Small Town News

Cheryl Rondeau-Bassett named 2009 NARFE Volunteer of the Year

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Additional information was submitted this week to us about Cheryl Rondeau-Bassett, the recipient of the 2009 NARFE Volunteer of the Year. The following information was provided by Shirley Bassett and prepared for print by Dorothy Nielsen.

Cheryl Rondeau-Bassett of Wilmot, SD was the recipient of the 2009 Volunteer of the Year Recognition by National Active and Retired Federal Employees (NARFE) Chapter 2220 of Sisseton, SD.

Cheryl graduated from Wilmot High School in 1970. She then attended the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis studying in the College of Architecture for a short time. She returned to Wilmot in 1972 and operated the cafe for several years. She became a sales consultant for Bee-line Fashions and by 1978, she had worked her way up to Division Manager of North and South Dakota.

The family moved to Lebanon, OR where she worked for Century 21 Accent Realty and attended Lynn-Benton Community College in Albany, OR. After returning to Wilmot, she worked as a Marketing Director for Hercules Metal in Corona for three years. In 1984 she attended Harmony Hill Education Center in Watertown and earned an associate degree in Business Management. She continued her education and in 1988, earned a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing and History from Mount Marty College.

In 1988, she became the editor of the Wilmot Enterprise and the following year she purchased the business and became the publisher, also.

All of this was accomplished while raising her five sons and one daughter as a singe parent.

In 1994 she married Scott Bassett and they remodeled and decorated one of the oldest homes in Wilmot. Every fall she sets up a huge Christmas display in her yard, which attracts people from the area. Last year, she added music to the display. During the mid 90's, she welcomed several exchange students into her home.

In September 1995, while editor of the Wilmot Enterprise, she was invited to join a team of professional women, business leaders, community activists and volunteers as a delegate to the US/China Joint Conference on Women's Issues held in Beijing, China. The delegation was composed of 580 women, and Cheryl felt that it made a huge impact in giving support to the Chinese women.

After selling her newspaper business, she opened Giggliotti's Sidewalk Cafe in Wilmot, and taught at the Sisseton Wahpeton Community College at Agency Village and Mount Marty College in Watertown. She has worked for Mid-Con Inc. in Watertown and more recently, at Edina Realty in Chanhassen, MN and became a licensed realtor in Minnesota, North and South Dakota. In 2003, she received the Leadership Circle Award for her level of achievement. Although she is no longer with Edina Realty, she does have her own real estate business in Wilmot known as Rondeau Realty.

She is presently the director of the Corona Learning Center while also finishing her Master's degree in Journalism with a minor in Education from SDSU.

Cheryl is also the Parish Assistant at Wilmot Lutheran Church and a lay pastor for area churches. Several years ago when the congregation wanted to redecorate the interior of the church, she found a painting crew from Minneapolis who agreed to do the job at a reduced rate. She opened her home for them to stay and provided breakfast and any meals not provided by the congregation.

She is President of the Wilmot Community Club and provides leadership for their many activities, including the annual Harvest Fest. She helped organize the first dinner theatre and helped to raise the money to purchase a new speaker system for the Wilmot Community Center.

She is a member of the City Council and also the Strategic Planning Committee for the Heart of the Whetstone Valley Horizons, a group with a goal to promote Wilmot, Corona and the Big Stone Lake area.

If you were to ask her what she is most proud of, I'm sure Cheryl would say it is her family. They are all grown now, on their own and responsible citizens of their communities. She also has eight grandchildren whom she adores and as often as possible, she is on the road to take in their activities. She sets aside one week during the summer for what the children call "Grandma Camp." They all come to her home and "camp" with Grandpa and Grandma. Tents are set up in the back yard and many group activities are planned.

Cheryl raises a large garden every year which she shares with family and friends. Through the Horizon's project she helped to start a weekly Farmers Market in Wilmot. Her beautiful roses and other flowers are also enjoyed by many.

NARFE Chapter of Sisseton is happy to present their annual volunteer award to Cheryl.



Copyright 2009 The Wilmot Enterprise, Wilmot, South Dakota. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2010 The Wilmot Enterprise Wilmot, South Dakota. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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