2008 Chamber community service awards announced

The Whitefish Chamber of Commerce recently announced winners of their community service awards for service to the Whitefish community in 2008.

The winners will be honored at the Chamber's annual meeting at Grouse Mountain Lodge on Sunday, May 3, from 3-5 p.m.

¥ Doug Loy has been selected for the Whitefish City Government Worker of the Year Award.

Loy has been a member of the Whitefish Fire Department since 1977. He became the fire department's first full-time employee in 1993.

Loy also served as interim fire chief during former fire chief Dave Sipes' extended illness, and he helped Tom Kennelly transition into his new position as Whitefish fire chief.

¥ Bill, Gene and Joe Hill have been selected for the Youth Activities Volunteers of the Year Award.

The Hill brothers are well-known from their business, Hill Brothers Auto Body, but they have also spent countless volunteer hours for the betterment of Whitefish baseball.

The three brothers played baseball growing up in Whitefish, and as their children got involved in the sport, they started coaching. In addition to coaching for the past 15 years, they have also spent numerous hours working on the fields, donating time, money and materials.

The brothers are also the main organizers, trainers and referees for the Cat/Dog Smoker, a fundraiser for the Glacier Twins. Hill Brothers Auto Body also has a long history of donating money, services and autos to the Bulldog Booster Club.

¥ Alisha Wickham has been selected for the Educator of the Year Award.

Wickham teaches special education in the structured-learning program for grades K-4 at Muldown Elementary School. The program is directed for children with emotional and behavioral needs.

Wickham is recognized as an outstanding educator. Teachers come here from throughout the area to observe her and mimic the success of the program based on a positive behavior management plan.

¥ Don K Chevrolet and DePratu Ford Volkswagen have been selected for the Businesses of the Year Award.

The Chevrolet dealership in Whitefish has served the community since the 1950s. It became Don K Chevrolet in 1990 and has expanded several times. In 2001, Don K moved to its current location on U.S. 93 south.

Don Kaltschmidt has served on numerous city advisory committees, from "dark skies' and growth policy to impact fees and trees. He's a past president of the Rotary Club and was a bishop for 5 1/2 years at the local Mormon Church.

Don K Chevrolet is a regular contributor for Montana Special Olympics and has donated vehicles to veteran programs and for the high school graduating party raffle.

Started by Bob DePratu in 1964, the DePratu business is one of the oldest family-owned and operated dealerships in Montana. Bob's son Bart and Jeff Brown are partners in the current Whitefish business that employs 51 people.

As a family business, the DePratu children got involved at an early age. Bart recalls that starting at age 11, if he and his siblings were not involved in extracurricular activities at school, they would be washing cars on the DePratu lot.

Brown and Bart DePratu were childhood friends — Brown's father, "Cowboy Ken," was Bob DePratu's first sales manager. Brown serves on the advisory board of the Salvation Army and Family Concepts.

¥ Lisa and Jim Stack were selected for the Citi-zens of the Year Award.

The Stacks are both third-generation Montana natives and have been actively volunteering in the community for nearly 30 years.

In the early 1990s, they organized and led an 18-month effort to establish a valleywide telephone exchange that eliminated all long-distance charges for telephone calls throughout the Flathead Valley — from Whitefish to Polson.

Recognizing a need for specialized rescue equipment on Whitefish Lake, the Stacks and another local couple donated a rescue hovercraft to the Whitefish Fire Department in 2006 and organized construction of a storage hangar at City Beach.

Last summer, Jim and Lisa organized the donation and replacement of new stoves at Granite Park Chalet in Glacier National Park.

Always operating as a team, the Stacks have volunteered a combined 29 years on the Whitefish Lake and Lakeshore Protection Committee, as chairman and administrative assistant, and continue their stewardship in protecting the lake they love.