Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Pribbernow has busy volunteer schedule
BELLA VISTA — For some people, retirement can be very busy. Chuck Pribbernow is one of those people.
Pribbernow had a career in retail, eventually retiring in Indiana as a district manager for Walmart. It was his children who brought him south, close to Walmart headquarters. Both his daughters ended up in Northwest Arkansas and seemed destined to stay.
After they decided to make the move, Pribbernow and his wife started looking at each community. They settled on Bella Vista because of the property values and the variety of things to do locally. He now lives close enough to his daughter and her young family, that they have been able to help with child care while the coronavirus shut down many of their usual activities.
For Pribbernow, usual activities include the Friends of the Bentonville Library, the Knights of Columbus, the St. Bernard Men’s Club, the Bella Vista Historical Society, the Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War, the Bella Vista Civil War Round Table, the St. Bernard’s Parish Council and the NWA Prostate Support Alliance.
His library work actually started in Valparaiso, Ind., when he first retired. When he settled in Bella Vista, he went to the Bella Vista Library to volunteer, but they didn’t need him so he went on to Bentonville where he’s been president for five years.
In Indiana, he didn’t do very much volunteering through his church, he said, because they didn’t live very close to the parish they attended. At St. Bernard, he joined the Knights of Columbus, a group that keeps a low profile, while doing a lot of good. Like every group in the area, the Knights of Columbus has been impacted by covid-19. It had to cancel two of its traditional Lenten Fish Fries this year and may not be able to do its annual Tootsie Roll Drive, which is a fundraiser for groups that work in mental health.
But an unexpected service project came up. A local chef volunteered to cook in the church kitchen two nights a week for about 25 homebound parishioners and other community members who call and reserve a meal. The Knights deliver to the homebound members and help box up takeout meals for the others who pick up. The meals are free, but the church accepts donations.
Pribbernow met Joe Rainey through his membership in the Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War. It turned out they shared an interest in the Civil War. Since there was already a Civil War Roundtable meeting in Springdale, Pribbernow wasn’t sure there would be enough interest to sustain a second group in Bella Vista, but they decided to give it a try. Dale Phillips, now serving as co-president of the Bella Vista Historical Society, joined them and they got permission to use the museum as a meeting place.
They started last summer and most of their meetings were drawing over 40 people but, when the museum closed in March, the meetings were suspended. They will restart when the restrictions on large gatherings are lifted, he promised.
People are passionate about the Civil War, Pribbernow said, but sometimes they don’t understand it. However, there are 70,000 books that have been written on the subject if they want to learn more. As more and more people become interested in genealogy and are discovering relatives who fought in the war, they want to know more. Some of the presenters at Roundtable meetings have very close ties to local historical landmarks. Others, like Phillips, have careers with the National Park system.
Pribbernow said he enjoys volunteering because it gives him a chance to work closely with new people. It’s what he liked about his retail career. Yet, since he’s a volunteer, there’s not as much stress.
He’s also making up for the years when he was so busy working 60 hours a week, he didn’t have time to volunteer.
While he keeps busy with various positions, he’s made time to play golf and travel. When the pandemic has run its course, there will be several trips to be made up, he said.