Local 411
Serial Volunteer
If anyone has earned the title of Oro Valley’s Male Volunteer of the Year, it’s Dick Eggerding. Not that he would agree. “I’m really embarrassed about this thing. About the whole thing,” he says with genuine humility. “But it’s a marvelous honor because it’s from my community.”
Eggerding doesn’t work for awards or admiration. Rather he sees himself as a “volunteer entrepreneur.” “It’s a personality thing. I just like to start things,” he says.
And start things he has: The Greater Oro Valley Arts Council, the Oro Valley Public Art Code and the creation of the 1 percent for Public Art funding, The Oro Valley Historical Society. And that’s just the tip of things. Eggerding has also served as chair of the Oro Valley Arts Advisory Board, chair of the Public Arts Endowment Advisory Committee, chair of the Naranja Town Park Site Task Force and president of the Oro Valley Community Foundation. Add to that co-authoring the Steam Pump Ranch Master Plan and bringing the Symphony to Oro Valley and you get a good idea that the award has been a long time coming. His work in the community stretches back to the early 90s when he was president of his homeowner’s association.
Looking at all that Eggerding has done for the community, it’s easy to see a common string: the arts. “I have a great love of the arts and a great love of history,” he says. A love which has been a part of his life from his days as a youngster with the St. Louis Municipal Opera as a tenor soloist, as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Cincinnati Art Museum, as founder of the Cincinnati Fire Museum, and in his work with the Cincinnati Symphony and Opera.
While Eggerding might not be as active as he once was--he was diagnosed with and underwent surgery for prostate cancer and told to slow it down a little--he is still fully entrenched in the arts and volunteer work, as president of the Oro Valley Community Foundation. The foundation, while still in its infancy, has already made its mark on the community by providing funding for GOVAC’s “Music Gold” program for children.
Looking at all that Eggerding has done for the Oro Valley arts community it’s easy to see that, embarrassed or not, Dick Eggerding is well deserving of title Volunteer of the Year.
Town Historian
By Gary Lawrence • Photography By Jennifer Polixenni Brankin
For Pat Spoerl, retirement hasn’t gone as exactly planned. But then again, there wasn’t really any plan to begin with. After taking early retirement from the National Forest Service after 27 years, Spoerl was suddenly left with plenty of time on her hands and an ongoing passion for archeology and historic preservation.
“When I retired, I wanted to continue doing the fun kinds of things related to archeology,” she says. “The timing worked out well because in ‘04 there was the acquisition of the Honey Bee Village archeological site and historic Steam Pump Ranch. The town didn’t have an archeologist or historical person on staff. The town needed me, and I had the interest.”
A wife and mother, Spoerl has spent her retirement involved in the general plan revision for Oro Valley, co-drafting a master plan for the Steam Pump site with Dick Eggerding and, in 2005, with Eggerding and Jim Kreigh, founding the Oro Valley Historical Society. The society, which is still without a home and operates out of the various board member’s houses, is formed around the idea of not just preserving Oro Valley’s history but also integrating the past into the community’s future. But the Society isn’t looking for preservation for preservation’s sake, says Spoerl, the Historical Society’s president. “To be valuable, historic places have to be available to the community, they have to be used,” she asserts. One of the Society’s long-term projects is the creation of an oral history of the town and its people. The taped conversations will then be available for the public. Also slated is the creation of a museum — currently the Historical Society has just two display cases at the library — more programs, tours of Steam Pump Ranch and Honey Bee Village and the possibility of a pioneer and a Native American garden at the Steam Pump.
It is this dedication to the town that has led to Spoerl being named the Oro Valley Female Volunteer of Year for 2008. As a showcase of her dedication, Spoerl was unabashedly humble at the awards ceremony, a night where it was her time to shine. “The night was an opportunity to highlight the progress the town has made in preserving it’s history and an opportunity to keep up the awareness that we can make connections between the past present and future.” n
Boot Camp the Boomer Way
By Christy Krueger • Photography By Jennifer Polixenni Brankin
Boot camp. The term evokes visions of muscle-bound sergeants shouting at sheepish recruits. But that’s not to say that you should be afraid of Oro Valley’s new fitness program with the same name. Boomer Boot Camp, which is designed for, but not limited to Baby Boomers, trades the in-your-face screaming for gentle motivational techniques and safe exercises that are suitable for all fitness levels; think more Private Benjamin than Full Metal Jacket.
Keri Ruffell, owner of 1-2-3 Fit, heads the Boomer Boot Camp program, which meets at CDO Riverfront Park. “A typical session starts with a warm-up and opening discussion about goals, and I give a quote of the day,” Ruffell explains. The exercising begins with strength training and cardio, “to get the heart rate up.” Abdominal work and stretching with meditation follows. After the first two months, she reports, “we have a 100 percent return rate” for participants.
Regulars Tina Holt and Sharon Kantor say they enjoy the extra push, admitting it’s a challenge and inspiring, but not something they can’t do.
Ruffell recently expanded her studio, adding yoga, Pilates and exercise classes. The space also allows Boomer Boot Camp to operate year-round. Ruffell’s intention is to continue the outdoor sessions, which are offered in conjunction with Oro Valley Parks & Recreation, and move indoors during inclement weather and for the summer.
What is it about the program that attracts Boomers? Ruffell believes people enjoy contact with their peers, and the concept of wellness greatly appeals to this generation. In addition, she says, “We create an atmosphere of self-worth and motivation.”
Boomer Boot Camp offers six one-hour sessions per week. Schedules are found at TownofOroValley.com, see Parks & Recreation Fitness Classes, or call 1-2-3 Fit at 520.575.9800.
Visit 1-2-3 Fit at 10370 N. La Cañada Dr., or at 123fit.com/orovalley for more information.
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