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| Family: Larry Haugen was 'community minded' |
By: Ed Lee and Kurt Hildebrandt
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Posted: Sunday, March 29, 2009 9:17 pm
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Larry Haugen (left) has each year been one of the key organizers of the Fourth of July Parade and Picnic in the Park. He is pictured July 4, 2006 with Cub Scout Pack 58 Scoutmaster Jeff Kienholz.
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ST. PETER - Larry Haugen’s wife and sons said he was always steeped in civic service.
“He was a community-minded person,” said Larry’s wife Sharon. “He lived his life like that.”
Larry Haugen, St. Peter Area Chamber of Commerce President/CEO, passed away unexpectedly on Saturday evening when suffering a heart attack.
Visitation is 4-6 p.m. Thursday, April 3 at St. Peter Funeral Home-Klein Chapel and one hour on Friday preceding the 1 p.m. memorial service at Trinity Lutheran Church in St. Peter. Please click on “obituaries” at the top of the home page.
Haugen respected the community and appreciated the willingness of volunteers to help on chamber events and committees, Sharon said.
“Where ever we go, whatever we do, people say the same things about how committed Larry was to the community.”
Haugen was employed at Chambers of Commerce in Aberdeen SD, Worthington Minn., and Austin Minn and served the past 12 and a half years as the President and CEO of the St. Peter Chamber of Commerce.
Haugen’s sons — Scott, Ryan and Mike — stopped into the Chamber office this week to say hello to Emily.
“Everywhere we go here in town, people talk about how he is going to be missed and all of the things he did for St. Peter,” said son Scott, from Nashville. “As a son, to hear that, there are no words to express the sense of pride.
“He loved serving the people of St. Peter. He had no plans to retire. He enjoyed his job,” Scott added.
“He never quit working,” said son Ryan. “He loved taking care of his community. He wanted to be active. I know my father loved St. Peter, and I know St. Peter loved him.”
Ryan remembers that as he was growing up, tagging along with Larry to community events in other cities where Larry was chamber manager.
Said son Mike, who lives in St. Peter, “The phone hasn’t stopped ringing. People are calling, neighbors and everyone are stopping by to say what he did for St. Peter.”
St. Peter Mayor Tim Strand said, “The thing that stands out in my mind is Larry is the main reason the relationship between the city and Chamber improved so much over the last 12 years. Not that there was friction between the two, but he definitely helped build a stronger relationship.
“He was very dedicated to his duties and responsibilities and, in my contacts with others from outside of St. Peter, he was very well respected.
“It is a tremendous loss for the city and he’ll be sorely missed not only for his work with the Chamber but also as someone who really supported St. Peter.”
“St. Peter was so fortunate to have Larry for 12 and a half years,” said Chamber Administrative Assistant Emily Peck, who together with Haugen have staffed the chamber office, which is at 101 S. Front St. “He was always thinking about St. Peter and doing what he did best.”
St. Peter Community Development Director Russ Wille said: “This opens a huge void for not just the business community of St. Peter but for the city of St. Peter as a whole.
“Larry had a very steady influence on this community and for us, he was such a valuable resource because visiting with him was always a good opportunity for us to gauge was was happening on the street, so to speak.
“We used to see him here on a daily basis and what was great is that he’d always tell you how things were. He didn’t always agree with us and would let us know. However, when that happened he was always very thoughtful and respectful in how he conveyed that to us.”
Haugen was the face of the chamber because he was the front man for Winterfest, the Annual Social, the Amigo Golf Outing, the Old-Fashioned Parade and Picnic in the Park on the Fourth of July, the Annual Sweepstakes and many other events, such as monthly Business After Hours and quarterly Business-Education Round tables.
The Chamber Board Executive Committee met Monday morning to reflect on Haugen’s service to the community and determine how best to support Chamber Administrative Assistant Emily Peck. A full board meeting will be scheduled soon to determine next steps.
The chamber will host the Annual Social at 6 p.m. on Saturday, April 4, just as originally planned. The chamber executive committee decided Larry would have wanted it that way.
The chamber led focus groups last fall. Comments from all who attended were positive. Haugen mentioned during the groups that he would be open and appreciative of statements to this effect: “I wish the chamber would ... finish the sentence” or “I wish Larry would ... .” But after that solicitation, no one spoke.
Board members have since January been making retention calls to chamber members, and comments have been positive.
Scott offered a moment of levity when he said, “Dad is probably up there right now organizing a fund-raiser of some type.”
Larry had the keys to the Pearly Gates, which are right outside the chamber building, Scott said.
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