Goodwin Honored For Years Of Service To Rogers

Staff Photo J.T. Wampler Bob Goodwin gets a round of applause Thursday during a reception for the retiring Rogers city councilman.
Staff Photo J.T. Wampler Bob Goodwin gets a round of applause Thursday during a reception for the retiring Rogers city councilman.

ROGERS -- Bob Goodwin served 29 years on Rogers City Council, and helped guide the city through a period of unprecedented growth.

He was honored Thursday with a reception recognizing his service.

At A Glance

Bob Goodwin

Alderman Bob Goodwin served 29 years on Rogers City Council.

• He was appointed to Ward 3, Position 1 seat on the council in 1985 to replace Mike Jeffcoat who had moved out of the ward.

• A few years later the population shifted and ward lines were redrawn. Goodman became the Ward 4, Position 1 alderman.

• He made his first run for the seat in 1986 against Raymond Burns.

Source: Staff Report

Other aldermen said Goodwin served with distinction and always considered what residents wanted.

"Bob was a good mentor for me when I joined the council 26 years ago," said Alderman Mark Kruger.

"He also had Rogers in his heart, whether you agreed with him or not. He stayed true to his beliefs and the people of Rogers," Kruger said.

Goodwin always did his homework on items to be discussed at a council meeting, Kruger said.

"He was a great leader for the council and the city. He always tried to help people as a banker and an alderman," Kruger said.

Alderwoman Betsy Reithemeyer thanked Goodwin last week at his final council meeting.

"I appreciate all you have done for the city. You were my mentor when I came on the council about eight years ago. You are leaving some big shoes to fill," Reithemeyer said.

Buddy Wright, alderman, agreed with Kruger that Goodwin is a man of conscience.

"Bob was never afraid to speak up for what he believed and what was good for the residents. He was a respected banker for many years and a honest and concerned council member," Wright said.

Raymond Burns, president and chief executive officer of the Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce, had a surprise for Goodwin on Thursday.

"We are making you a lifetime honorary member of the chamber," Burns said. The membership is the highest award offered by at the chamber. "It's usually reserved for former chairmen of the board."

Goodwin said he moved to Springdale in 1950 and lived on a 40-acre farm.

"I wanted to be a farmer. I planted some crops and kept farming until I went broke," Goodwin said with a chuckle. "That's when I decided a needed to a job."

A friend was a banker, and Goodwin sought his advice.

"He asked me if I'd ever thought of becoming a banker. I said I hadn't considered it. He told me to think about. A week later I was working at First State Bank in Springdale," Goodwin said.

A few years later Goodwin and his wife moved to Rogers where he went to work for Farmers & Merchants Bank. He worked in other area banks the remainder of his career, mostly as a loan officer, he said.

"I decided to retire when I was 65, that was about 20 years ago, but I didn't want to leave the council," Goodwin said.

Rogers was a much smaller town when Goodwin began serving as an aldermen. He said there weren't many good roads then.

"That was one of our problems, we didn't have good roads coming into town," Goodwin said.

The construction of Interstate 49 changed that, Goodwin said.

"That put us on the map and things began to change, and they changed pretty fast once things got going," he said.

Goodwin said construction of the interstate was one of the two biggest things to happen since he moved to Northwest Arkansas.

"The other big thing was the building of Beaver Lake. The lake provided drinking water to the whole region. Those two things had the biggest impact on Northwest Arkansas and the transformation of Rogers, " Goodwin said.

NW News on 12/19/2014

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