LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION honoring Ogdensburg Pepsi Cola Bottlers upon its
recognition as a top Pepsi Bottling Distributor for 2012

WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to recognize those
businesses within the State of New York which contribute to the economic
health and vitality of the communities they serve; and
WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its long
standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to congratu-
late Ogdensburg Pepsi Cola Bottlers upon its recognition as a top Pepsi
Bottling Distributor for 2012 and a finalist for Pepsi-Cola's Donald M.
Kendall Bottler of the Year to be awarded in August 2012; and
WHEREAS, Ogdensburg Pepsi Cola Bottlers has a seven decade history of
service to the people of the North Country and St. Lawrence County; and
WHEREAS, In 1943, the late Richard E. Winter came to Ogdensburg and
opened a small wholesale bottling company for what was then a little
known soft drink named Pepsi Cola; and
WHEREAS, During its first years during WW II, the company's founder
battled shortages, rationing and difficult competition, and often spent
his nights personally mixing and filling the containers, delivering them
to stores, picking up the returnable bottles, cleaning them and then
filling them again at night so he could deliver them to stores the
following day; and
WHEREAS, During those early years, Richard E. Winter believed that the
only way to create a successful business was to involve himself and his
company in community events, organizations and good causes, demonstrat-
ing that he cared about his adopted hometown; and
WHEREAS, Today that spirit of service and community involvement can be
seen in living monuments like the Richard E. Winter Cancer Treatment
Center, the Richard E. Winter Student Activities Center at Canisius
College, the Richard E. Winter Chapel at St. Mary's Cathedral, the Rich-
ard E. Winter Art Gallery at the Frederic Remington Art Museum and the
Ogdensburg Boys and Girls Club and Seaway Festival, both of which he
helped found; and
WHEREAS, Richard E. Winter's daughter, Bonita A. Winter Wright, the
company's current CEO and president, and her husband, Richard Wright,
have carried on that legacy of service and support for the communities
their company serves, following the example set by her father, the
company's founder; and
WHEREAS, Bonita Winter Wright has been a leader in the Greater Ogdens-
burg Chamber of Commerce, the Ogdensburg Zonta Club, the Ogdensburg
Garden Club, Festival of Trees, Ogdensburg Bridge and Port Authority,
the Ogdensburg Boys and Girls Club, Claxton Medical Center Gift Shop, as
well as serving on the board of trustees at Canisius College in Buffalo
and Ringling College of Art and Design; and
WHEREAS, Her husband, Richard Wright, like her father, has played a
critical role behind the scenes in helping hundreds of organizations and
community events succeed, while taking a hands on management approach to
the family business, becoming a familiar figure at businesses where he
personally insured that Pepsi products were properly marketed and
distributed across the North Country; and
WHEREAS, Today the founder's grandson, like his father before him, can
be seen personally delivering the company's products to businesses,
serving on community boards like the Remington Art Museum and the
Ogdensburg Growth Fund and following in his family's footsteps as a
dedicated community volunteer and leader; and
WHEREAS, Today Ogdensburg Pepsi Cola Bottlers is ranked among the top
three distributors in the nation, demonstrating how one family's vision

and tradition of service to their community can help a small family-
owned company grow into one of the nation's premier Pepsi Cola oper-
ations, setting an example for other companies of all kinds across the
country and providing a formula for success for other wholesalers and
distributors across America; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
congratulate Ogdensburg Pepsi Cola Bottlers upon its recognition as a
top Pepsi Bottling Distributor for 2012 and a finalist for Pepsi-Cola's
Donald M. Kendall Bottler of the Year to be awarded in August 2012; and
be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to Ogdensburg Pepsi Cola Bottlers.