Summary:
Rick and Janet Cronk were interviewed by Nancie Sherman on March 27, 2009. Rick grew up in Montclair and Janet in Palo Alto. They met when they were both students at Berkeley. Later they moved to Lafayette and raised their family here, and Rick spent thirty years growing Dreyers into the largest ice cream company in the world. The project to build the Lafayette Library and Learning Center was well along in its planning stages when Rick and Janet were approached to be its first major donors. They quickly agreed to become involved because they believed “there is nothing more important on the face of this earth than the education of children.” They were also excited by the prospect of a new library that would serve as the major gathering point for the whole community and be home to a learning consortium that brought together many great local institutions as partners. From that point, the project of raising funds for the new building took a big step forward, and it ultimately resulted in a new and unique kind of library that the Cronks and the entire community could take great pride in.
Oral History:
Nancie Sherman: Interviewing Rick and Janet Cronk on March 27th however you wish to respond is fine. I find sometimes we go through the questions and people will cover more than one in one response, so however you are comfortable to speak.
Janet Cronk: I haven’t done two books at once before.
NS: Oh, really? We’ll start at the beginning of our list of questions, and they are the personal ones, asking what are your first best childhood memories of libraries? And one Montclair, one Palo Alto, right?
JC: Right. I grew up in Palo Alto in the 1940s and 50s, and they had a very small library next to a very big park, Rinconada. And my twin sister and I rode our bicycles weekly. We loved the library. It was definitely so much a part of our lives.
NS: That’s great.
Rick Cronk: And in my case, I grew up in Montclair in Oakland, California, and next to the Montclair Elementary School, there was the world’s most attractive, cute building that looked like a gingerbread house, a very small library. Just a beautiful building. And it just, it was a place where people gathered. It was such a pretty place.
NS: It’s lovely.
JC: And I think it’s still there. It’s a Hansel and Gretel type building.
RC: Yeah, it’s still there.
NS: Oh, lovely.
RC: It’s definitely still there.
NS: And so reading was important to both of you as you were growing up, would you say?
JC: Oh, very much so. Not to you. It was really more active.
NS: Okay. And did you have favorite childhood books? Favorites?
JC: I actually have had such fun because of this questionnaire. I went to the internet, to Amazon and Wikipedia. And just to look up some of these old books, my sister and I read the Little Maid series of Vermont, of Little Maid of Connecticut, which were all about the Revolutionary War. And, of course, we did Nancy Drew and Cherry Ames and went on to Edna Ferber. And at Amazon, you can read the front and back page of these books. And it was like going back to my childhood. It was fun.
NS: Do you have any recollections?
RC: I really don’t. I don’t think I read in earnest until I had to.
NS: Typical boy.
RC: High school. Yes, yes. I just played baseball and I did a lot of stuff.
JC: Camping. Reading. Scouts.
NS: And you both grew up semi-locally then. Palo Alto is obviously part of the Bay Area. Montclair is a little closer to where we are now. It says here, or asks, what awareness of community did you have while growing up? Any awareness of your community?
JC: Your turn!
RC: Yeah. Montclair is truly a neighborhood. Indeed. Relatively small. And so everybody, and it’s a little tiny shopping area. So there was a clear sense of LaSalle Avenue and Montclair. It was unique and to itself, and really sort of an island. I mean, you had to travel some distance to get over to Park Boulevard or other parts of Oakland. So there was a definite sense of intimacy.
NS: I think that’s the beauty of smaller communities. It’s a natural thing.
RC: Yeah. It should be. Exactly. To have an environment.
NS: Is Palo Alto is a larger city?
JC: Oh, but at that time it was still small. And I was third generation, so everybody in Palo Alto knew our family. And I remember politics. I remember a parade with Woodies, with Eisenhower and Stevenson, and I just, it was definitely a small, small town.
NS: That’s wonderful. It’s a wonderful memory, I would say. Okay. Educational backgrounds and work experience, what can you tell us?
JC: Oh. Well, I’m sorry I missed that one. I did.
NS: Educational backgrounds and any work experience.
JC: Well, I went to schools in Palo Alto and graduated from Castilleja in the 60s, and went to Cal Berkeley, and I have a BA from Berkeley.
