GRINDSTONE AWARD
1968

 

Herbert E.
Shalkhauser
Herb Shalkhauser, Berea's Outstanding Citizen for 1968, came to Berea in 1941 and has left an indelible mark on the life of the community and its people ever since.

Herb is a native of Michigan, born in 1903 to Rev. and Mrs. Frederic Shalkhauser. He was educated at Bradley University in Illinois and took further advanced studies at Wartburg College and Toledo University.

Choosing banking as a career, he was employed by a bank in Toledo and by the State of Ohio banking department before moving to Berea to join the Commercial and Savings Bank, "under the clock" on the Triangle. He became president of Commercial and Savings in 1954. When this bank merged with Union Commerce Bank in 1955, Herb continued to manage the Berea Office until his retirement in 1968. His feelings that banking is a "people" business played a large part in helping financial institutions overcome the austere image they often bore.

Herb Shalkhauser's contributions to Berea and the Southwest area started soon after he arrived in town. He played a key role in having the Lewis Research Center of NASA located near the airport. His efforts on behalf of bond drives and a system of gasoline rationing during World War 11 earned him several citations from the federal government.

As Vice President of Berea's Charter Commission, he helped draft the original "Blueprint for City Government." Herb was a charter member of the Berea Chamber of Commerce, which he served as Treasurer and President. He was a longtime member of the Berea Planning Commission. He served as a board member of the Community Chest, Southwest General Hospital and Capital University. He has long handled the Salvation Army's Berea drive.

Herb is a member of St. Paul's Lutheran Church and has been extremely active in the affairs of his local church and of the synod.

He and his wife, Marie, live on Beech Street. They have three children and six grandchildren.
Presented April 23, 1968 Strosacker Hall, Baldwin-Wallace College