The USD 490 Board of Education recognized Andy LaForge for his service to the school district by announcing him as a "Friend of Education" during their last meeting.
"Certainly LaForge's has been a friend of the district," said Superintendent Sue Givens.
She said that interaction really increased this past year with the sale of his popcorn business to Extend High School.
"He ended up being a benefactor," Givens said.
LaForge not only sold the school the business, but he was there to do training and help with any questions or problems that arose.
"I just wanted to help out really," LaForge said.
He credited Tammy Fellers, Extend principal, for her hard work, saying that was what made it a success.
LaForge has been a part of the downtown business scene since 1964 when he started sweeping the floors at his father's store, LaForge's Office Supply, after school.
In the application nominating LaForge, the district stated is was due to LaForge's leadership, vision and ability to adapt to current trends and his customers' needs which made the store successful. Today, most of his business is a "call-in" and delivery service.
It was as a result of the closure of one side of his building that he no longer had room for Old Town Popcorn, a business he had operated for 15 years, and he sold it to the district at a drastically reduced price.
In addition to training, LaForge also has been on site to talk about the arrangement of the new kitchen at Extend and gave guidance regarding suppliers. He also helped the school prepare for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment inspection.
LaForge provided training to the students in the operation of a retail store, including how to wait on customers, operate a cash register, take orders and answer a business phone.
In the nomination, it went on to state LaForge's has been with the district since the 1960s when it was the only place for parents to purchase school supplies and school books. The store would buy back the used textbooks each spring and then spend the summer cleaning the books and preparing them for resale.
For almost 50 years, LaForge’s has been a USD 490 supporter.
The store also has always been quick to donate to the parent-teacher organizations, Partners in Education
Foundation and every fundraiser schools have had. LaForge’s supports the booster clubs, high school newspaper, high school yearbook and more. For seven years, LaForge’s donated all the cotton candy materials for Grandview Elementary’s Fun Night. LaForge even built a booth for Grandview to hold the cotton candy machine.
