'It's a Wonderful World'

Gerald Harp has been known to say, "You can't out-give God," according to his wife Vicki. But many in Springdale might think Harp has come close.

The Harps will be honored Saturday night during the 2017 Rotary Foundation banquet in gratitude for their contributions to the club and its projects.

"I'm convinced there's dozens of things he's done that nobody knows about," said Perry Webb, president of the Springdale Chamber of Commerce. "He would do whatever he was able to do if it needed to be done."

Gerald Harp served as president of the family chain of Harps Food Stores in 1995. He sold his stock to the employees and retired in August 2001.

PROJECTS PERSONAL

Vicki and Gerald Harp are Level 6 major donors to the Rotary Foundation, which supports "service projects that change lives both close to home and around the world," reads the Rotary website.

"They are Arch Klumph Society members," added John Williams, district governor for Rotary International District 6110. Klumph, outgoing Rotary president in 1917, proposed setting up an endowment "for the purpose of doing good in the world." Klumph started the foundation with a $26.50 donation. The Harps' contributions over the years probably reach into millions, Williams said.

"There are so many [causes] that Rotary supports -- eradicating polio, helping babies with cleft palates," Vicki Harp said. "We even have doctors who collect old glasses and take them overseas, and then mothers see their babies for the first time."

The Harps also traveled to Third World communities to see water wells being drilled. Vicki recalled a picture of a worm that invades bodies through their water source. "We helped give people clean water for the first time in their life," she said. "We take clean water for granted."

Gerald also feels close to the American Wheelchair Mission, which provides wheelchairs around the world to people who need them, Vicki said.

Noel Morris, Springdale Rotary president 15 years ago, met Chris Lewis, son of comedian Jerry Lewis, at the club's international convention, according to the club's website. Lewis shared the vision of the wheelchair mission. Morris introduced it to the local club, and Gerald Harp got behind it. As of 2016, the local club has impacted nearly 10,000 lives. And Lewis will speak at Saturday night's banquet.

"There were family members carrying people for miles to get a wheelchair," Vicki Harp said. "Without this, they would live their life in bed or in a shopping basket just waiting for someone to push them."

Vicki said this program was special because Gerald's son, the late Jerry Harp, was wheelchair-bound after a swimming accident at age 19 in 1981.

"If Jerry got a flat tire, he was just busted," Vicki said. "He couldn't go anywhere."

And because of Jerry's condition, Gerald Harp also pushed for the Springdale Rotary Club to build the Miracle League Fields and Adventure Park in Rotary Park at the Randal Tyson Recreational Complex. Both baseball fields and playground equipment are designed for use by children with disabilities.

Webb, the Chamber president, shared the history of the park. "It was suggested by Blake Hanby of First United Methodist Church [in Springdale], and Rotary really got behind it. At the end of the day, when the club had raised enough money for one field, Gerald matched it for two."

He even got to throw out the first ball when the fields opened, Vicki Harp said proudly.

COMMUNITY BUILDING

Although the Harps' accomplishments listed during the banquet Saturday will focus on the Rotary club, their generosity goes much further.

"They are so generous, even outside of Rotary," said Joy Drummond, a fellow Rotarian and community leader.

One day, Gerald Harp saw some boys fishing at Murphy Park lake, but they weren't catching any fish. The next day, he arranged to have the pond stocked with fish, Drummond reported.

When Jerry Harp died, the family took donations and created "Jerry's Room," an isolation room for puppies, at the Springdale Animal Shelter. "It was a really nice gesture," Drummond said. "And they did it because Jerry loved animals."

"The wealth he has accumulated, he is sharing with the community," Williams said, listing youth programs, hospitals, Ozark Guidance, Springdale Chamber of Commerce, food pantries and the University of Arkansas as just a few causes. "He knew he and his family were blessed."

Webb remembered a Chamber board meeting shortly after the organization moved into its current location. During the meeting, Webb said that the Chamber needed $50,000 to continue updates on the building. Spontaneously, after the meeting, Gerald Harp told Webb he would donate the money.

"They are all about their community, all about their family and all about their church. That's all they think about," said Beverly Charleton, a longtime friend of the Harps. "And their schools. They love Springdale schools."

"In 2002, the Springdale School District named an elementary school in honor of the Harp family after Gerald Harp donated more than $500,000 to defray costs of buying the land and equipment for the school off Butterfield Coach Road," reads a 2005 article in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

"[Gerald] worked with me at every turn to make the schools better," said Jim Rollins, superintendent of Springdale schools.

