{"id":23007,"date":"2021-11-16T17:07:37","date_gmt":"2021-11-16T23:07:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/und-today\/?p=23007"},"modified":"2021-11-16T17:31:53","modified_gmt":"2021-11-16T23:31:53","slug":"a-tribute-to-norm-skalicky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/und-today\/2021\/11\/a-tribute-to-norm-skalicky\/","title":{"rendered":"A tribute to Norm Skalicky"},"content":{"rendered":"

The business executive and benefactor shared his fortune with many \u2014 including his alma mater, UND<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"UND lost an exceptional friend, and central Minnesota lost an extraordinary benefactor and banking leader when Norman C. Skalicky passed away Nov. 7 in Maple Grove, Minn.<\/p>\n

Skalicky, 87, was a Horatio Alger success story of the 20th and 21st centuries, one who always took time to credit UND with helping him get his start. A self-described \u201cscared farm kid\u201d when he left the family farm in Brocket, N.D., to enter UND, Skalicky graduated in 1955 with an accounting degree.<\/p>\n

In 1966, Skalicky acquired two small banks that would eventually become Stearns Bank in St. Cloud, Minn. And by the 2000s, Skalicky had become one of most successful community bankers in America. But don\u2019t take our word for it: \u201cStearns Bank ranked as top community bank in the nation,\u201d the St. Cloud Times headlined in 2014, reporting on a finding by the Independent Community Bankers of America.<\/p>\n

By the way, the Times in that story quoted the then-CEO of Stearns Financial Services: none other than Norm Skalicky, age 80 at the time. Skalicky \u201cvows he\u2019ll never retire,\u201d the story reported, and the gentleman wasn\u2019t kidding: Skalicky stepped down as chairman of the Stearns Bank National Association Board in late October of this year, just over a week before he died.<\/p>\n

Getting the job done<\/h2>\n

Stearns Bank today is a nationwide financial institution with over $2.4 billion in assets, Skalicky\u2019s obituary in the St. Cloud Times reported.<\/p>\n

Heather Plumski, Stearns\u2019 chief financial and strategy officer, was asked earlier this year about the bank\u2019s success. One key is the bank\u2019s warm family atmosphere, Plumski said. But as the story reported:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile Stearns Bank has the close-knit environment you\u2019d expect from a family-run institution, Plumski says not to mistake that for avoiding hard work. \u2018Family means you are in it to get the job done, whether you\u2019re in the heat of harvest when you\u2019re putting up hay or rock picking in the spring,\u2019\u201d she says. \u2018You\u2019re doing tasks together that need to be done. A family works through that together and enjoys the benefits together.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Skalicky\u2019s keen business and management senses were matched by his decades-long philanthropy, generosity and community spirit. UND faculty, staff and students may already know this fact. After all, this story is being written on campus in the Skalicky Tech Incubator \u2013 now home to the UND Marketing & Communications Department \u2013 and Skalicky was a member of UND\u2019s William Budge Circle. That\u2019s the group which recognizes UND donors who have given between $1 million and $5 million.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe is one of those true North Dakota natives that’s really a great leader and an entrepreneur, who never forgot his home state and never forgot his alma mater,\u201d said DeAnna Carlson Zink, CEO of the UND Alumni Association & Foundation, to the Grand Forks Herald last week.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was very proud of both, and we are proud and thankful for all the impact he has had on many UND students.\u201d<\/p>\n

Generations to come<\/h2>\n

Less familiar to many in Grand Forks might be Skalicky\u2019s long history of philanthropy in the St. Cloud region. At the bottom of Skalicky\u2019s St. Cloud Times obituary is this note:<\/p>\n

\u201cMemorials are preferred to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Minnesota.\u201d When those donations to the Boys and Girls Clubs come in, they won\u2019t be the first associated with the Skalicky name, as this 2019 headline from the Star Tribune newspaper in Minneapolis makes clear:<\/p>\n

\u201cSt. Cloud philanthropist gives largest gift in Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Minnesota’s history.\u201d The $5 million gift from the Norman C. Skalicky Foundation will generate income of $250,000 a year, a huge boost for the nonprofit that serves about 6,500 youngsters in the region, the story reported.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an incredible gift and will positively impact the Boys and Girls Clubs for generations to come,\u201d spokeswoman Aimee Minnerath said in the story.<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s just the start. Search on \u201cSkalicky Foundation\u201d and \u201cSt. Cloud,\u201d and Google will return more than 400 results: 2019 Charity Challenge for food shelves, $150,000 match, plus comparable funds for multiple years in a row. Initiative Foundation, $10,000 endowment gift. Central Minnesota “Difference Maker” grant round, $110,000 to six nonprofits. Tri-Cap energy assistance programs, $25,000 donation.<\/p>\n

Wildest dreams<\/h2>\n

In 2004, Skalicky visited Grand Forks to watch the dedication of the Tech Incubator building in his name. \u201cI never imagined in my wildest dreams that there would be a building with my name on it,” Skalicky told about 100 people gathered at the Center for Innovation, the Grand Forks Herald reported.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s more from that story:<\/p>\n

\u201cSkalicky, in his own words, \u2018choked up\u2019 at times during his dedication speech, which was attended by his mother, a brother, three of his four grown children and some grandchildren.<\/p>\n

\u201c \u2018This is a great honor, even though this seems to go against what I learned in my childhood \u2014 and that’s humility,\u2019 Skalicky said.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the event, Tim O\u2019Keefe, then-CEO of the UND Alumni Association and Foundation, talked about Skalicky\u2019s remarkable career and extraordinary generosity. Then in his parting words, O\u2019Keefe spoke not only for UND and its alumni, but also for St. Cloud and the rest of central Minnesota, when he said:<\/p>\n

\u201cNorm \u2014 on behalf of all of us \u2014 thanks a million.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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