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Pharmacist proves you can come home again. Originally published in U Magazine Summer 1999 Web publishing with the permission of the Fargo/Cass Economic Development Corporation Shane Wendel's warm smile and firm handshake send aclear signal for all to see. He is a man happy with the choices he's made in life - he loves his job and the community where he has chosen to raise his family. Wendel is delighted to be back in North Dakota, the place he feels he belongs. A 1994 North Dakota State University pharmacy graduate, Wendel moved after graduation to St. Cloud, Minn., to work for Target pharmacies and then in a clinical setting for a health group. He found it wasn't for him. "I grew up in LaMoure, so I'm a small town boy," Wendel said. Quite simply, he missed being part of a caring, rural community. So he and his wife, Mary, moved back to their home state in July 1997. Wendel now splits time between the Seaburg Pharmacies in Carrington and New Rockford. The manager of the New Rockford store, he also likes the variety of serving as the consulting pharmacist for the Lutheran Home of the Good Shepherd in New Rockford and Carrington's Golden Acres Manor. "When we were in St. Cloud, I remembered the quality of life growing up in a small town and the opportunities I had as a child," Wendel said, noting he wants his children, Madison and Connor, to have the same chances he had. "I missed the togetherness of community and the sense of belonging. "I've lived here for less than two years and I know the majority of the people," he said. "They walk into the store, sometimes on a daily basis. It's nice to visit about what's going on in the community." Wendel's story has a familiar ring to it, according to Charles D. Peterson, dean of the NDSU College of Pharmacy. Out-of-state recruiters often lure NDSU graduates with higher salaries and the fast pace of bigger cities. "We see many pharmacy graduates initially leave the state searching for their 'ideal job' and they often eventually return to find exactly what they were looking for right here in North Dakota," Peterson said. The North Dakota Pharmaceutical Association hopes others follow Wendel's example. "We have a number of pharmacies for sale in different parts of the state. They are excellent pharmacies where the owners are retiring," said Galen Jordre, the association's executive vice president. "We have a variety of jobs in both hospital and retail settings. We also have a few clinical positions involving research. We're just asking people to let us know. "We think the graduates of NDSU are excellent pharmacists. With their familiarity with the state, their upbringing and background, we think they are ideal people to either come back or stay in North Dakota." You certainly won't get any argument on that score from Wendel. With a nod for emphasis, he stressed his point. "There has not been a day that I haven't appreciated being back," he said. U
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