Maxinkunkee Feder-ated Jr. Women’s Club, Tri Kappa, Real Meals, Brownie Scouts, and 4-H.
Jim Bonine accepted the award and recognized his wife’s support as instrumental in his accomplishments, adding, “I’ve seen people come and go in this community, and heard a lot of people say they couldn’t get anywhere here, that they weren’t accepted. I don’t understand that…people received us with open arms when we came.”
Rosalie recalled serving four generations of Culver residents, and the work involved in the ambulance operation before the days of answering machines, when the couple had to monitor the telephone constantly.
Fassett also thanked Dawn Minas, of the Culver Coffee Company, for coordinating Chamber meetings, and explained the committee-based process of choosing each year’s award winners.
He added that “the neat thing is that Culver’s full of outstanding people, and then there are those who rise to the top…it’s a great community.”