Dick and Cherry Lommen
Dick and Cherry Lommen are humble leaders who model Viterbo’s core values of hospitality, integrity, service, and stewardship. Many in our community have benefited greatly from their generosity, hard work, and success, which they have willingly shared with others.
Much can happen over the course of the time we are allotted on this earth and Dick and Cherry serve as examples of such time, well spent, promoting the common good.
Forty-eight years of marriage, two children (Rick and Leigh), and six grandchildren, the establishment of Courtesy Corporation, 51 McDonald’s restaurants, and many business, philanthropic, and service opportunities later, Dick and Cherry have left a mark for others to mentor and model.
Many who know the Lommens understand the importance they place on hard work, family tradition, dedication, and strong values, particularly character development. These attributes have been their never wavering guiding principles from early on when Dick, at age 23, became the youngest McDonald’s franchise owner in the country with the acquisition of the Losey Boulevard restaurant in 1968.
In the intervening years, as their opportunities multiplied, Dick and Cherry have been creating opportunities for others. Through Courtesy Corporation, Inc., communities throughout Southeastern Minnesota and Southwestern Wisconsin have benefited.
The mission statement of the corporation reads like the principles that have guided the Lommens’ lives: “…By developing and retaining people, we will deliver outstanding operations, hospitality, growth, and attain long-term profits. With these profits and the Ronald McDonald House Charities, we will give back to our communities.”
Consequently, through charitable giving, the Arts for Young America Program providing the first arts opportunity for children, regardless of income, was born at Viterbo. Similarly, at Gundersen Lutheran, Kids Town, designed specifically for children receiving chemotherapy, is now available. Millions of dollars in grants for countless other community projects have been made possible because of the entrepreneurial spirit the Lommens fostered years ago.
Individually, Cherry has served on the boards of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater La Crosse, Chileda, the Family and Children’s Center Healthy Families Program for young mothers and their newborns, and Viterbo’s Board of Advisors.
Similarly, Dick has served as a member of the Gundersen Lutheran Medical Foundation, the La Crosse Community Foundation, the YMCA, and in 1989, he was inducted into the Boys and Girls’ Clubs Wall of Fame. He also served for 16 years on the Viterbo Board of Trustees and has been cited by McDonald’s as one of the most respected franchise owners in the company. Courtesy Corporation training programs are considered a model for McDonald’s.
Together, the Lommens have fulfilled what many perceive as the American dream. Embrace opportunity. Work hard. Live life with integrity, and most importantly, “pay it forward” through generosity, stewardship, and supporting the dreams of others eager for an opportunity.