Celebrating Rebecca Willows

Senior Certification Specialist Marks 36th Anniversary with OGC

In December of 1985, Rebecca Willows accepted a position with OGC becoming the company’s fifth employee and marking the start to what would become a multi-decade-long career.

Rebecca‘s experience and education led her to what is now her home in Oregon and at OGC. With her studies in Environmental Sciences at San Jose State University complete, Rebecca pursued interests and career opportunities in Southern Oregon, Colorado, and Montana before a fateful move to Eugene.

Shortly after arriving, Rebecca saw an ad for a job that would transform her life and future. A new company, Organically Grown Co-op, sought someone to “build orders.”

“I liked that OGC was an organic company, which was in line with my values,” Rebecca shares. “But I thought they were looking for someone to find new clients and build the business, not literally pull produce and stack boxes.” Nevertheless, prompted by a tough jobs market, Rebecca accepted the position and got to work.

OGC was still finding its legs and times were scrappy. “It seemed we all did a little of everything then and it was really fun,” she remembers. “We’d meet the trucks and break down the orders. We had one cooler with boxes stacked to the ceiling. We took sales orders from OGC’s Eugene customers, built the orders, and then I did the ‘town’ deliveries in an old bread truck.”

As OGC grew, so did Rebecca’s responsibilities in the company. She steadily worked her way up from warehouser and driver to the receptionist, accounts receivable, and inventory management before finally landing where she’s happiest: organic compliance. In more than three decades with OGC, Rebecca has learned the organic trade inside and out. Her dedication to the integrity of the organic mission is central to Rebecca’s work, ensuring product integrity from source through sale. 

OGC’s Mike Dill worked closely with Rebecca for many years in his role as Food Safety and Compliance Manager and shares, “Rebecca is a true champion of organic integrity.  Her dedication to vendor monitoring, organic certification, and fraud prevention have solidified OGC’s reputation as a leader and thought-partner in supply chain compliance.” 

Of her career and the importance of her contributions to OGC and the trade, Rebecca says, “My work is really for the organic consumer; without their trust in the organic label, it would have no meaning.”

Thank you, Rebecca, for your decades of work that have benefited OGC and the organic trade and for all the ways you make OGC a great place to be!