Carnival & Fair News

Now retiring after a remarkable career, Carolyn Heskett was far more than an employee to Mike Featherston, owner of Gold Star Amusements and Gold Star Manufacturing in Faribault, Minnesota. Heskett worked for Featherston's manufacturing company and played a central role in its day-to-day operations.

According to Featherston, “She ran our office, handling all daily business, including billing, communications, and more. Gold Star Manufacturing rebuilds equipment for owners in the carnival industry as well as for our own amusement company. We also operate a stage business and manufacture Puppy Roll rides.”

Heskett contributed to all of these areas. Before joining Gold Star, she spent decades at Sellner Manufacturing, a company widely known for producing Tilt-A-Whirl rides. It is likely that many in the carnival industry who purchased a Tilt-A-Whirl spoke with Heskett during the process. When Sellner's Tilt-A-Whirl production was later acquired by Larson International, Gold Star purchased other parts of Sellner's business. From there, the company developed its Puppy Roll rides by retrofitting them onto Sellner spin rides, replacing older styles such as the Dizzy Dragon or traditional Berry-Go-Rounds.

“For many years, Carolyn was the salesperson for the Puppy Roll,” Featherston says. “She worked closely with customers throughout the amusement industry, something she knew well after selling rides for Sellner for 35 years and then continuing in that role with my company for another 15 years. What made her unique was that she worked in the same office for two different companies, Sellner and Gold Star, both operating out of the same facility.”

Heskett recalls that her career began in 1963 when she visited an employment office in Faribault to look for office work. “The man looked at my address and suggested I walk across the street to Sellner Manufacturing, since they often hired summer help. So I did. I spoke with Art Sellner, and later that day he called and asked me to start the next morning. I worked through Labor Day that first year in the order department, invoicing and shipping parts. In October, the office secretary resigned, and I was called back to work as Art Sellner's secretary while also handling parts orders.”

Art Sellner's son Bruce was just ten years old when Heskett joined the company. After college and military service, he took on a major role at Sellner. By then, Heskett was working in customer service. “I took parts orders by phone and helped customers with their needs. Bruce told me I would be attending trade shows to meet the customers I spoke with. I really enjoyed meeting them and felt an immediate connection. I have always said I love the business and the people in it.”

Over the years, Heskett held roles in customer service, office management, and sales management. “I also served on the Board of Directors for Sellner Manufacturing,” she says. “When I became involved in ride sales each summer, my husband and I would take road trips to visit carnivals. One trip I remember well was in the mid-1990s, when we were introducing the Dizzy Dragon spin ride. On that trip, I sold nine new spin rides and one new Tilt in just one week. It was so much fun. When I returned, I was welcomed with a bouquet of flowers and a wonderful dinner.”

She also recalls a memorable IAAPA trip in the late 1980s. “As soon as the trade show opened, we made our first sale, a new Tilt-A-Whirl. Customers kept coming, and by the end of the day we had sold four new Tilts. That evening, I was again treated to a wonderful dinner.”

In 1995, both Art and Bruce Sellner passed away within two months of each other. “Those were very sad days without their presence in the office,” Heskett says. She retired from Sellner Manufacturing in 2000 after 37 years. She and her husband Dave planned to travel and enjoy retirement, but their plans were cut short when he passed away unexpectedly in 2004.

“My life changed a great deal after that,” she explains. “I cared for our three acres of lawn and for my elderly mother, who lived with me. She passed away in 2011, and afterward I sold our family home and moved into a condo.”

The following year, Heskett received a call from longtime carnival friend Rick Haney of Fundways of Illinois, who was in town picking up equipment from Gold Star Manufacturing. “I joined him for lunch with Mike Featherston, and we caught up on old times. At the end of lunch, Mike asked if I would be interested in helping in the office. At that point in my life, things had settled down, so I said yes.”

Featherston is grateful she did. While celebrating her well-earned retirement, he reflects on her many contributions and honors her years of service to his company.

For her part, Heskett says, “I am truly grateful to Mike and Connie Featherston for giving me these additional years in the business. It has been the pleasure of my life to be part of the carnival industry. Thank you for 51 wonderful years.”

It is clear that the carnival industry feels the same way.