The N-R story mentions the late Del Smith.
Del Smith was extraordinarily generous to Linfield College.
A Linfield news release in November 2011 says the college's Board of Trustees honored Del Smith, a trustee emeritus, by naming the college's softball venue "Del Smith Stadium."
The release said, "Smith, founder and owner of Evergreen International Aviation, Inc., served on the Linfield Board of Trustees from 1975 to 2009. He has supported the college through numerous gifts and by providing internships to hundreds of Linfield students at his local businesses. Many of those interns went on to work full time at Evergreen after graduation."
Also, the release quotes Linfield President Thomas L. Hellie as saying “Del Smith’s support of Linfield students, both athletically and academically, has changed the lives of countless young people. It is fitting that we recognize his support by naming the softball stadium in his honor. His gifts have been instrumental in the development of our softball program into the national spotlight.”
The release noted that Del Smith was inducted into Linfield’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005 for "meritorious service to the athletics program including providing lodging, transportation and meals for the baseball program, and financial gifts for the construction of the Rutschman Field House, renovation of Helser Field and upgrades to the football and track fields."
Furthermore, the release said Del Smith's "support for the college has extended far beyond athletics and includes contributions to the Nicholson Library, Linfield Business Department, Edith Green Endowed Lecture Fund and the President’s Discretionary Fund in addition to numerous internships and full-time employment for students at Evergreen Aviation, Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum, and Wings and Waves Waterpark."
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New museum owner addresses vets
By Starla Pointer, McMinnville N-R/News-Register 9/5/2016
The owner and top managers of the Falls Event Center, which recently acquired several elements of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum complex, said they want to preserve aviation history and honor vets and active-duty service personnel as they turn the site into a destination for visitors from around the world.
The for-profit company also intends to continue its record of helping needy people as it builds a hotel and other businesses associated with the site.
“This is not just about making money,” Sam Ramirez, CEO for hotels, told the McMinnville Band of Brothers veterans’ group Thursday. “We also want to partner with the community. Donating to the community is really a cornerstone of who we are.”
Ramirez was joined by Steve Down, founder and owner of the Falls Event Center, which has purchased the museum’s space hall, water park, chapel and hotel site. The latter, located between the aviation hall and water park, has been empty for several years.
The company joins investor George Schott as campus landlords. Schott, who has an association with the nonprofit Collings Foundation, owns the museum’s aviation hall and theater building.
Down said he would like to have the hotel open by next July. He said he’s eying 135 rooms, which is more than Del Smith’s original plans called for.
The facility will feature “an incredible level of service ... at a price and value anyone can afford,” Ramirez promised.
It will be the flagship of a series of similar hotels Down plans to build in several states, he said. And it will follow his business model of giving back to the community by reimbursing nonprofit shelter programs for the homeless for each hotel room booked.
Down also operates a chain of sandwich shops providing food for needy people in return for meals purchased. He said he plans to build a dozen Even Stevens’ sandwich shops in Oregon in the next year, and plans to site one in downtown McMinnville.
His roster of companies also includes a financial education program, Financially Fit, along with marketing firms, construction companies and other businesses.
When they spoke to the Band of Brothers, Down and Ramirez were joined by Neil Bergstrom, head of acquisitions, who will manage the Evergreen site.
The three also addressed a crowd of chamber members, museum staff, docents and area residents at a community town hall Thursday morning. And they took pains to thank the veterans for their role in preserving America’s freedoms.
Down noted that members of his generation and those who have followed sometimes take for granted the sacrifices of veterans. They may forget that in World War II, for example, “The world was literally in crisis. Our freedoms were in jeopardy.
“Please accept my gratitude for the sacrifices your generation made,” he told the Band of Brothers, which counts 23 WWII vets among its ranks, along with veterans of Korea, Vietnam and more recent wars.
Down said he discovered the Evergreen museum complex last November, when he was considering launching a small jet service with multiple hubs, each featuring a small museum of vintage aircraft.
He Googled “aviation museum” and began reading about Evergreen. Its mission of preserving and honoring veterans conformed with his own, he said.
A native of Klamath Falls, the Utah resident flew to Oregon and loved what he found in McMinnville. He returned last week during a vacation trip with his wife, Colleen, along with his mother and three of his sons.
“I couldn’t wait for my boys to see this amazing campus,” he said, noting his family was especially awed by the B-17, a bomber that flew in World War II.
He also praised the docents and staff. “I was hooked once I met the volunteers who donate time and a wealth of energy, knowledge and experience,” he told the veterans, many of whom serve as docents themselves.
Down said he has guaranteed success of the complex to docents, “in order to preserve this for future generations.”
He said he wants to attract more artifacts, including historic planes, and to “drive funding to buy more.” He said he also supports educational efforts, including the McMinnville School District’s Engineering and Aerospace Sciences Academy, which meets in the space museum.
It’s a sacred honor and privilege, he said, to continue the vision of the late Del Smith, Evergreen’s founder, and his son, the late Michael King Smith, who dreamed of the aviation museum and educational facility.
