Stars Who Came Back
Stu Barnes and Olie Kolzig
Professional hockey players and owners, Tri-City Americans hockey team
Olie Kolzig (left) and Stu Barnes (right).
You know you've arrived when you get your own Bobblehead doll.
Kolzig and Barnes played together on the original Tri-City Americans hockey team starting in 1988, then became stars of the National Hockey League for more than a decade: Kolzig with the Washington Capitals and Barnes with Pittsburgh, Florida, Buffalo, and Dallas. Meanwhile, the Tri-City Americans had struggled through a number of mangement changes and were in danger of being relocated to British Columbia. In 2005, Barnes and Kolzig, with Bob Tory and Dennis Loman, bought the Americans to keep it in the community they love. Barnes and Kolzig both have homes in the Tri-CIties. Kolzig is also an entrepreneur and philanthropist who has invested in restaurants, construction companies, and real estate, as well as founding the Carson Kolzig Foundation in honor of his son Carson, who is autistic. Said Kolzig, "I've got a wonderful lifestyle and my kids are taken care of for the rest of their lives because of hockey. I feel that because of where I'm at I can give back."
Chris Parkinson, President and CEO
Ron Gilbert, CTO
IntegralRFID
Companies and government organizations are requiring more and more electronic tracking of inventory, and this Richland consulting and technology integration company is capitalizing on this wave of opportunity. In just two years, it has begun offering its radiofrequency identification (RFID) tagging and reading operations for some heavy hitting customers: Unilever (which sells BirdsEye, Lipton, SlimFast, and Dove brands in 150 countries), The Gillette Company, Sara Lee, and Nestlé, among others. IntegralRFID Founders Parkinson and Gilbert initially worked at PNNL in Richland and eventually ended up at California-based Alien Technology, an RFID tag product developer. Longing for Tri-Cities family ties and weary of California congestion, Parkinson returned to the Tri-Cities in 2004 to start IntegralRFID. Gilbert joined him in 2005. Though on the road much of the time, they still call the Tri-Cities home.
Tom Hedges, Hedges Family Estate
Raised in the heart of farming country, Tom Hedges was born in Richland, Washington, just ten miles east from the Red Mountain grape growing area. Finished temporarily with college and craving adventure, Tom left for an extended stay in Europe at age 22. Traveling through England, France, Italy, Greece and Spain, he developed an affinity for the old architecture, a taste for the food, and an acceptance for wine as a possible substitute for American beer! Back in the States, Tom decided to pursue a degree in international business and received his M.I.M. in 1975 from the American Graduate School of International Management (Thunderbird) in Glendale, Arizona. After graduation, Tom led an international marketing career focused on food commodities. Castle and Cooke Foods employed him from 1976 to 1982, heading up offices in Vancouver, Canada, Phoenix, Philadelphia and Buenos Aires, Argentina. Next he worked for a small Dutch trading company in Seattle, importing Chilean produce and exporting fruit to the Far East and India. From 1984 to 1986, Tom served as President and CEO of McCain Produce Co. in New Brunswick, Canada, producing potatoes for export. Tom and Anne-Marie met in Guadalajara, Mexico, while they were both students, and were married in 1976. Anne-Marie grew up in a third-generation family business, so the possibility of having her own business with her husband held some appeal. In 1986 the Hedges came back to Washington and did just that. Anne-Marie went back to school for an accounting degree while Tom's contacts in the produce export market "planted the seeds" for Hedges Cellars. A winery was born and placed on Red Mountain near Benton City. Tom and Anne-Marie have been business partners ever since. Their wines are now sold in 45 states and 15 foreign countries.
Len Parris, Chandler Reach
"I think I could own a vineyard," said Len Parris, thinking of the acreage his father had owned, overlooking a bend in the Yakima River at Chandler Reach near Benton City. That was in 1996. The following spring, Parris—whose careers have ranged from plumbing contractor to land developer to founder of the Seattle-area Jitters Coffee chain—fired up his D-8 Caterpillar and started moving dirt. Today, he's the proprietor of Chandler Reach Estate Vineyards, growing 42 acres of red varietals and reaping medals for his limited-volume wines, which last year totaled 2,500 cases. (excerpted from "Romantic idea becomes successful winery," By Thomas P. Skeen, Walla Walla Union Bulletin)
