Congrats to our Citizen of the Year

Way to go, Rex.
It’s around October of each year when we as a staff at the Custer County Chronicle begin to kick around ideas as to who should be our Citizen of the Year. A staff-wide email is sent out asking everyone to nominate a few people, and after everyone submits a few names we take some time to discuss the candidates and the merit behind their nomination. As always, we had no lack of nominations, and all of those nominations had plenty of attributes that would have made them any easy selection as our Citizen of the Year.
For the past couple of years, there were absolute slam dunk, no-brainer choices. Two years ago it was Marty and Jen Mechaley for their work in helping the young daughters of Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) self-proclaimed prophet Warren Jeffs away from the FLDS and last year it was the team who helped save the nursing home by forming Custer Cares.
This year, while there were countless good choices for the honor, it didn’t seem like there was a no-brainer choice. That is, until it hit is right in the face. A couple of us were discussing the impending retirement of Custer YMCA director Rex Jorgensen. We discussed his years of service to the community, and it was obvious our Citizen of the Year was right in front of our face. In a way it’s poetic, because Rex has toiled for years outside the limelight, seeking no glory or recognition, just seeking to make a difference in the community and in the lives of the children and adults who are members of the Custer YMCA.
If you read the story on the front page (and if you haven’t yet you definitely should) you know by now that Rex came to the Custer YMCA in 2011 and remained there as its director until his retirement in December. We know Rex was ready for retirement, and we wish him all the best in his retirement. We know he will stay busy, and we know he will continue to help children in the way of being a part-time bus driver for Harlow’s, shuttling kids to and from events. As the man who piloted the Custer YMCA bus for all those years, it won’t be a huge transition for him to take the wheel for Harlow’s.
There are entirely too many things that Rex has done for the community, both at the forefront of things and behind the scenes, to mention in one story or one editorial. We are quite certain there are plenty of things even we don’t know about that he has done to make things work. That’s just the way Rex is—always there to pitch in and lend a helping hand. He is as jovial of a person you can find in Custer.
As we always do, we will host a reception for our Citizen of the Year just as soon as we can find a time and day that works for Rex that coincides with one of our local establishments that is capable of hosting such an event. We will keep you posted on the when and where of the reception.
Congratulations, Rex. This is part Citizen of the Year, part Lifetime Achievement Award, but one thing is certain—no one is more deserving.