The head of Medora’s travel agency will retire after a nearly 40-year career – InForum

MEDORA, N.D. — When Randy Hatzenbuehler saw early in his career that no one was selling popcorn in the musical “Medora,” the president and CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Medora Foundation grabbed a basket of buttery snacks and ran up the stairs in search of hungry customers.

“Initially it came about because we needed to do more business. That’s it,” he said.

The story earned Hatzenbuehler the title of “North Dakota’s most iconic popcorn vendor,” but others call him a North Dakota tourism legend. The man who helped shape tourism not only in Medora, but North Dakota as a whole, will retire next year.

The exact date of retirement has not been set, said Levi Andrist, chairman of the board of the foundation. The foundation has formed a search committee to help find Hatzenbuehler’s successor, Andrist said.

The search will begin this fall, and we hope to find his replacement in the spring, Andrist said.

“Medora is a place of stories. One of the things we’re really going to focus on is preserving these stories and legacies in a way that connects with both our existing visitors and supporters, and hopefully many new types of visitors,” Andrist said . “This is the type of leader that we can really connect with a lot of different types of people in an authentic Medora way, so we want to take the reins of the organization.”

Those who spoke about Hatzenbuehler said it is an integral part of North Dakota tourism. Last year, the state presented him with the Legend Award for leadership in the travel and tourism industry.

Hatzenbuehler said he likes to talk about Medora to himself. According to him, “Badlands” makes people feel awe, and it has the ability to expand a person’s soul.

“Medora has the ability to change pace,” he said. “It has the ability to heal you a little.”

Hatzenbuehler was hired by the foundation as a controller in 1988, Andrist said. Hatzenbuehler became the nonprofit’s executive director in 1997, becoming the second person to lead the foundation, Andrist noted.

The foundation is named after Medora and former President Theodore Roosevelt, who spent time in the city. Harold and Sheila Schafer, the beloved North Dakota couple who restored and developed Medora, founded the musical Medora in 1965 and created the foundation in 1986.

Hatzenbuehler said the foundation’s leadership career came as a surprise. According to him, the accountant was planning to open a kindergarten in his basement.

One day he had lunch with TRMF’s first president, Rod Tjaden. Hatzenbuehler said he didn’t understand why he agreed to join the foundation other than the Tjaden connection, Hatzenbuehler said.

Then he met Harold Schafer, which he says was a game changer. Harold Schafer was a kind, supportive and encouraging man who hugged Hatzenbuehler and told him he loved him, Hatzenbuehler said.

“I still worry about it,” Hatzenbuehler said.

Hatzenbühler joined the foundation unexpectedly, but it became the center of his life for almost 40 years.

“I came in and it kind of grabbed me,” he said.

Harold Schafer wanted the musical “Medora” to be about family, history and patriotism, said his son and former North Dakota Gov. Ed Schafer. Hatzenbuehler absorbed and understood what Harold and Sheila wanted Medora to be, the governor said.

“When my father died and then Sheila died, he (Hatzenbuehler) knew exactly what they wanted there,” Ed Schafer said. “He had an immediate attachment to Harold and Sheila that allowed him to understand what they always wanted from this musical.”

Hatzenbuehler set an example for other organizations, said Bill Marcil Sr., chairman of Forum Communications Co. Hatzenbuehler’s involvement and enthusiasm rub off not only on his staff, but also on other organizations in the state, Marcil said.

“He hangs out with his staff all the time during concerts,” Marcil said of Hatzenbuehler. “It will be all over the city. If you go to a fondue dinner (Pitchfork Steak) and they’re short-staffed, they’ll help you.

One of Hatzenbuhler’s unexpected ways of helping was by selling popcorn to music event guests in their seats. According to Hatzenbuehler, it all started 37 years ago because the musical was short on staff.

“You did everything you needed to do,” he said. “I’m an accountant, but I rather think of myself as a salesperson.”

Since then, he’s sold popcorn at least 40 nights a season, sometimes more than 70 nights, he said.

