Ponderosa Telephone Celebrates 100 Years of Family Business: Shares Secrets to Success
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328 Words Ponderosa Telephone Celebrates 100 Years of Family Business: Shares Secrets to Success Ponderosa Telephone Company of O’Neals, CA is celebrating 100 years of business. The Bigelow family story is the story of the central San Joaquin Valley and the determined pioneers who tamed the rough and tumble territory in the late 1800’s. This telephone business was founded by Harmon Bigelow and is one of a handful of companies surviving 100 years in the Central Valley that is still family-owned and operated. In 1900 young Harmon secured a contract to transport U.S. Mail from Madera to Fresno Flats and O’Neals with just 2 horses and a small spring wagon. The need for transportation services for the foothill and mountain communities grew and a stageline business was born. The telephone business started when Harmon’s wife Leota ordered 2 phones from a mail order catalog so she could speak with her mother who lived a mile away. Harmon grew the telephone network from a family convenience, to an essential communications tool for the stageline, ultimately extending to the surrounding foothill communities. Throughout the years there have been relatively few family leadership transitions. When Harmon died, he passed the reins to his son Jesse until the early 1980s when tragedy struck the family. Jesse Bigelow, Robert Bigelow and Bob Silkwood (who married Jesse’s daughter Luanne) passed away within an 18-month span. This left the family leadership to Jesse’s only daughter Luanne Silkwood, who remains the president of Ponderosa today. When asked for the secret to enduring a century of family ownership, she responded, “Ponderosa Telephone is not just a business, it is 5 generations of a rural American family lifestyle that must be preserved for future generations. In business, I am only as successful as the people I surround myself with. With the talents of my managers and employees, a continued flexible mindset from family leadership, plus commitment to our customers, Ponderosa will continue to thrive.” Experience a historic journey through interactive media online: www.goponderosa.com/centennial Directory: articles articles -> Ancient Ecologies and the Biblical Perspective articles -> Tour de France by owen mulholland articles -> 1-techniques for airborne radome design, volume 1 Authors articles -> God's Perspective on Man articles -> Mythopoetic language in the psalms articles -> Executive report of key results of recent research on supplier development strategies and outcomes articles -> Egeny Mironov (born 1966) is a Russian film and stage actor articles -> Intro to Journalism September 30, 2005 articles -> For immediate release usta nominates katrina m. Adams as chairman of the board, ceo and president Download 4.33 Kb. Share with your friends:
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