Star of the Show Me Center: Interview with David Ross

The Show Me Center welcomed its 6 millionth visitor on April 23 during a Southeast Missouri Hospital dinner. The building has hosted a little more than 8,300 events and 225,000 to 275,000 people at its functions each year since it opened Aug. 20, 1987. Since it opened Aug. 20, 1987, the Show Me Center has hosted sporting events such as Southeast Missouri State University basketball games, the NCAA Division II women's basketball Final Four and the recent Sikeston-Scott County Central high school basketball game. The facility has also been the setting for concerts including Garth Brooks and Tina Turner and political gatherings such as President Ronald Reagan and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin rallies. The Show Me Center employs 13 full-time and 200 to 300 part-time workers. Business editor Brian Blackwell sat down with Show Me Center David Ross just hours before the building celebrated its milestone last week.

A native of Ohio, Ross spent most of his childhood in Chattanooga, Tenn. He holds degrees from the University of Tennessee and Ohio University. Ross and his wife, Sue, have been married 32 years. The couple have a daughter, Erin, who is a pharmacy student at the University of Missouri at Kansas City and a son, Bryan, who recently graduated from the University of Missouri at Columbia. Ross has been director of the Show Me Center since it opened.

Q: Before we get into thoughts about the Show Me Center, tell us about your hobbies and early family life.

A: I love to play golf and conduct genealogy research. I mainly play golf when I travel on the road for business trips. I've played on courses in California, Washington, Missouri and Arkansas. As for genealogy I've visited Utah, New York, Iowa and Wisconsin. It's taken me to a lot of different places that I never intended to go. It fascinates me before I'm able to look at my family lineage. I have a Declaration of Independence signee, a Wright. The Ross line married the Wright line. My mom's family were Confederate soldiers who fought in the Civil War. My mom, Cheryl Smith, raised my brothers, sisters and I by herself. She is very strong-willed and had a never-give-up attitude. She didn't let being a single mother stop her from providing us with what we needed. All of us graduated from college and that says a lot to my mom's character and strength. My wife and kids have been supportive of all I've done while at the same time keeping me grounded.

Q: What is something most people may not know about you?

A: My first job was vending hot dogs and cokes at high school football games as a 10-year-old in Chattanooga. I worked on commission. My uncle ran a Coca-cola plant in Dalton, Ga., which was 30 miles away from Chattanooga. He held the concessions rights and we'd work the night before bagging peanuts. Another little-known fact is I hold the record for the half-mile run at my junior high school in Chattanooga. The record was set in 1968 and the school was built in 1929.

Q: What has it been like working at the same place for 22 years?

A: It's been wonderful. To open a building is something few building managers get to do. Some make a career out of opening a building. It gives managers a charge when they do something like that. As a result, many move from place to place. Putting together a staff is rewarding too. If you open a building and stay there 22 years it becomes like one of your children. And when people trash or deface the property you take it personally. I moved to Cape Girardeau with a five-year plan and that was four-and-a-half plans ago. Cape Girardeau is a wonderful place to live and why would you want to move? It's the place where my kids grew up.

Q: If there was something else you could do, regardless of ability or background, what would it be?

A: I'd be a general manager of a pro football or Major League Baseball team. That's something I started out to do and it seems like fun. Work is not work if it's fun. If you enjoy what you're doing it's not work.

Q: What experiences shaped you into your role of Show Me Center director?

A: One was when I earned a degree in physical education at the University of Tennessee. I had planned to enter coaching but I found out that if you don't play then your ability to get a job is harder. It worked out for the best. I use my teaching background in the position I'm in now. There's a lot of teaching that comes into play when you're managing your employees. Another thing that helped me was my background in pro soccer management. I was a ticket manager, travel coordinator, operations director and contract administrator. I worked for three start-up franchises, which were Oakland and DC soccer and then the Show Me Center. Another soccer team I worked for the U.S. National Team. All of those experiences in the different areas prepared me for what I'm doing today.

Q: What have been some of the most interesting events you've seen at the Show Me Center?

A: Tina Turner's visit in 1987 and Ronald Reagan's visit in 1988 were two that stand out. The atmosphere at both events was electrically charged. The ones that stand out the most are the ones that were electrically charged. Another that was memorable was the Sikeston-Scott County Central basketball game. When Southeast Missouri State basketball games were selling out was amazing to be a part of. Even though I've done this for many years, it doesn't become commonplace to have events like this. Cape Girardeau should be proud of this facility, especially for a town this size to have a facility like ours.

Q: What about events that require tight security, like the [President Ronald] Reagan and [Gov. Sarah] Palin visits?

A: It just depends on the event in terms of preparation time needed and the number of security that will work the event. During Reagan's visit we had two weeks' notice. Our full-time employees had to pull double duty during that and other similar events. It's an extremely good feeling when the Secret Service says your guys have done more work than some of the larger facilities.

Q: Are there any drawbacks to the job?

A: There are lots of demands on your family's time. It's not uncommon for me to get here at 5 a.m. for some of the bigger events and not leave until 2 a.m. If you like what you do then you're willing to work the hours. On the flip side there's a lot of flexibility with my job, so I was able to attend a lot of events that my kids participated in.

Q: What else would you like to say?

A: My employees are the best. They're extremely hard working and I'm proud that I am able to work with them every day.