RC: We both went to Berkeley, both met at Berkeley, and children have gone to Berkeley, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. When you were born, and lived in Montclair, and you went to Cal Berkeley, and you lived in Contra Costa County, you have not exactly seen the world, but that’s all right. Well, I graduated from Berkeley in the business school, and spent thirty years growing an ice cream company from a neighborhood business to the biggest ice cream company in America.
NS: Indeed.
JC: Somebody had to make ice cream.
NS: Indeed! Okay. What attracted you to Lafayette, and how long have you lived in it?
JC: Well, we looked at houses. Rick was working in the City. We looked at houses in San Mateo, and the one we liked was $49,000.
RC: Right.
JC: And the one we bought in Contra Costa County was $38,000.
NS: Yeah.
JC: It was pure economics, and then we just love that Lafayette is country, and Lamorinda. But in those days, you were truly twenty-five, thirty minutes to get to San Francisco, even with a tunnel. And there are days we can still do that, but not very many.
NS: Oh, very few. Very few. If we define goals of a community as a place of mutual support, shared values, and acceptance of differences, how do you see Lafayette meeting those goals?
RC: I think Lafayette is pretty strong in that regard I mean, the library, in a way, is a perfect example of that. I mean, I think there is a sense of community and a sense of responsibility. So I find Orinda and Moraga, Lafayette, all three communities, and all three together as one larger, you know, gathering. I think people are proud of this. Proud to live in Lafayette. People go to Diablo Foods and won’t shop any place else. I mean, little things like that.
NS: It’s true. It’s true.
JC: But there is diversity in Lafayette. Maybe not as much ethnic as we would like, but we’ve met so many people through just the library functions that, because our children are older and we’re not in the school community anymore.
NS: Mm-hmm.
JC: And we’ve met all ages, and just all types of wonderful people.
NS: Interested in the library.
JC: And because it’s our community in Lafayette.
NS: So do you have any early memories of the old library, or the present library?
JC: Oh. I’m not sure.
RC: Only that it was cramped. I’ve only been in it a few times, but it was so cramped and so we were desperate.
NS: Yes, absolutely. For a long time.
JC: Oh. Yeah. When we moved here, our youngest, well, he was in kindergarten. But it was kind of a dismal place to walk into, and the parking was terrible, and the Happy Valley Library was great. So…
NS: You used that more?
JC: Yes. Definitely.
NS: Mm-hmm. How do you feel a library serves the community?
RC: I think what is…The library will be one of the central gathering places of Lafayette, not only because of a library as a source of books, but as a learning center. And the expanded, you know, relationships that the library’s going to have…
NS: Oh, the Consortium, yes.
RC: Yeah. It’s just fabulous. So I think that it’s, you know, the speakers that they’ll have, the classes that will be conducted, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. It’s going to be a learning opportunity and a place of learning and joy way beyond just access to borrowing books.
NS: I think so, too. I think it’s extremely exciting. So you’ve been involved in this process that’s asking here over the years, or how long have you been involved with the library project, and what might be some of your experiences there?
JC: Well, we haven’t been involved too directly. We’ve gone to numerous functions that have been organized that have been wonderful.
RC: When did you get your arm twisted?
NS: Yes. Good question.
JC: But it’s only been a couple of years.
RC: Weren’t we the first guinea pigs, philanthropically?
NS: Is that right?
JC: Well, we might have been. I think we might have been. After the Seaborg family, I think we were approached early on for a major gift, which we really hadn’t intended. But the presentation, the consortium was such a well thought out idea for one building to be more than just a library.
NS: Yeah. Pretty hard to resist.
JC: So we were happy to help out.
NS: Yeah. Any other community events, projects, organizations that you’ve been involved with?
JC: Oh, well, it’s been so many years, but all, you know. Happy Valley School, Stanley, Acalanes and Scouts.
NS: Sure.
JC: Rick has been very involved in Scouts.
NS: Indeed. Yes. My own son can attest to that. And getting specific about the library, who are the people involved in the ’96 study? Do you know and what the results of this study might be or what the responders want? Are you familiar with that at all? Maybe not.
JC: No. I don’t know what.
NS: Or who was on the vision task force? You probably may not know that either.
