Published on May 02, 2011

Mike and Mary Mahar Advocate for Community Involvement

Mike and Mary Mahar of Medford were honored as the 2011 Carpenter Award recipients at the annual Carpenter Awards on Saturday, Apr. 30, held this year in a clear-sided tent atop the Rogue Valley Medical Center parking structure.

“This is the venue for a hospital event,” says Mike. “RVMC is our hospital, and the Carpenter Award is a celebration of our community.”

Sponsored by the Asante Foundation, the Carpenter Award each year recognizes community leaders who have had a positive and significant influence in improving medical care in Jackson County.

Mike served on the Asante Foundation Board of Trustees for nine years, including 2001 through 2005, the years when RVMC was rebuilt. They were lead donors for the project and took a strong leadership role in mobilizing community support.

“It was visionary thinking to rebuild rather than relocate,” says Mike. “And it was an aggressive plan for the Asante Foundation to take on a $14 million fundraising campaign. As Roy Vinyard said, ‘If the community doesn’t get behind it, it won’t happen.’”

Spurred by diligent efforts from Mike and others on the Asante Foundation Board and staff, the community rallied behind the rebuild, and what many thought impossible was accomplished.

“Rebuilding rather than relocating was cumbersome,” says Mike, “but it was the right decision. The hospital is now state-of-the-art and is so vitally important to the health of our community.”

Mike and Mary have dedicated much of their life to community involvement.

“You need to volunteer,” says Mary. “That way you get to know your community and its needs. Once you understand those needs, you can’t help but support it.”

Mike agrees. “Once you know, it’s easier to give. That is why we have a great hospital in Rogue Valley Medical Center, because so many in the community have seen the need and supported it.”

“And in health care,” Mary adds, “You need to look 10-20 years ahead to what you will need. So it is important for people to get involved now.”

Mike and Mary have been a part of this community for as long as they can remember. Both were raised in Medford and were friends as children, attending the same school. Mary is the oldest of eight children in the Paradis family, and Mike is the second of six.

Romance stirred in eighth grade, when Mike often rode his bike 6 miles each way to see Mary. “We rode bikes and walked everywhere,” he says. “Life was easier then. It was a perfect time to grow up here.”

They graduated from St. Mary’s High School together and attended what was then Southern Oregon College. Their marriage in 1969 produced three children—and now seven grandchildren—who are at the center of their lives. Daughter Shannon and her husband Todd Krug, and daughter Christina and her husband Chad Cota live in Medford, while son Mike and his wife Brie live in Bend.

The Mahars’ early married years passed in a blur as both attended college and worked. A big break for Mike came when he got the Archway Cookie account for his grocery distributing business. He was only 21 and already had his own warehouse and delivery truck; Mary managed the couple’s Vintage Inn, a small wine-and-cheese shop on the creek in Ashland.

In 1975 Mike sold the distributing business to pursue real estate development, which eventually led to the couple’s current enterprise, Mahar Homes, Inc. Mary is the company’s interior designer.

Mike and Mary are extremely proud to be recognized with the Carpenter Award. “This one goes to people who work hard and donate time,” says Mike. “This is a celebration of people gathering to see what we’ve accomplished together.”