LOVE OF COMMUNITY: Gil Bogley honored with Distinguished Service Award

May 23—TRAVERSE CITY — When Gilbert Bogley first arrived in Traverse City 64 years ago, the first three people who greeted him were downtown department store manager Bill Milliken (who later became Michigan's governor), broadcasting pioneer Les Biederman, and longtime newspaper publisher Austin Batdorff. All of them offered him a job.

Bogley took the newspaper job — joking that it was lowest-paying of the three offers — launching a newspaper career that spanned nearly 40 years.

His work as a newspaperman, along with his service and commitment to the community in many other ways, culminated Wednesday with the retired Record-Eagle president and publisher receiving the Distinguished Service Award. It is among the region's oldest and most-prestigious civic honors.

The annual DSA Luncheon, presented by Traverse Connect, drew more than 200 attendees to the Park Place Hotel Conference Center. The annual award was established by the Traverse City Area Chamber of Commerce in 1929 to recognize area individuals for their civic and community service. Last year's DSA recipient, Bob Brick, the owner/broker of Remax/Bayshore Properties, presented the award.

"How lucky can you get? The first three people that you meet in looking for a job are the three most distinguished people in that community," Bogley said in accepting the honor. "That was the beginning of our story. That's how we got here."

Bogley graduated from Princeton University and enrolled in the university's Army ROTC program in 1948. He served as a second lieutenant in South Korea until 1954, and continued in the Army Reserve until 1960. He began his professional career working for Prudential Insurance in Detroit in 1955, before a trip to Leelanau County a few years later to babysit some cats for his wife Anne's family on North Lake Leelanau changed his career path.

"We drove all over the place and saw all the lakes, to Charlevoix and Glen Lake, all the big waters around," he said. "And, of course, Traverse City downtown we just loved ... and we were impressed particularly with how friendly the merchants were, as we went in to spend the little money that we had at the time. It was a delightful experience."

The couple relocated to Traverse City in 1960 and he began selling advertising for the Record-Eagle. He served on the Traverse City Area Chamber of Commerce Board for several years starting in 1962, where he worked to expand the Chamber's mission to include "the preservation and enhancement of our natural resources (as) the cornerstone of our successful economy." He was elected to two terms on the Grand Traverse County Board of Commissioners, served on the County Planning Commission, along with the Traverse City Planning Commission and Board of Zoning Appeals. He also joined the Traverse City Kiwanis Club, served as the first president of Traverse Area Foundation, and volunteered at Grace Episcopal Church, Michigan Children's Aid, and the Red Cross among many volunteer efforts.

Bogley worked his way up to general manager at the Record-Eagle, before his newspaper career took him to another Ottaway Newspapers publication based in Medford, Oregon, in 1978. Former Ottaway Newspapers Chairman James Ottaway Jr. was among the presenters in a video tribute to Bogley, and recalled that Bogley only accepted the job in Oregon if Ottaway promised that one day he could return to Traverse City and the Record-Eagle as the publisher until he retired.

"One of our best publishers was your Gil Bogley," Ottaway said, sharing that he tried unsuccessfully to lure Bogley away to work at Ottaway's corporate offices in upstate New York. "He refused — he wanted to stay at the Record-Eagle ... he loved the landscape, fresh air, the clean water which he worked so hard to protect — he loved this community."

Bogley returned to the Record-Eagle in 1987 as president and publisher until he retired in 1993. Upon his return, he joined the Traverse Rotary Club, where he supported the efforts of Rotary Charities' Rob Collier to help establish the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy. Glen Chown, the Conservancy's longtime executive director, described Bogley as "a thoughtful, ethical and visionary leader for our region for several decades...Gil's wisdom and time has greatly benefitted our community."

Following his retirement, Bogley served three terms on Munson Healthcare Board where he worked on the merger of Munson Hospital and the former Traverse City Osteopathic Hospital. Retired Munson Healthcare CEO John Rockwood said Bogley "achieved results that few could have accomplished through his positive attitude and unwavering commitment to the goal ... It is difficult to think of a more deserving individual for this award."

The Bogleys were married for 65 years before Anne died in 2021. They raised three children — Bill, John and Elizabeth — in Traverse City's Slabtown neighborhood, where they helped organize the Slabtown Neighborhood Association in the 1970s as the city's first neighborhood organization. Anne also assisted in the founding of the League of Women Voters chapter in Traverse City.

"I would like to say 'thank you, Dad' for helping show — not only your kids — but the rest of us the way to help make our community better," John Bogley said.

Bogley lives in Elmwood Township and also has a home on North Lake Leelanau. His community involvement continues with the Suttons Bay Rotary Club, and on the boards of the Lake Leelanau Lake Association and the International Affairs Forum at Northwestern Michigan College.

"There are a lot of people out there who deserve this award more than I do, I'm sure," Bogley said. "But there's nobody out there who's loved this community as much as I have."