John Schmisek, who served the Grand Forks region in multiple public roles for more than 40 years, was honored by the Grand Forks Region EDC board of directors with the 2018 Klaus Thiessen Impact Award.
EDC Board Chair Tammy Peterson presented the award at the organization’s annual meeting April 4.
“This year’s honoree is especially astute at collaborating for the greater good,” she said. Schmisek was honored, in part, for his tireless work as City of Grand Forks finance director during the city’s recovery after then 1997 flood. The city maintained its economic standing which contributed to the ability to attract new business and help existing businesses recover, Peterson said.
As a county commissioner, Schmisek became the voice of the region’s pursuit of an enhanced use lease with the U.S. Air Force to lease land at the Grand Forks Air Force Base to establish Grand Sky, the nation’s first UAS business park. “He worked tirelessly behind the scenes to bring a vision to reality,” Peterson said. “He became adept at selling a grand vision to stakeholders at the highest levels of the state and Department of Defense.”
Schmisek told more than 200 in attendance that he received the award because of those he had the pleasure to work with. He recalled the comments from those in federal government agencies who were impressed by how he and others on the Base Realignment Impact Committee could bring the state’s Congressional delegation to the table, and to bring solutions when imagining new opportunities at the Base.
“There’s teamwork that goes into dreaming big. Grand Forks can be what it wants, and it doesn’t have to be like everyone else,” he said.
Schmisek is the first recipient of the award since it was renamed in honor of the EDC’s longest-serving president & CEO. “Klaus Thiessen is the epitome of doing economic development,” Schmisek said.