Hatzenbuehler lured others who were intimidated into selling the product to the crowd by organizing a competition. According to him, if those who accepted the challenge sold more popcorn than he did, he would buy them a pizza and a drink. According to him, if he wins, the contender will wash his car.

Hatzenbuehler said it also helped him get to know members, donors and longtime supporters. Selling popcorn is one way Hatzenbuehler interacts with customers, Ed Schafer said.

“I’m not sure leadership training can tell you whether you’re having a good time or not,” Ed Schafer said. “When he sells popcorn, he sells more than just popcorn. He hears what people are saying about the musical.”

Hatzenbuehler understands what the Badlands and Medora have to offer to the hundreds of thousands of visitors who come to the city each year, Andrist says. That’s what makes him “a North Dakota legend,” Andrist said.

“To me, he is a North Dakota treasure because he is a listener and a leader,” Andrist said. “This is truly a North Dakota tourism organization, and it takes a really special leader to take Medora into North Dakota ownership and make it a reality.”

Roosevelt wrote about “the glory of work and the joy of life,” said Joe Wigand,

Roosevelt repriser

who works for the foundation. Hatzenbuehler strives to do a good job, especially when things get tough, Wiegand said.

“In turn, we saw Randy embrace the glory of work and the joy of life,” Wiegand said.

Tjaden helped save Medora along with Harold Schafer, former Medora Musical host Bill Sorensen said. Hatzenbuehler developed tourism by thinking about how families could have memorable and affordable experiences, Sorensen said.

“Randy was an exemplary leader and visionary,” Sorensen said.

According to Sorensen, Hatzenbuehler kept Medora a quaint Wild West town. Some towns lose their originality when tourism takes over, but that didn’t happen in Medora because of Hatzenbuehler, Sorensen said.

“At the same time, they added all these things, and that’s not easy to do,” he said.

According to Hatzenbuehler, this was done intentionally. Before starting a project, he always asked himself a key question: “Can we add without taking away?”

“Secondly, whatever we try to do, can we honestly say whether it will be as good for the community as it is for the Medora Foundation?” – he said. “If we can’t say yes, we probably shouldn’t do it.”

Hatzenbuehler said he wanted to gain a valuable experience in Medora, so he focused on educational, recreational and historical attractions.

“Whatever we do, if we could build history, education and entertainment into it, it would probably work,” he said. “That’s what Medora is.”

As a former board member of TRMF from 1996 to 2002, Marcil worked with Hatzenbühler. According to Marcil, Hatzenbuehler kept the big picture of Medora in mind while also showing vision and building on it with bold ideas.

This included the construction of the Bully Pulpit golf course south of Medora. The 18-hole course opened in 2004 and has become a popular attraction.

According to Andrist, Hatzenbuehler also oversaw the renovation and expansion of the Rough Riders Hotel, the construction of the Spirit of the Work quarter for volunteers, the conversion of the Bunkhouse Motel into the Elkhorn Quarter, and a planned event/wedding barn at the golf course. According to Andrist, he helped raise $100 million for projects and donations for the foundation.

Hatzenbuehler said his greatest accomplishments are not the buildings, but the programs for the people. He started the volunteer program 27 years ago with the late Jean Nesheim of Fargo.

“She said, ‘Just because people get old doesn’t mean they don’t have value and can’t do things,'” he said. “This is how a volunteer program was born, with 750 people participating annually.”

He also helped develop the foundation’s international work program, which allowed people from other countries to work in Medora.

This has led to greater diversity in the small town and friendships with many employees around the world, Hatzenbuehler said.

“I’m really proud of those two things,” he said.

The foundation is looking for a leader who can build on the history and legacy of the Schafers, Roosevelt and Medora, Andrist said. Medora is one of the state’s proudest places, and the next leader has a responsibility to ensure that continues, Marcil said.

“Whoever it is will probably be the first one to take over and doesn’t know Harold Schafer,” Sorensen said. “The next leader will be the first who does not have this experience and history of Medora’s vision. I think being able to understand what made Medora special to so many people… will be a challenge for a new person.”

More information about the search can be found on the website

foundation.medora.com.