The Midwest Retail & Grocery Alliance will honor Harter House Supermarkets with its 2026 Legacy Award during the President’s Gala on Oct. 22 at Camden on the Lake Resort in Lake Ozark, Missouri. The award presentation is part of the MRGA event scheduled for Oct. 21-23.
The Legacy Award recognizes a person, family or organization whose contributions have created a lasting impact on the grocery industry, their employees, customers and communities. This year’s award celebrates more than five decades of family-owned grocery retailing by the Bettlach family.
Commitment to quality, service from the start
Harter House was founded in 1973 by Jerry and Barbara Bettlach, who began with a small grocery operation and a commitment to quality products and friendly service. More than 50 years later, members of the Bettlach family — spanning their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren — continue to own and operate Harter House stores. According to the company’s website, it operates eight stores in Missouri and one in Arkansas.
“Legacy in the grocery industry is not simply measured by the number of stores you build or the number of years you are in business,” said Dan Shaul, president and CEO of MRGA. “It is measured by the people you employ, the families you support, the customers who trust you and the communities that are better because you are there. The Bettlach family embodies that kind of legacy.”
Three generations of service
For Amanda Jordan, store manager and co-owner of Harter House Eastgate and a member of the Missouri Grocers Association board, the award recognizes both her family’s history and its responsibility to the future.
“I’m incredibly honored to be part of the third generation carrying on the legacy my grandmother and grandfather started in 1973,” Jordan said. “What makes me most proud is that we are still a family-owned business, with our family working alongside our employees and serving the same communities that have supported us for more than 50 years.”
Jordan noted her grandfather served 20 years on the OEGA board and five on the MGA board. “To now have the opportunity to serve on these boards myself is something I’m extremely proud of,” she said. “You don’t just inherit a family business. You inherit the responsibility to take care of what the generations before you worked so hard to build.”
Barbara Bettlach said the recognition reflects what she and her husband hoped to build. “Jerry and I never set out to build a legacy. We simply wanted to build a good business, take care of our family, take care of our employees and serve our customers the right way,” she said. “To see our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren continue working together and carrying those values forward is something that means more to me than I can put into words.”
The family’s community commitment includes an annual effort benefiting The Kitchen Inc., established in memory of Jerry Bettlach and his brother-in-law, Jim Trimble, with Harter House donating 5 percent of store sales during a designated week each year. Through March 2026, the tradition had contributed approximately $1.5 million to the organization.
MRGA represents grocery retailers and industry partners across the Midwest, providing advocacy, education, resources and networking for its members.