Strik Takes Home Lifetime Achievement Award

Mike Bondi, who recently retired as director of the North Willamette Research and Extension Center, called her “the best” and said she “left an incredible legacy.”

Bernadine Strik, who helped Oregon berry producers improve their production practices for more than 30 years as Extension Berry Specialist, receives a Lifetime Achievement Award from Oregon Blueberry Commission Chair TJ Hafner at the Oregon Blueberry Conference in Salem.

Kasey Cronquist, president of the North American Blueberry Council and the US Highbush Blueberry Council, said “our blueberry family is better because of you.”

Bryan Ostlund, executive director of the Oregon Blueberry Commission, said she “was always a professional and always appreciated” as she worked “to take this industry from just a few million pounds to the global powerhouse it is today.”

The woman each of these industry leaders was referring to is Bernadine Strik. The occasion was the Oregon Blueberry Commission presenting its Lifetime Achievement Award, February 14, to Strik, who helped Oregon berry producers improve their production practices for more than 30 years as Extension Berry Specialist.

Dave Brazelton of Fall Creek Farm & Nursery said that because of Strik’s contributions, “Oregon berry farmers farm better.”

Doug Krahmer of Berries Northwest, thanked Strik “for all you have done for the Oregon blueberry industry, taking it from just a Northwest industry to one that is now known worldwide.”

On an individual note, TJ Hafner, chair of the Oregon Blueberry Commission, who presented her the award, said Strik “helped (him as a student) to build my confidence, helping me grow as an agronomist and furthering my career.

“I’m not going to take a deep dive on the impact you have had on the industry,” Hafner said, “but it certainly has been significant, not just here at home but around the world.

Click the above to view the tribute video for Bernadine Strik.

“The research you have done in organic blueberry production methods has been particularly productive for the company I work for,” he added. “We’ve been able to successfully scale organic blueberry production with many of the methods you have established.”

In accepting the award, Strik said, “I can’t think of an award that means so much to me, because it is from the industry.

“This is so special to me. I was raised on a farm and all I ever wanted to do was to make a difference, and to have affirmation that I made a difference in your lives is really, really a great way to retire.

“I can’t thank you enough for honoring me like this,” she said.