JC: No, I’m only more recently involved. Kathy Merchant, I knew before, but now she’s a very good friend. And she’s the kind of person you see on your caller ID and you go, oh, do I want to answer this? But you do because she’s such a tireless worker. She is. And she’s very quick and I think she’s done a great job. And Gwen Lennox is someone who I never knew before. She’s younger, has younger children. She lives in another part of Lafayette. And it’s been great working with her and Ann Appert here in Happy Valley. But that’s, again, only been in the last couple of years.
NS: Question of opinion, what do you think created the change from the limited number of people named as contributors to the larger group that finally came forward?
RC: Well, again, I think the genesis is some level of commitment to the community that drives a lot of that. And I’m sure that as names were added, as people began to, the number of people that contributed to the project grew. There were a lot of people who just said, why not? I guess I should, yeah. But the fundamental motivation was this is Lafayette and the library is important. It will be important for the next 50 to 100 years.
NS: And back to the question from the present, why is the new library important to you?
JC: We did mention we have three grandchildren that are in the Lafayette schools, 10, 8, and 6. And they’re prolific readers and they need a library that has parking.
NS: Absolutely. Yeah. You may not know how the idea for the Learning Center and the Consortium came about. You may or may not. I don’t know.
JC: I’m sure in the presentation, but we weren’t really involved at that point.
NS: Yeah. And you probably didn’t know then also how the library obtained those Consortium members.
JC: Well, I think just by being creative and people in Lafayette are involved in all these different organizations. I mean, we’re very involved at Cal.
NS: There’s a lot to be involved with. There’s a lot going on. Right. We’re very lucky.
JC: I think it’s called networking.
NS: Yeah. That’s true. Well, can you say why the new library is important to you? You’ve already said grandchildren, for one. And…
JC: Grandchildren and that it has parking and that it’s going to be a fun place to gather. I think they’re wise to have the little cafe. Have coffee and read a book in a pretty social spot.
NS: I think it sounds great.
JC: People are social.
NS: Yeah. And why did you want to participate in its development? I think that’s a personal question.
JC: Well, I think we…
NS: You may already have answered that.
JC: Yes, I think.
NS: Yes. Okay. How did you first get involved? Well, you told us that. But what have you most enjoyed throughout this experience with participation?
JC: Just getting to know our community a little better. Especially since, as I said, we’re past school age years. I belong to the Happy Valley Garden Club and we do a few other things, but really…
NS: It’s different when your children grow up and they don’t.
JC: Yes
NS: I have the same experience. Any obstacles that you’ve encountered or observed along the way of this development of the plan?
RC: I mean, from an outsider’s perspective, in that I’m not… neither of us are involved in specific committees or whatever, but from the outside it seems to have been fairly smooth. Among the people I’ve been impressed with, what is the name of the Lafayette City Manager?
JC: Oh.
NS: His name?
RC: Yeah.
NS: Steve Falk.
JC: Yeah. Steve Falk.
RC: He was present at every event, or has been present at every event that we’ve been a part of. His commitment to the success of this has just really been wonderful.
NS: Yeah.
RC: And when the group went to Sacramento to get some funding that was very important early on, he was an integral part of that. And he’s a cheerful fellow. He’s a real asset to Lafayette.
NS: That’s what it takes, isn’t it?
RC: Yeah.
NS: So you just mentioned, really, a particular personality that stood out.
JC: And Kathy Merchant, you just have to give her credit.
NS: Yeah. Can you elaborate what was the most fun or the most rewarding? Any more than already you’ve said, do you think? Any particular experience that you recall? No. Okay. Here’s a good question. What values did this contribution touch that you hold dear?
RC: Well, there’s simply, all parents would understand this, or most parents would understand this, but there’s simply nothing more important in the face of the earth than the education of children, of adults as well. I mean, that’s just obviously the most fundamental need there is.
NS: I say, if you don’t have education, you have nothing in this country.
RC: Yeah.
JC: Exactly.
RC: So, and we are fortunate to live in a community where the schools are very good. And once again, the whole library presence just continues the journey of learning. You know, after the kids are in high school, again, they’re sort of all over the map, or moving, or keeping up with the pace of life. But the library is a place that people can return to, and it will be important to them throughout their lives.
JC: And I think it’s great that it has so many uses, that the town council meetings are going to be there, that people can rent the gathering room. It’s, the Manzanita Room and St. Mary’s Road is, for us, on the other side of Lafayette.I think it’s nice that it’s centrally located.
NS: Yes. That’s right.
