The list of awards and honors bestowed upon Gerry Frank is long, impressive and still growing.

He has been recognized for his service and leadership in Salem and throughout Oregon, always humble and grateful no matter how big or small the gesture.

Some stand out, such as being named the first and only “Oregon’s Premier Citizen” through gubernatorial proclamation in 2000.

The latest addition to the list is comparable.

The Rotary Club of Salem is naming the proposed new amphitheater on the south end of Riverfront Park downtown after the well-known businessman and philanthropist.

“I was just blown away to tears,” Frank said of the moment project leaders gave him the news.

The public announcement about the Gerry Frank Rotary Amphitheater comes Wednesday during the next club meeting at Willamette Heritage Center.

By then, the chosen basket-weave design, a nod to the area’s Kalapuya Indian heritage, will have gone before Salem City Council for approval.

Construction of the multi-purpose stage and cover is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2019 with a grand opening in the spring of 2020, when the Rotary Club of Salem celebrates its 100th anniversary.

Frank has been a member of the club since 1956, joining a year after he settled here to manage the opening of the Meier & Frank store downtown. He wears Badge No. 1 at meetings and is the longest-tenured member of the club, which today has 183 members.

“He embodies the values and the commitment of the Rotary,” said Ken Van Osdol, co-chair of the amphitheater project with Barry Nelson.

“Rotary’s motto is ‘Service Above Self,’ ” Nelson said. “He’s a walking billboard for ‘Service Above Self.’ ”

Frank already has a few places named after him — a cake shop he co-founded in 1982 and just recently sold, the local United Way headquarters building dedicated in 2000, and a children’s care center at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland — but none seem as visible or universal as the amphitheater.

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It should be noted that Frank has not been involved with fundraising efforts for the amphitheater, nor has he donated. Nearly $500,000 of the estimated $2.5 million needed for the project has been raised so far.

“Quite honestly, my sense is he’s already given,” Van Osdol said. “It gave more credence or import to the name. It wasn’t because he wrote a big fat check.”

To Van Osdol and Nelson, and just about everyone they talked to about doing this in Frank’s honor, the gesture is warranted for a man who helped build this community.

His bio, provided by his assistant, is 11 pages long. Frank's activities take up eight pages, listed in alphabetical order, from the American Cancer Society to the World War II Memorial.

He has served on dozens of boards, including Blanchet Catholic School, Cascade Pacific Council of the Boy Scouts of America, Oregon Historical Society, Oregon State Police Foundation, and Special Olympics Oregon.

He has been involved with dozens of fundraising efforts, such as the Kroc Center, Oregon Garden, Newport Aquarium, Oregon High Desert Museum and Oregon Symphony.

It is estimated that Frank has helped raise more than half a billion dollars for various civic projects and nonprofit organizations in Salem and throughout Oregon. That’s half a billion, with a B.

“He’s probably touched every person in this community with his generosity,” Nelson said.

Name and reputation give Frank power when it comes to fundraising. Prospective donors may have a tough time saying no to Gerry Frank.

He has a tough time saying no, too. The 94-year-old recently accepted a role in the Salem Family YMCA capital campaign to build a new downtown facility.

Saying yes runs in the family. His father was just as civic-minded, as was his great-uncle, Julius Meier, Oregon’s governor from 1931 to 1935.

Long before Salem Rotary leaders contemplated naming the amphitheater in Gerry Frank’s honor, Nelson and Van Osdol met with him at his office and the subject of selling the naming rights came up.

“Don’t sell it cheap,” Frank told them.

"In doing this," Nelson said, "we wouldn't be selling it cheap."

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The hope is that the new amphitheater will not just provide a high-quality, multi-purpose stage to attract new performers and visitors, but tell a story for generations about the commitment of the Rotary Club of Salem, the roots of the Kalapuya Indians, and the impact of one generous resident.

"Somebody who has devoted his life to service," Van Osdol said.

“Forward This” appears Wednesdays and Sundays and highlights the people,places, and organizations of the Mid-Willamette Valley. Contact Capi Lynn at clynn@StatesmanJournal.com or 503-399-6710, or follow her the rest of the week on Twitter @CapiLynn and Facebook @CapiLynnSJ.