The nostalgic Coca-Cola paintings hang along a hallway to his office, naturally evoking memories of Norman Rockwell covers of the Saturday Evening Post.
This is in east Springfield, at the Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr Pepper bottling company, and it’s easy to see why all employees seem to have a bounce in their step.
For John Schaefer, the CEO, it’s even better. Check out his new office, which says everything you need to know about this executive.
Along one wall sits a stand displaying photos of his beautiful family. Just above that display hangs a large oil painting, where in the foreground sits the old Dr Pepper building along Central Street just east of Springfield’s Central High School.
See the church steeple and field lights of Harrison Stadium just past the run-down railroad tracks? And the Coca-Cola sign hanging from a light post? It’s 1940s-esque.
“Coke’s such an icon,” Schaefer said with pride. “It’s such a recognizable name that it’s natural for people to collect and treasure.”
For Schaefer, it’s also hard to envision working anywhere else and, for all of his work in the past 15 years here in the Ozarks, he is the latest recipient of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame’s President’s Award.
The award, to be presented May 27 during the Baseball Sports Enthusiasts Luncheon in Springfield, is dedicated to those who consistently step up to aid the Hall of Fame.
Click here for tickets & sponsorships
“For me, it’s more of a personal relationship with him,” said Jerald Andrews, President and Executive Director of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. “Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr Pepper has always been a great sponsor. When we started the Founder’s program, the Rice family was one of the first we honored. When John arrived, he stepped right in stride with that support.”
2015 Baseball Luncheon Information & Details
Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr Pepper bottling has its roots tracing to 1920, when Edwin Rice, Sr. and his family moved from Kentucky to Springfield and purchased the Electric Bottling Company.
At the time, Electric’s principal product line was seltzer and Farmer Beverages, a soft drink line that included orange, grape, root beer, lemon, peach, ginger ale and strawberry.
Coca-Cola was only a small portion of the business, but eventually the company became a Coca-Cola franchise. Rice and his brothers operated the business and, in 1939, Edward Heer came aboard as sales manager. He married Virginia “Tookie” Rice, who assumed the vice presidency of the company in 1985. She is the sister of Edwin C. “Cookie” Rice, the longtime CEO and Chairman of the Board.
That painting in Schaefer’s office? That was Tookie’s.
To Schaefer, it serves as a reminder both of his own deep roots in Coca-Cola and of the importance the company holds in the Ozarks.
These days, Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr Pepper bottling company serves 27 counties in the Ozarks and employs roughly 320 employees. But that is expected to grow.
The company recently announced it has signed a letter of intent with the Coca-Cola Company to assume more territories in Missouri and expand its reach into northern Arkansas and southeast Kansas.
Working for such a company holds a special place for Schaefer.
“My first job was working on a Coke truck,” Schaefer said. “There’s not been a job I didn’t have fun on. There were some I didn’t know if I could do the job. But they turned out being not as hard as I thought they’d be.”
A native Ohioan, Schaefer arrived in the year 2001 after previously working in Cincinnati; Paducah, Ky.; and the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Area.
He began as a part-timer in 1973 shortly after graduating from Indian Hills High School in Cincinnati. He moved into a full-time role after graduating with a bachelor’s in business administration from the University of Cincinnati.
“John has devoted his time, talent and energy to the success of Ozarks Coca-Cola since we recruited him and his family to Springfield in 2000,” said Sally Hargis, Vice President of Corporate Strategy. “We are fortunate to have benefitted from John’s commitment to our family, associates and our community for 15 years.”
He’s forged quite a career here in the Ozarks, building trust among other business leaders.
Schaefer is a board member of Lost and Found, is active in Springfield North Rotary as well as Children’s Miracle Network.
He also is the president of the Missouri Beverage Association, active in the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, the Springfield Business Development Corporation, the Missouri Association Manufacturers and the American Beverage Association.
He and his bride, Julie, are parents to Amanda, Tara and Rob, and they also have two grandsons.
“John is one of the most honest people. Anybody who wants to play golf with him, never give him a two-foot putt. He’s got the most sound handicap there is, and he’s so much fun to play with,” said Matt Gifford, Vice President and General Manager of the Springfield Cardinals, the Double-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals.
“But that’s something that I truly appreciate about him,” Gifford added. “They say you can gain (an understanding) of a man by playing golf with him, and no one is more honest than John Schaefer.”
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WANT TO GO?
The ceremony: The Baseball Sports Enthusiasts Luncheon presented by Ozarks Coca Cola/Dr Pepper at is 11 a.m. Wednesday, May 27 at the University Plaza Hotel and Convention Center in Springfield.
Tickets & sponsorships: $40, or $100 for a head table ticket. Numerous sponsorships are available, including a table of eight for $400, which includes associate sponsorship recognition in the printed program. Call 417-889-3100.
For John Schaefer tickets & sponsorships, call for Jerald Andrews.
Honorees
St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa will be honored as a Missouri Sports Legend, in which a specially commissioned sculpture, cast in bronze, will line the Legends Walkway.
Byron Hagler, who won almost 600 baseball games and reached nine state final fours as the head coach of Licking and Hillcrest high schools. His 1988 and 1989 Licking teams won Class 2 state championships
Former Saint Elizabeth High School softball coach Diane Juergensmeyer, who won more than 400 games and three state championships in 1992, 1994 and 2002.
Former fast-pitch softball standout Roy Burlison, who played on teams in St. Louis and Springfield
John Schaefer, CEO of Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr Pepper, is the recipient of the President’s Award.
Diamond 9: baseball standouts Jack Burrell of Humansville and Southwest Baptist; Brad Simmons of Glendale High School and the Kansas City Royals; Kelly Snider of Hillcrest High School the Oklahoma Sooners and the Los Angeles Dodgers; Barry Short of Mansfield High School, Three Rivers Community College and the New York Mets; Jim Lumpe of Glendale High School, the Mizzou Tigers and Montreal Expos; and former American Softball Association or college/high school softball standouts in Marionville’s Janice Crumpley Bluebaum, Hillcrest graduate Tim Blasi, Caitlin Chapin of Ozark High School and Missouri State; and Missouri Southern graduate Diane Miller.