Gerry Frank, Oregon legacy and Salem resident, was the guest of Salem Rotary on Friday, Aug. 28, at the construction site of the Gerry Frank Salem Rotary Amphitheater. It was the 96-year-old Frank’s first look at the site since construction began in Salem’s Riverfront Park. (Ron Cooper/Special to Salem Reporter)
Gerry Frank got a look at the site of the future amphitheater named in his honor on Friday, Aug. 28.
Frank, 96, inherited the now-defunct Meier & Frank chain of department stores, spent nearly 30 years working with former U.S. Sen. Mark Hatfield and has been involved with many organizations in Oregon.
The future Gerry Frank Salem Rotary Amphitheater is currently under construction at Riverfront Park, with the city completing the first portion of the project by October.
Salem is currently doing $3.8 million in groundwork, putting in a new parking lot, utilities and lighting before the Rotary Club of Salem takes over with the amphitheater project in November.
-Saphara Harrell
Gerry Frank, Oregon legacy and Salem resident, was the guest of Salem Rotary on Friday, Aug. 28, at the construction site of the Gerry Frank Salem Rotary Amphitheater. It was the 96-year-old Frank’s first look at the site since construction began in Salem’s Riverfront Park. (Ron Cooper/Special to Salem Reporter)
Gerry Frank, Oregon legacy and Salem resident, was the guest of Salem Rotary on Friday, Aug. 28, at the construction site of the Gerry Frank Salem Rotary Amphitheater. It was the 96-year-old Frank’s first look at the site since construction began in Salem’s Riverfront Park. (Ron Cooper/Special to Salem Reporter)
Photographer Ron Cooper and his wife Penny moved to Salem in 1969 to take a job as photographer at the Oregon Statesman (later the Statesman Journal). Their three children, Monica, Kimberly, and Christopher, attended and graduated from Salem public schools. Cooper retired from the Statesman Journal in 2001 but, has continued his passion for photography in many ways, including as a photographer for the Salem Reporter.
