John Bettendorf

Last night at our Council meeting I read my letter of support of John Bettendorf's nomination for Young Retailer of the Year - which he won. John has brought great honor to the City of Isanti through his hard work and dedication to our community. Following is the text of the letter.

I have had the pleasure of knowing John Bettendorf over the past several years. John’s hard work and dedication to the City of Isanti has made our city stronger. His commitment to the business community as exemplified by his leadership in the Isanti Area Chamber of Commerce and the Isanti City Partnership has shown how a young and innovative individual can lift the aspiration of us all. The Isanti City Partnership is a group of city and business leaders that promotes economic development in our community. John brings an energy and knowledge base to each meeting that has helped guide us to ever greater achievements. His leadership within the Chamber of Commerce makes him a natural to take the helm as President in April 2008.

A hardware store in a City of 5,000 is a critical asset. I am in awe of John’s dedication to making the Isanti Hardware Hank a cornerstone of our community. He has improved the service level and product base which has improved not only his reputation but that of our City. John’s dedication to Isanti has shown through with all the time, energy and materials he has donated to community causes. He gives freely of his MC and DJ services at community events, donated paint to our volunteer Community Center remodeling and is taking the lead on a project to improve our downtown even though his own business is not located there. In the few short years John has owned the Hardware Hank he has left and indelible mark upon Isanti and shown how an excellent corporate citizen should behave.