About a week before Watercade, Paul White begins his term as president of Litchfield Rotary Club. Then two weeks after Watercade, White ventures to Guatemala to help build homes for the poor. It will be his fifth trip there.
It’s this sort of dedication to volunteerism that makes White a perfect pick for this year’s Watercade grand marshal, according to Susan Koll, Watercade Committee chairwoman. “He is very involved in his community as well as church,” she said, referring to his affiliation with Zion Lutheran Church.
The annual honor goes to community members with a track record of giving back to Litchfield, and White has amassed a lengthy resume of volunteer activities.
White’s contributions go back nearly 24 years when he and his family began helping at the Forest City Stockade, demonstrating how to make beeswax candles and putting on display, in a glass case, a bee hive.
Along the way, White has served on numerous boards, volunteered for Habitat for Humanity and founded a fundraiser — called Tournament of Duty — to raise money for wounded veterans. A financial consultant for the past 15 years with Thrivent Financial, he was named Thrivent’s National Volunteer of the Year in 2011.
White brings a patriotic fervor to his volunteering activities, and he noted during an interview that his great-great-great-grandfather, James White, fought in the Revolutionary War. While not a veteran himself, White has two brothers who both served in the military, including one who died in 2013 from cancer related to agent orange exposure in Vietnam.
White mentioned he is applying to join the Sons of the Revolution, whose members are descendants of Revolutionary War veterans. As a volunteer, James White fought in the Battle of Saratoga, a decisive victory that helped persuade the French to join the American cause, White said.
Tournament of Duty, which takes place at the Island Pine Golf Course in Atwater on June 27, raises money for the Wounded Warrior Project, a national organization that assists wounded veterans. As part of being named Volunteer of the Year for Thrivent in 2011, White made a $25,000 donation to Wounded Warrior with $12,500 coming from Thrivent and the other half from Thrivent employees.
How does White find the time for so many volunteer activities? “You just have to make the time,” he said. “You just have to schedule it in.”
He does sacrifice some leisure time. “I’ve got a fishing boat that only gets used a couple times a year,” he said. “And I’ve got a motorcycle that only gets about 700 miles a year.”
White has a wife, Pam, and three children: Jesse, 30; Haleigh, 24; and Adam, 23.
At 54 years old, White is relatively young to receive the honor of Watercade grand marshal. “I was surprised,” he said. “I thought I had to be much older.”
A native of North Kingston, White moved to Litchfield in the sixth grade and has attended many Watercade parades over the years. He also served on the Watercade Committee from 2007 to 2009 and was chairman for two of those years.
Not every community features such a wonderful celebration of community pride, White noted. “It’s a great event,” he said. “Sometimes we take it for granted. We don’t want to lose it.”
Copyright 2015 Litchfield Independent Review/Crow River Media/Media News Group.