Recently, ownership of the Bella Union, (“The Bella”) changed hands when its founder and soul of the company, Jerry Hayes, sold his interest in the restaurant to his long-time employees, Tom Bates and Christian Hamilton. Hayes has now assumed a “mentor” role, and will remain as the Secretary of the corporation that owns the Bella. What has changed is that Tom, (49) and Christian, (43) now each own 50% of the corporate stock. The future is bright—Bates and Hamilton are poised to lead the Bella, although neither anticipates making any major changes since the “formula” is working well at this time. Hayes says he, Bates and Hamilton have been talking about this sort of “exit strategy” for many years and that he couldn’t think of a better way to insure the Bella’s future than putting it in the capable hands of two of his most-trusted friends and employees.

Looking back nearly 28 years to 1988, it’s important to recall that Jacksonville was partly a “ghost-town” at the time, with several historic buildings boarded-up and abandoned. The fact that Jacksonville’s business district was in dire straits didn’t faze or deter an enthusiastic Jerry Hayes and his then business-partner James Parker from rolling the dice and opening a new restaurant. Hayes’ & Parker’s “new” Bella was actually sited on the same spot as an original restaurant, “The Bella Union Restaurant & Saloon,” operated from 1980-1986 until its owners were forced to shut-down due to non-payment of IRS taxes. Somehow, Parker and Hayes pulled-off the nearly-impossible, transforming an abandoned building and opening for business a few months later. To the delight of locals and visitors, the new Bella helped put Jacksonville back on the map, becoming one of “the” places to gather and celebrate ever since—a core goal Hayes had from the start of the venture.

In 1990, after a 2-year stint and as a 39% equity partner and serving as “Kitchen Manager,” Parker departed, and voluntarily turned his stock over to his partner, leaving Hayes as the sole proprietor. The move led Hayes to promote his line cook, Tom Bates, to “Kitchen Manager,” a post Tom has maintained ever since. Today, with a wide grin, Tom fondly recalls driving through Jacksonville back in 1988 when he noticed construction activity at the site of the new restaurant. Curious, he investigated and the next thing he knew, he’d been hired as one of the Bella’s first employees, one of hundreds to follow. Prior to working at the Bella, Bates had extensive cooking experience and was a graduate of the American Culinary Federation. To this day, Bates says he still uses original recipes first developed in the Bella’s early days.

Jerry Hayes also recalls that with no more than a few dollars to his name but with the financial backing of a few trusting friends, he and Parker made some sound business decisions—notably, great hiring decisions that included that curious and eager-to-learn 20-something line cook and a baby-faced, 15-year-old busboy named Christian Hamilton.

Hamilton, who bused tables for three years during his high school years, was later promoted to Server before becoming the Bartender and ultimately Assistant Manager. All that time, working side-by-side with Tom Bates, both men learned every operational aspect of running the Bella, an education enabling them to now own one of Southern Oregon’s most successful dining establishments. Hamilton, who credits Jerry Hayes with building a great business and being an excellent boss and mentor, proudly proclaims that Jerry is also an indispensable father figure in his life.

Ultimately, Bates and Hamilton say, it was the nearly 3 decades of Hayes’ leadership and vision that enabled the “Bella” to prosper, becoming a town icon and a beloved destination for thousands of visitors and locals. Hayes, who’s now 67-years-old, says this is the perfect time of his life to pass the baton to his trusted first-hires and close friends. In taking a back seat to his day-to-day operational role and assuming more of an advisory role, Hayes is looking forward to watching Tom and Christian flourish and finding their own path. However, Jerry isn’t retiring entirely, as evidenced by the title on his new business card that reads, “Part-time Restaurateur, Full-time Fisherman!”

Today, the Bella employ 65-85 employees, depending upon the season, including Tom’s daughter Megan, who started working at the Bella while in high school and Hamilton’s 21-year-old son, Isaac, who has bussed tables since high school and is now putting himself through college.

There are literally hundreds of stories to tell about the impact the Bella Union has had on its employees, customers and the town of Jacksonville. At the end of the day, however, the most important story is that of a gentle man named Jerry Hayes who took a risk and never looked back!