"Like we are, he was focused on the needs of the kids," Rollins continued.

"He knew that helping children in the community long term meant helping all of the community," Rollins continued. "That was at the center of his thoughts. He worked with me at every turn to make the schools better.

"What I always know is, if the schools needed support, Gerald and Vicki and Harps Food could be counted on.

"And he has instilled that culture as a support system," Rollins said. Harps Food Stores continues to be an active partner with the school system, including supporting teachers on individual levels.

"We all feel that. The community feels that."

FIRST SUPERMARKET

"Harps [Food Stores] started as a family business in the 1930s, and the boys pretty much bought in and took turns at leadership," said Huey Couch, longtime advertising manager for Harps Food Stores. [The boys refers to Harvard Harp's sons, the late Don Harp, the late Reland Harp and Gerald.]

In 1930, Harvard Harp opened Harp's Cash Grocery at the corner of East Emma Avenue and Water Street. In 1953, the first supermarket in Springdale, Harp's IGA, followed. Gerald Harp grew up in his father's stores, bagging groceries and stocking shelves.

When Gerald Harp retired, he sold his stock to the employees. "He sold the store with the goal of employee ownership, Drummond said. "That's what makes [the stores] really good, really competitive."

"And he did it just because he cared," said Roger Collins, the chairman of the board for Harps and outgoing chief executive officer. "He was a really good leader, and the thing that makes him a good leader is he cares about the people."

Harp was introduced to Rotary in 1968, when he was asked to replace his father in the organization after the elder man's death, according to the Democrat-Gazette article. He served as president of the Springdale Rotary Club from 1977 to 1978. He was named Rotarian of the year for the club in 1997 and received the Rotary Foundation District Service Award in 1998. He was named as governor for Rotary International District 6110 in 2005 and visited each of the 78 chapters in the region, which covers parts of Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma.

'CARED ABOUT THE PEOPLE'

"Gerald Harp does not really want this recognition," Williams said.

"But it feels so wonderful to have somebody help and appreciate you," Vicki Harp said. "We love Rotary. There are so many great people in Rotary."

"When some people give, they give with an ulterior motive," Webb said. "There is no ulterior motive with Gerald and Vicki Harp."

"Gerald always said, 'You can accomplish anything if you're not keeping score," Vicki Harp said.

"He's a giver," she said of her husband. "And he taught me about giving. He says, 'Be kind. Everyone you meet is carrying a heavy load.'"

Others in the community appreciated his friendship, too.

"One thing that always impressed me was he would make stops at the hospital to see old classmates," Collins said.

"Gerald was one of the first community leaders who met me when I arrived in Springdale in 1980," Rollins said. "He was really casting out a welcoming net, and he meant it. He made me feel part of the community."

The two soon found out they had lots of similar interests, from farming to farm sales and rodeo.

And, Rollins noted, the couple sends out thoughtful notes every holiday. "They really keep you inspired to be part of the community."

"He just cared about the people," Collins said of the Harps employees. "He had a magnetic personality. people were drawn to him. everybody who met Gerald would say he is personable and draws in people. He engages personally with them."

And right by Gerald's side stands his wife, Vicki.

"She's a very active part of Gerald's life," Collins said. "Vicki is a great supporter of Gerald. She works really hard to make his life run smoothly."

"Vicki is also a wonderful and caring person. She's a friend to everyone. She never met a stranger," Couch said.

"She was a good daughter to her parents, who were ill," Charleton said. "She is family oriented. She is ready as a friend to step in at any time when you need her -- happy or sad, either way. She is very good to brighten your day."

Vicki also loves her church, Cross Church in Springdale, and is very happy to invite people to come, Charleton said. Plus, she is an excellent Bible scholar.

When Gerald was governor of Rotary, he had the responsibility of visiting all 78 Rotary clubs in the district. Vicki joined him on all but one.

"Gerald wrote this wonderful speech," she said. "It was from the heart. It was so beautiful. I enjoyed hearing it every time he gave it. At the end, he would play Louis Armstrong's 'It's a Wonderful World.' It brought tears to my eyes every time."

"She was cleaving unto Gerald and in his shadow," Williams said.

Charleton grew up in Springdale and remembers Gerald Harp being very nice as he carried groceries to customers' cars. The friendship grew, and she attend Razorback football games and traveled with the Harps -- including some Rotary mission trips.

"They are very fun to be with," Charleton said. "Gerald and Vicki are like a big ol' glass of sweet tea!"

NAN Our Town on 04/20/2017