Sometimes being an all-around individual can be a mixed blessing. As Hoisington’s Gene Mooney notes, it seems the more things one can do, the more they will be asked to do them.

“I do get phone calls, people asking me if I can do something about this or that,” said Mooney, who as part owner-manager of Cardinal Pharmacy in Hoisington is also a sales and go-to guy at Ehler Chevrolet during the day. In the evenings he coaches high school track or youth football, is involved in the community’s recreation program and serves on several committees. 

It didn’t happen all at once, but it started as soon as he and his wife Marla moved to town, he said.

“I don’t think we were in town for more than a week, when I got a call from (former Chamber of Commerce director) Stacy Bressler to put me on the Chamber Board of Directors. Instantly, they had me involved with this community. I’ve been involved with something ever since.”

Being involved is something he enjoys about the community he has been a part of since 2010.

“You can be as involved as you want to be,” he said. “Sometimes it’s more than you want to be.

“The hair on my head is starting to turn colors. I told my wife the other day that maybe I should slow down a little to save my hair.” 

Assembling the pieces

Mooney’s multi-faceted beginnings began with his parents growing up in the rural community of Bushton. His father worked at the Bushton Station for Northern Natural Gas for 35 years, while his mother was librarian for Quivira Heights High School. While they didn’t farm, Mooney gained farm knowledge working for other farmers, he said.

After graduating from QHHS in 1996, he played football for Bethany College for two years before transferring to Kansas University. He was accepted into respiratory school while his wife Marla got into the KU School of Pharmacy, but the workload was pretty fierce, he said.

His career path took a sharp turn when he was working as a trainer for Gold’s Gym in Kansas City. While there, he told a client that if he would give Mooney a year, the client would be running a marathon.

“A year to the day later, he was signed up for a 10K,” Mooney said. “He walked into the office, slid me a piece a paper and told me I was coming to work for him.”

The client turned out to be a higher-up for Coca-Cola in Kansas. Mooney worked a year for the company from Victoria before deciding that the corporate world wasn’t for him.

“I wanted to go do my own thing,” he said. He was part owner of a heating and air business in Russell from 2001-2010, when the family came to Hoisington.

“The community was really needing its own pharmacy,” he said. He manages the business and his wife is the pharmacist.

Cardinal ventures

From there, came more opportunities. As his children grew up, there were activities to lead, programs to run, teams to coach and committees to join.

Mooney prefers to let others take the credit, he said.

“I’m the guy that likes to come in behind the scenes,” he said. “I don’t have to be the face of anything. Let someone else be the face, I will stay in the background doing the work.”

In the meantime, his children have been learning the value of working hard to gain distinction.

His oldest son Braden is a sophomore at Newman University studying for a nursing degree. His daughter Mallory is seeking to continue in college volleyball after graduation this year from Hoisington High School. Layton will be entering HHS in the fall and Zander is in eighth grade.

“Right now, Marla and I are chasing the kids through high school activities,” Mooney said. “We stay pretty busy.

“It’s a small town, but there is plenty to do.”