Mitchell (Mick) P. Scott

Wilsonville resident Mitchell (Mick) P. Scott died peacefully Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015 with family by his side at his Charbonneau home. His passing was a result of complications from cancer. Born in 1941 in Portland to M.R. (Red) and Mary Jo Scott, Mick spent his youth in Bend, OR and teen years in Vancouver, WA. After graduation from the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication in 1964, Mick settled in the Portland metro area. Mick was passionate about friends and family, sports, advertising, big band music, and history - with history, particularly Oregon history, topping his list of interests. He traversed the state to explore its rich past and natural wonders, sought out antique shops and estate sales in search of unique collectibles, and rooted for his beloved Oregon Ducks. He had an encyclopedic mind for those things that were of interest to him. He surrounded himself with prized memorabilia in his home, and shared with friends and family the story that was attached to each collectible. Mick became a lifelong sports fan as a player, participating in state baseball championship games in Little League, Connie Mack League and at Clark Jr. College. It was his Clark College baseball coach Gene Tanselli who encouraged Mick to pursue a marketing and communications degree at the University of Oregon where he wrote sports for the Oregon Daily Emerald and was active in the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. He was proud of his accomplished advertising and marketing career that began with NW Natural Gas, where he developed a regionally award winning magazine. At that time, he was elected the first president of the newly formed Portland Jr. Advertising Club and was elected a national officer of the American Advertising Federation, a 50,000 member national trade association. Later he would lead the 800 member Portland Advertising Federation. From NW Natural Gas, Mick was recruited to First National Bank of Oregon and then to Benj. Franklin Federal Savings & Loan as vice president of marketing communications. While with Benj. Franklin, Mick’s advertising programs won more national awards than any other financial institution in the country including three Clio Awards and a citation for the most outstanding marketing program in the U.S. He was the first to use Claymation in advertising, collaborating with Will Vinton to create a campaign for Benj. Franklin years in advance of the nationally renowned California Raisins campaign. Combining his love of history and advertising, Mick conceived, founded and was the project director for the development of the nationally acclaimed American Advertising Museum (AAM). He loved the Museum and those involved with helping to make it happen, and there were many, but it was Mick’s vision and life force that made it a reality. The museum received the prestigious George Washington Freedoms Medal from the National Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge for its advancement of economic education. An expert on advertising history, Mick made numerous presentations before community organizations, conferences and conventions throughout the U.S. and Canada. Moving on from Benj. Franklin, Mick became the executive director of the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association and Oregon Beef Council, two of the state’s largest commodity organizations, where he formed a nonprofit education foundation and created the Cowboys Then & Now Museum, which was nationally honored as the top agriculturally related public relations program in the Western United States. During his tenure, Mick conceived, established and administered AG-PAC, the nation’s first statewide political action committee for the agricultural industry, and served on the advertising committee for the National Beef Council overseeing a $22 million ad program, including the legendary “Beef, it’s what’s for dinner ” campaign. Mick was committed to his alma mater. He was a project director in the development of the Hall of Achievement for the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication and served on the Journalism School’s Advisory Council for 12 years. Over the course of his career, Mick was a recipient of more than 80 awards for professional and community service. Among the accolades, he was honored as Oregon’s Advertising Professional of the Year, received the President’s Award for outstanding service to the newspaper industry by the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association, and three American Advertising Federation Silver Medal Awards for industry service. He was also selected one of Portland’s Most Interesting Men in 1982 and remained that until his passing. In “retirement,” Mick developed advertising programs for The Oregon Garden in Silverton, produced events for the Agri-Business Council, created marketing programs for area retail, and consulted and coordinated historic projects including the interior décor of the Wilsonville McMennamins. He also headed a fundraising campaign for the Wilsonville Public Library Foundation to expand the local library, created a series of historical markers throughout the community, authored the hardbound historical picture book, Looking Back, The Land at Eden’s Gate, served on the Clackamas County Tourism Development Council and the Clackamas County Arts Alliance, and wrote a monthly history column for his community newspaper, The Charbonneau Villager. Mick is survived by his loving partner of 24 years, Janel McKenna; son Steve Scott, Steve’s wife Kelly and their sons Crary and Carson. The family asks that remembrances be made to the Wilsonville Public Library Foundation or the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication. A celebration of Mick’s life is being planned.

Tributes

Mitchell (Mick) P. Scott

September 25, 1941 - October 22, 2015