By M. Lane Crider P.E., LEED AP
If you’ve been wondering why this quarter’s newsletter is a little late, you can blame it on me. The newsletter has been held up waiting on me to finish this article. As I was composing my original article and referring to the drafts of the other articles in this edition, it occurred to me that I was having a bit of déjà vu! I was looking out at the plant site and all of the construction activities; our engineering team had recently hosted a lunch and learn for our employees to give them an update on all of the projects including what to expect over the next several months and years; and I was preparing to give a presentation to the Rogers Noon Rotary Club. The déjà vu happened when the theme of my article started coming together about all of this being worth it in the long run. “In The Long Run” was the theme of an article I wrote five years ago in 2021! At the time, the theme focused on the District’s newly updated Mission and Vision statements, our Strategic Plan, and examples of how previous Northwest Arkansas visionaries believed that their efforts would be worth it in the long run. The current article was trending more to the recognition (and some underlying encouragement for our amazing BWD team) that all the current stress, anxiety, and pressure to deliver more than $500 million of expansion projects in the next few years will all be worth it (in the long run).
I was pretty close to finishing this article, but then, on July 22nd, my focus shifted. I received the news that Paul Berry, a friend, mentor, and long-time government-relations consultant to Beaver Water District, had passed away the day before. There is no way that I could adequately describe Paul, other than he was ‘larger than life.’ His personality and aura were, at times, almost overwhelming. Mr. John Brummett, editorial columnist for the Arkansas Democrat Gazette and a close friend of Paul, offered a wonderful tribute in his article on July 26th. (If you haven’t read it already, I would encourage you to do so.) It was after reading John’s article, I realized that it would be fitting to rework this article and include a few words about Paul Berry in this edition of The Source.
I first met Paul years ago when I was on the Board of the Arkansas Society of Professional Engineers. The organization would routinely find it necessary to be at the Capital during Legislative General Sessions, and on several of those occasions I was introduced to Paul and was witness to his “holding court” in the hallways outside of committee meeting rooms. His ability to engage both sides of an issue and create a solution that had everyone feeling like they had come out on the winning side was fascinating. Low and behold, many years later, when I was blessed with the opportunity to lead Beaver Water District, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Paul was representing the District. It was a wonderful chance to get to know him much better, be introduced to his amazing circle of friends and colleagues, and witness a life led with passion, joy, and a deep-rooted concern for helping others.
Paul’s concern and passion for Beaver Water District and “our lake,” as he referred to Beaver Lake, was unending. BWD was his last official client. Although he tried talking me into replacing him many times, I selfishly refused. Not for the lobbying skills that he still provided, but for simply having an excuse to check in with him, hear a story, and laugh out loud. In my last call to him, out of concern for his health, Paul refused to talk about anything other than the District. He wanted to know how our lake was doing. Was it full and did we have enough water for the future? How were the construction projects going? He reminded me that we were not the first to have to deal with lots of construction and pressure to expand. He also made sure to remind me how important it was to protect the water quality in the lake for the future because “it will all be worth it in the long run!”
Words of wisdom from a wise man. Thank you Paul… you will be missed!