The Pella Hy-Vee Store Director received a special honor for his charitable work.

Derek Sparks received Hy-Vee’s Community Involvement Award for store directors. Sparks tells KNIA/KRLS News he was humbled to win and that he was surprised to be recognized.

“My reaction was just, ‘wow,’” he says. “There’s 250 other store directors, and I’m just honored to achieve that in the short time I’ve been a store director.”

Sparks has been store director at the Pella Hy-Vee since 2015 and has worked with Hy-Vee for twenty years. He currently serves as a member of the Pella Area Community & Economic (PACE) Alliance, is the president of the Dollars for Scholars Pella Chapter, an active board member of the Pella Opera House and is a Rotary member. He has also been instrumental in organizing several fundraisers in the area benefiting the Pella Community Food Shelf, Pella and Pella Christian schools and the Knights of Columbus Campaign for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities.

“Honestly, being involved in the community is one of those pillars Hy-Vee has had for the 86 years we’ve been around, is just having a strong community presence, and that is something I have strived for since coming to Pella,” he says.

Sparks was enshrined in the Hy-Vee Hall of Fame for his efforts.