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Carl Collier 2014 recipient Born and raised in Fayetteville, Carl Collier grew up in his family's drugstore on Dickson Street. "I washed dishes at the soda fountain, stocked shelves, made deliveries," he said, referring to the Fayetteville landmark founded in 1917. "I had a brother and a sister and that was just part of grow- ing up," he said. "After school, whenever, all us kids were at the drug store." After graduating from Kemper Military School and College in Missouri, Collier attended UAMS College of Pharmacy in Little Rock. After graduat- ing with a pharmacy degree in 1964, he joined his father, Morris G., and brother, Morris H., at Col- lier Drug Store. The store has since grown to eight locations in Washington and Benton counties, employing 18 pharmacists and 70 staff members. Collier has been semi-retired since 2007, when his son Mel took over operations, but he still works as a relief pharmacist when needed, greeting longtime customers with his friendly smile and cheerful disposition. "I work a certain schedule, but if (an employ- ee) has got a kid in a school play and they need to be there a couple of hours, I'm going to be there," he said. In 2010, Collier received the Eagle Award from the Washington Regional Medical Foundation for his commitment to improving healthcare in Northwest Arkansas and the Community Service Award from the Arkansas Pharmacists Association. He has also been active in what, he describes, "seems like most of the nonprofit agencies in Fayetteville." Those include the American Red Cross, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Fayetteville Rotary Club, United Way, Washington Regional Hospice, Dickson Street Improvement Committee and Fayetteville Public Schools, among others. Collier and his wife, Janet, have two children and four grandchildren. His wife and children are graduates of Fayetteville High School. "When you are a resident here, you owe the town an effort to make it better. This can be coach- ing Little League, delivering meals to shut-ins, the list is endless," Collier said. "Mel and Carl have grown a family business into a regional powerhouse while maintaining the family owned feeling that patients first fell in love with 100 years ago," said Scott Pace, executive vice president and CEO of the Arkansas Pharmacists Association. "They were invested, and they are still invested in the people of Northwest Arkansas and their health." Collier said he was honored and humbled to receive the Wes Gordon Golden Deeds Award, named for a man who lived two blocks from his childhood home and was a close friend and con- temporary of his father. Collier's father was also president of the Chamber. "I grew up an advocate. I accompanied dad to the Chamber and their events regularly with Wes presiding. I held him in high esteem," Collier said. As the town he grew up in and invested his career in, Fayetteville has been Collier's focus. He applauds the Chamber's success in recruiting new businesses and introducing the owners and employees to the business world of Fayetteville. "I feel we have been able to grow and retain the good quality of life," Collier noted. "Avoiding heavy industry is important to me." Although the pharmacy has been around for more than a century, growth and change have been key to its success: In 1947, the pharmacy was the first Kodak dealer in Arkansas; when the Dickson Street store opened in 1950, it joined the Capitol in Little Rock as the only buildings in the state to have electric doors; and in 1974, the company was the fourth pharmacy in the United States to begin using computerized recordkeeping. "I grew up in business and have been motivat- ed to improve and embrace change," Collier said. "Colliers is always looking for new opportunities." When asked to name the best thing about Fayetteville, Collier replied, "It has to be our education facilities. From birth to death, there are learning opportunities here." 12

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