New: Businessman, area promoter dies

The Free Press

NORTH MANKATO February 01, 2008 04:24 pm

— Summing up Rick McCluhan’s life is not easy.
Born to an activist Democrat father, the politically savvy McCluhan ran for state Legislature as a Republican, then moved to the Reform Party where he became state chairman and helped orchestrate the gubernatorial election win of his friend Jesse Ventura.
He was a entrepreneur with a private plane and varied interests. The backbone of his businesses were Express Personnel Services in North Mankato and Fairmont, but he also started and ran Cafe Camarda in the downtown Mankato mall, owned a business that invented a machine to help people with physical limitations lift and move heavy objects, and started or was a partner in a number of other endeavors.
He was the gregarious man born to Sicilian and Irish parents who enjoyed going out with friends and family.
And he was the consummate promoter of the Mankato and North Mankato area, volunteering with various groups and promoting local festivals and events.
McCluhan died Thursday evening. He was 51.
“He was just a jolly guy. Always on top of the world,” said longtime friend Mike Chapman, a Mankato banker. “He was a great friend. If you picked up the phone and asked for anything, he’d always help you out,” Chapman said.
“And he was a walking encyclopedia. When you went out with him, it was just fun to sit back and listen to his stories.”
Dean Portner, president of the North Mankato Rotary Club, said McCluhan joined the Rotary a few years ago and soon revitalized it.
“He really took on a lot of projects for Rotary. He stepped up with a passioned effort.”
McCluhan started the Service Above Self banquet two years ago to recognize non-Rotarians for their service. He oversaw the second annual banquet recently.
“He got our club moving forward. We added 15 new members last year,” Portner said.
McCluhan’s political career lacked personal election success but put a mark on state politics.
In 1996 he ran as a Republican against Democrat Ruth Johnson, coming very close to winning. A couple of years later, disillusioned with the Republican Party, he ran on the Reform Party ticket, losing to Republican Julie Storm.
McCluhan helped build the fledgling Reform Party, became it’s state chairman and gained the party national attention when he helped Jesse Ventura win the governor’s mansion.
Born in Iowa, McCluhan went to Mankato State University and in the early 1980s began a small business, McCluhan & Associates. The firm helped people find jobs, including for many people with physical disabilities. A few years later he started Express Personnel in Mankato.
McCluhan had been in ailing health in recent years, including a heart condition.