Six picked for business hall of fame

LONGMONT – Peter D. Behrendt, Joan Brett, John Fenstermaker, Edwin Kanemoto, David M. Wyatt and the late Harlow C. Platts will be inducted into the Boulder County Business Hall of Fame in May.

The six inductees for the class of 2008 will be honored at the hall of fame’s 16th annual induction luncheon at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, May 1, at the Radisson Hotel and Conference Center in Longmont, home of the hall.

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The Boulder County Business Hall of Fame was established in 1992 to recognize and honor businesswomen and men who personify “business at its best.”  More than 110 people have been inducted into the hall.

Behrendt joined Exabyte Corp. in 1987 after spending 26 years with IBM. With Behrendt at the helm, Exabyte became a leading designer and manufacturer of computer tape drives and libraries. He supported the CU Artists Series, Colorado Music Festival, Boulder Youth Symphony, Emergency Family Assistance, the University of Colorado, the Boulder Humane Society and others. He has served on the boards of the Boulder Chamber, CU Business School Advisory Council and the Boulder Economic Council. Today he is chairman of ProStor Systems.

Brett founded the Culinary School of the Rockies from an idea when she was a practicing attorney. The school is now a world-class institution that brings people to Boulder County from all over the United States. It has trained thousands of students in home cooking, as chefs and in corporate kitchen programs. 

Fenstermaker, described as a “world class business executive,” joined IBM out of the University of North Dakota and held various engineering and engineering management assignments at IBM and Staodyn Inc. He served, and in some cases continues to serve, on the boards of the Longmont Chamber of Commerce, the Longmont Industrial Park, Boulder County Technology Incubator, Foothills United Way, St. Vrain Historical Society, Longmont Community Fund and Front Range Community College.

Kanemoto has been vice president and co-owner of Longmont’s largest real estate company, Prudential Rocky Mountain Realtors, since 1977. He has been a quiet leader with strong goal-oriented planning and generates enthusiasm and energy into endeavors in which he participates. He served, and in some cases continues to serve, on many business and nonprofit boards of directors including Longmont Board of Realtors, Colorado Association of Realtors, regional banks, Boulder County and Longmont YMCAs, Longmont Industrial Park, Longmont Area Economic Council, Longmont Chamber of Commerce, Longmont United Hospital and Hospital Foundation. 

Wyatt is president and owner of Boulder-based Wyatt Construction Co, which he formed in 1970. His community involvement includes supporting organizations such as the Boulder Valley Humane Society, University of Colorado, Boulder Economic Council, Boulder Chamber of Commerce, United Way and Boys Scouts of America. He has served in organizations including the Thistle Community Housing, Boulder Community Hospital and the YMCA.

Platts, who died in 1983 at the age of 90, moved to Boulder in his early teens and graduated from the University of Colorado with a degree in engineering. During World War I, he served in France. In 1919 he entered the family business, Western States Cutlery, one of Boulder’s oldest manufacturers of sheath and pocket knives, and axes. When his father retired, he and his brother Reginald managed the business for several decades. He was active in Rotary and the Elks and served on the Boulder Planning Board from 1930 to 1960. The park at Viele Lake was named after him for his service on city boards. e

The Boulder County Business Hall of Fame’s presenting sponsor is the Radisson Hotel and Conference Center through the Susan M. Pratt Foundation.

Platinum sponsors are Millennium Harvest House Hotel, Heritage Bank, Boulder County Business Report, Daily Times-Call, Brock and Company CPAs, J & S Audio Visual Inc.

Gold sponsors are Amgen Inc., Aweida Venture Partners, FlatIrons Bank.

Silver sponsors are First MainStreet Insurance, Boulder Community Hospital, Tebo Development, LJD Enterprises, Longmont Power and Communications, Longmont United Hospital, W.W. Reynolds Companies, Ron’s Printing, Wells Fargo.

Bronze Sponsors include Ahlberg Funeral Chapel, Boulder Trophy, CHE Sportswear, Sun Construction & Design Services, Inc., city of Boulder, Guaranty Bank/ Centennial Bank of the West, Freeman Myre, Prudential Rocky Mountain Realtors, Edward Jones/Steven Higgins, Roche Colorado Corporation, Twenty Ninth Street, US Bank. 

Tickets for this year’s Boulder County Business Hall of Fame luncheon are $50 per person or $500 for a corporate table. To make reservations or purchase a table, go to www.blacktie-colorado.com/rsvp then enter event code: BCBHOFFINDUCTEE to complete your reservations. If you don’t have access to a computer, contact Fred Kreider at 303-229-3582.