In addition to preserving history, Down and his managers said their aim is to make the Falls Center Event complex at Evergreen a prime destination for all sorts of events.
Ramirez said they want people to visit for a corporate event or a wedding, or stop at the hotel during a family vacation.
While here, they want visitors to take advantage of all the complex has to offer. They can slide out of the 747 into the Wings & Waves pool, for instance, or learn about the history of aviation and space exploration in the museums.
“We want to make sure kids know these planes flew,” Ramirez said, noting that the museums’ hundreds of docents bring that history alive.
They want their visitors to stay for several days and see other sights and businesses in and around McMinnville as well.
“We want to bring more people here,” he said. “Not enough know how special this is.”
By Starla Pointer, McMinnville N-R/News-Register 9/5/2016
The owner and top managers of the Falls Event Center, which recently acquired several elements of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum complex, said they want to preserve aviation history and honor vets and active-duty service personnel as they turn the site into a destination for visitors from around the world.
The for-profit company also intends to continue its record of helping needy people as it builds a hotel and other businesses associated with the site.
“This is not just about making money,” Sam Ramirez, CEO for hotels, told the McMinnville Band of Brothers veterans’ group Thursday. “We also want to partner with the community. Donating to the community is really a cornerstone of who we are.”
Ramirez was joined by Steve Down, founder and owner of the Falls Event Center, which has purchased the museum’s space hall, water park, chapel and hotel site. The latter, located between the aviation hall and water park, has been empty for several years.
The company joins investor George Schott as campus landlords. Schott, who has an association with the nonprofit Collings Foundation, owns the museum’s aviation hall and theater building.
Down said he would like to have the hotel open by next July. He said he’s eying 135 rooms, which is more than Del Smith’s original plans called for.
The facility will feature “an incredible level of service ... at a price and value anyone can afford,” Ramirez promised.
It will be the flagship of a series of similar hotels Down plans to build in several states, he said. And it will follow his business model of giving back to the community by reimbursing nonprofit shelter programs for the homeless for each hotel room booked.
Down also operates a chain of sandwich shops providing food for needy people in return for meals purchased. He said he plans to build a dozen Even Stevens’ sandwich shops in Oregon in the next year, and plans to site one in downtown McMinnville.
His roster of companies also includes a financial education program, Financially Fit, along with marketing firms, construction companies and other businesses.
When they spoke to the Band of Brothers, Down and Ramirez were joined by Neil Bergstrom, head of acquisitions, who will manage the Evergreen site.
The three also addressed a crowd of chamber members, museum staff, docents and area residents at a community town hall Thursday morning. And they took pains to thank the veterans for their role in preserving America’s freedoms.
Down noted that members of his generation and those who have followed sometimes take for granted the sacrifices of veterans. They may forget that in World War II, for example, “The world was literally in crisis. Our freedoms were in jeopardy.
“Please accept my gratitude for the sacrifices your generation made,” he told the Band of Brothers, which counts 23 WWII vets among its ranks, along with veterans of Korea, Vietnam and more recent wars.
Down said he discovered the Evergreen museum complex last November, when he was considering launching a small jet service with multiple hubs, each featuring a small museum of vintage aircraft.
He Googled “aviation museum” and began reading about Evergreen. Its mission of preserving and honoring veterans conformed with his own, he said.
A native of Klamath Falls, the Utah resident flew to Oregon and loved what he found in McMinnville. He returned last week during a vacation trip with his wife, Colleen, along with his mother and three of his sons.
“I couldn’t wait for my boys to see this amazing campus,” he said, noting his family was especially awed by the B-17, a bomber that flew in World War II.
He also praised the docents and staff. “I was hooked once I met the volunteers who donate time and a wealth of energy, knowledge and experience,” he told the veterans, many of whom serve as docents themselves.
Down said he has guaranteed success of the complex to docents, “in order to preserve this for future generations.”
He said he wants to attract more artifacts, including historic planes, and to “drive funding to buy more.” He said he also supports educational efforts, including the McMinnville School District’s Engineering and Aerospace Sciences Academy, which meets in the space museum.
It’s a sacred honor and privilege, he said, to continue the vision of the late Del Smith, Evergreen’s founder, and his son, the late Michael King Smith, who dreamed of the aviation museum and educational facility.
In addition to preserving history, Down and his managers said their aim is to make the Falls Center Event complex at Evergreen a prime destination for all sorts of events.
Ramirez said they want people to visit for a corporate event or a wedding, or stop at the hotel during a family vacation.
While here, they want visitors to take advantage of all the complex has to offer. They can slide out of the 747 into the Wings & Waves pool, for instance, or learn about the history of aviation and space exploration in the museums.
“We want to make sure kids know these planes flew,” Ramirez said, noting that the museums’ hundreds of docents bring that history alive.
They want their visitors to stay for several days and see other sights and businesses in and around McMinnville as well.
“We want to bring more people here,” he said. “Not enough know how special this is.”