JC: And again, that there’s parking.
NS: Yes. Have you noticed any kind of transformation in Lafayette as a result of this project going forward?
RC: It’s been fun to watch the building itself.
NS: Indeed, yes.
RC: It’s sort of remarkable.
NS: It is remarkable. And it seems to keep getting bigger. I know the framework has been there forever, but as the walls go up, it becomes very impressive.
RC: Yeah. And as Janet said, obviously it’s so central. It’s right in the middle of the city. So everybody has to have, you know, is aware of its presence. And it will be fun to watch it grow. It really, truly may be the one most important gathering place of the city. That and Starbucks.
NS: I agree. Is there anything that is particularly exciting to you about the new library? Did any ideas, words, activities particularly draw your attention?
JC: Well, again, our grandchildren, I look at that huge space that is for the children with the Big Dipper and the back wall and the outdoor area that is spacious. And I can’t wait to bring, to be there with our grandchildren.
NS: Well, that’s a creative plan, isn’t it?
RC: Yeah.
NS: Utilizing indoor, outdoor, and all of that together for, I think, to the outdoor community.
JC: And that, you know, to have a separate area for teens to gather.
NS: Mm-hmm. Important.
JC: Yeah. And the green fireplace.
NS: The green fireplace.
RC: Oh, yeah.
JC: It’s a creative idea. One of our children.
NS: Why do you think the citizens of Lafayette have responded so enthusiastically to this project?
JC: Well, I think it’s the reason people work so hard to pass parcel taxes, and we’re here because we value the schools and education, and I think that’s the common denominator.
NS: And a little bit looking into the future, is there an outcome that you hope for most with the new library? What do you look toward to using, doing, enjoying the most as it becomes complete and open for use?
JC: Well, I look forward to going back to the library again, because the, I used to go to our library for books on tape, and it just, the parking was so difficult, and the hours were not standard.
NS: Oh, yeah.
JC: And you never knew if it was open or not.
NS: Yes.
JC: And so, I look forward to getting back into the habit of going to the library.
NS: Interesting question, this next one. Some people predicted the internet would kill the printed word, and libraries would become obsolete. How will our new library avoid such a change?
JC: Oh, you always have to have hands-on education, and exhibits, storytelling hour, is always going to be, even if you did it, as you say, from your Kindle. You’d gather in the library to have stories out for children.
NS: Well, and there will be 30 computers, and the Consortium’s going to bring in all of those wonderful adventurers, and…
JC: And the lab rooms that they have.
NS: And the lab rooms.
JC: It’s just so well thought out.
NS: All encompassing.
RC: It’s going to be a fabulous venue for speakers. There’s just nothing that we’ll even compete with it. So I suspect that beyond just the eight or nine members of the Consortium, it’s just going to… And it isn’t the… What’s the San Francisco Speakers Club?
JC: Oh, Commonwealth Club.
RC: Yeah, Commonwealth Club. It’s going to have events there. But I suspect that we will…Lots of people will find themselves in the library for an evening speaker.
NS: Yeah, that’s an excellent point. Close to home in these days of so much traffic and difficulty getting around. Wonderful to have you. Thank you so much. Is there anyone else that you think we should contact for an interview?
JC: Oh, I think your list is very…very large and…you’ve involved the community.
NS: Have I left anything out that you would like to include, or any final thoughts from either of you about the field?
JC: No..
RC: No, this is fun. I’m actually going to look forward to seeing how this becomes useful. And it would be great to capture the history of Lafayette at this point in time as expressed through the library project.
NS: Exactly. And that’s the purpose.
JC: Yeah, that’s great. Yeah.
NS: It fills up our archives for more wonderful details. Done. That’s great.
JC: It’s wonderful that when people walk through the door, there’s going to be something that will catch their attention.
RC: Yeah.
NS: And I don’t know why. And you will see you or see your quotes or see something else that’s coming out.
JC: And I cannot wait to see that two-story bronze sculpture of the books and the pages flying that goes up the staircase.
NS: Oh.
JC: I can’t wait to see it.
NS: Well, the reason for the photographs is, as Barbara describes, for people, capture people’s interests as they come in. And we will choose a quote from among your many here, and that will be there as well. Thank you so much for your time.
JC: Well, you never really even checked to see that both of us..
NS: Just press the stop.
Leave a Reply