Steve Pawloski moved to Jacksonville when he was 10 years old and hasn’t left.
“When we moved here in the ’70s, Jacksonville was a very prosperous town, but there hasn’t been a lot of growth since,” Pawloski said. “But now I feel like we have the right chamber in place and the right mayor in place to turn this around and get some growth back in this city.
“I think we are headed in the right direction in getting this city back to where it was in the ’70s.”
Pawloski was named chairman of the board for the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce in February. Last year, he served as vice chairman on the board and has previously served on the board for three years. He is the owner of Arkansas Office Products in Jacksonville.
“I wanted to get involved with the chamber and make a difference with our chamber members,” he said. “I’m all about helping people out. I don’t know it all, but what I do know, I want to spread it out to other people and help them make the right decisions.”
When he was appointed chairman, he said the chamber had a lot of things going on and planned out, as far as new programs to institute and some gatherings. However, due to the growing COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of the events have been canceled. He said he hopes to install them later in the fall or maybe late summer.
“Going forward, it is important for all of our members to have the right information to combat the coronavirus,” Pawloski said. “We want to make sure they have help with the stimulus package and make sure our members are aware of what is going on and what they can do to help.
“We are sending emails to all of our members, making sure they are aware about what all we can do to help them.”
Courtney Dunn, CEO and director of economic development for the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce, has known Pawloski for about five years. She said she and Pawloski are great friends, and she consults with him often and respects his opinions.
“Steve has a very outgoing and fun personality,” Dunn said. “He is always available and willing to help everybody. Steve is outspoken and tells it how it is — no sugarcoating.”
In response to the pandemic, the chamber has created a web page that is dedicated to the COVID-19 crisis, Jacksonville-Arkansas.com/choosejacksonville. She said the chamber also created a Jacksonville restaurant list that includes information and modifications, such as available delivery or curbside pickup.
“We are promoting a Support Local Everything campaign,” Dunn said. “With this, JCC is selling Jacksonville-Support Local Everything T-shirts. The money from the shirts is being used to purchase gift cards from Jacksonville businesses, and each shirt purchase gets you an entry in the gift-card giveaway drawing.
“We also plan to have some social-media contests and use the gift cards as prizes for those as well. We plan to do a drawing at least once a week.”
The shirts are being purchased from Graffiti Graffix, a Jacksonville business.
Pawloski said he is doing everything by phone or email but is trying to make sure businesses in Jacksonville are recognized on the chamber’s Facebook page, including Business of the Month, which is a new program.
“If members have anything they want to put out about their business or [anything] coronavirus-related, we will put it on the chamber’s website,” Pawloski said. “We are here to help these businesses get through this and help them grow.
“We are reaching out to them that way and getting them the information they need and helping in any way we can.”
Jacksonville Mayor Bob Johnson has known Pawloski for about 10 years. Johnson said Pawloski is “a very pleasurable guy to be around, and he cares about his community and his customers.”
“He was really thrilled to build his business in Jacksonville, and it is a real good asset to have him in the city,” said Johnson, who was sworn in as mayor in 2019. “I’m glad to have him here and his connections in the business world.”Johnson won a runoff on Dec. 4, 2018, to be elected mayor. He was sworn in as mayor in 2019.
Pawloski graduated from Jacksonville High School in 1978 and earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Central Arkansas in Conway in 1982. He wasn’t able to find a teaching job right away, and the management at James Brothers Office Supply heard Pawloski was looking for a job.
“They hired me, and I got into the office-supply business,” he said. “And once you get in, you don’t leave. I met a lot of nice folks, and I love to talk to people, and that’s what we do on a daily basis.
“I love my customers and would do anything for them. I wake up every day trying to find ways to make my customers better because it is about the customers and making them grow and be better.”
Pawloski opened his business in 2006 after wanting to leave James Brothers and planning on taking his customers with him. He said the owners of James Brothers at the time wanted to retire anyway, so in the end, it worked out well for both sides.
Sharon Regnas is vice president of Arkansas Office Supply.
“Steve is a great person,” she said. “He is very upfront and honest and tells you like it is. Sometimes that is what you like to hear — he is a great person to work for.”
She said that as owner of the company, Pawloski is looking out for “all of us during this crisis.”
“He is trying to make the right decisions so that we all have jobs to come to every day. He is very transparent. … Everybody here knows their job is secure, and the company keeps going,” Regnas said.
“Things may slow down a little bit, but he is making sure we all get a paycheck, and he does not want to lay anyone off so that when this is over, things can be as normal as possible,” she said.
“[As chairman of the chamber], he is always looking for new members,” Regnas said. “He attends all the functions and the ribbon cuttings — anything out there, he is there.
“People in business understand the value of a relationship, and they appreciate it. And I think that is why he has done so well.”
Staff writer Sam Pierce can be reached at (501) 244-4314 or spierce@arkansasonline.com.