Spring 2015 Sweep - NSP South Central Region

Sweep Newsletter
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Spring 2015
REGION
DIRECTOR’S
REPORT
REGION UPDATE:
MIDWINTER REGION BOARD
OF GOVERNOR’S MEETING –
Was held on January 14. Actions at the
meeting included:
­ Approved the second quarter 2014­15
Region budget report.
­ Approved a budget increase for the
Women’s Clinic and Awards Program.
­ Approved the second reading of the
South Central Region ByLaws. With
this action they are now in effect as a
governing document for the Board.
­ Began review of the draft Region
Policies & Procedures
­ Set the Spring Board of Governor’s
Meeting for April 21, 2015
REGION PATROL DIRECTORS
BY RON PLUMER
– Adam Seymer has stepped down as
Patrol Director at Christmas Mountain
and Mike Glick has agreed to step in
and take over the duties.
February 21, 2015
REGION CALENDAR – An
Can’t believe that it’s already the end of
February. Region on­snow programs are
in full swing and being well attended,
now if we could only find that elusive
blizzard to build our base we would be
having even more fun.
AND, mark your calendar now for the
South Central Region Banquet to be
held at the Ausblick Ski Area on
Saturday May 2, 2015. For those of you
who have never visited the area you are
truly in for a treat not to mention having
the opportunity to help all of us
celebrate our fellow member’s success!
updated South Central Region Calendar
of events is being published in this
edition of the SWEEP for your review
and use. It contains events reported and
included as of February 28, 2015. It will
be updated and republished in each
subsequent edition of the SWEEP
Newsletter. As in the past an electronic
version containing regular updates will
be available on the Region’s Website at
http://nsp­southcentral.org/ also.
MEMBERS WE LOST
RECENTLY: ­ In the past couple of
months we lost 4 fellow members in
our region including Louis Fons, Jim
Slattery, Scott Taylor, and Dennis
Kennedy. Please take a moment and
read the memorials in this issue
submitted on their behalf.
REGION SENIOR PROGRAM –
The last segment (OEC) of this year’s
very successful program was completed
on February 21st at the Little
Switzerland Ski Area. At the end of the
day 6 candidates had success of which 4
completed the program requirements
and earned their Senior patch. The Ski
and Toboggan portion of the program,
Held earlier at Cascade Mountain had
an equally high success rate (7 for Ski
and 7 for Toboggan) due in no small
part to all the extra effort by Anne
Blaedow and her cadre of highly skilled
program staff who conducted a number
of additional practice sessions for
candidates. Again, 2 candidates
completed the program requirements
and earned their Senior patch. Please
see the informative articles by Anne
Blaedow – Senior Advisor, Tim
Weinand – Proficiency Advisor, and
Moe Minor – OEC Advisor later in this
issue detailing these events.
REGION WOMEN’S CLINIC –
Our first ever Women’s Clinic, held
on February 15th at the Tyrol Basin
Ski Area, opened with a full roster of
30 participant registrations and a
waiting list. While the day was a
cool one, evaluation comments for
the event were full of very positive
comments highlighting all of the
skill enhancement opportunities, and
complementing both the instructors
and event organization. Please see
Jennifer Thompson’s article later in
this issue and think about joining
this group next season.
VACANT REGION POSITIONS –
We currently have opportunities for
members who would be interested in
supporting their fellow patrollers at the
Region level in the following areas:
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
working with the Region Director and
Region Board of Governors at board
meetings and maintaining Region
governance documents; AVALANCHE,
and ADAPTIVE ADVISORS, working
with Bill Bailey, ARD Programs; and
LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
Working with Brad Bailey, ARD
Administration.
If you are interested in learning more
about what a position would be
responsible for, please contact the
respective ARD or myself for more
information. As with other levels in our
organization, success is directly related
to patrollers who step forward and
contribute their talents and skills to
support our fellow members
Speaking of Region Staff, many of our
programs this year have far exceeded
our expectations due in no small part to
a cadre of concerned and skilled
members who have stepped forward to
manage and implement programs.
Please join me in saying THANK
YOU to them when you get the chance.
PROGRAM ARTICLES – Please
take a moment and review the various
articles from Region staff and Program
Advisors regarding their activities and
events this season.
AWARDS – As always, if no one
prepares them – no one receives them.
Individual awards can be completed and
submitted all year long. If you are
considering preparing award(s) be sure
to talk with your Section Chief and/or
Tom Wright, Region Awards Advisor
if you have any questions on what
facts to include in the nomination,
what to emphasize, and how to write
a successful nomination.
Again, I’d like to take this opportunity
to highlight the “Angel Award” which
is presented to non­patroller spouses
and significant others of NSP members
who support the continued participation
of their patroller spouse as a ski
patroller. This award is appropriate for
presentation after 8 – 10 years of
membership of the patroller spouse.
Without the proactive encouragement of
their non­patroller partners, we could
lose their participation and would all be
pulling more shifts! The Angel Award
can be presented at all levels of our
organization. If you believe that you
know someone who deserves to be
recognized be sure to submit their name
to your patrol director. South Central
Region will be working to resurrect the
Super Angel Award this season which,
while dropped by NSP, is appropriate
for the same group of people after 18 –
20 years of service by their patroller
spouse. If you know of someone
deserving of this award forward a letter
nomination detailining their support to
your Section Chief. They will review it
and forward those approved to the
Region Director for consideration.
and recognize even more of our
deserving patrollers!
AND….. ON THAT NOTE, now is a
good time to mark your calendar for the
Region Awards Banquet coming up on
Saturday May 2, 2015. Paul Fuchs and
his Section 1 Committee promise a
wonderful location accompanied by
great food and beverages. Please see the
article in this issue for more information
on registration for the event.
AND SO THE SEASON
CONTINUES – As you look after
your area’s guests, Be safe out there .
As always, I ask you to remember that:
YOU ARE THE NATIONAL
SKI PATROL! See you on the
hill!
Remember, the Awards Committee
meets 3 times each year (see the Region
Calendar) to consider nominations
(Outstanding Nominations are
reviewed in March). A key tip is start
early rather than rush at the end when it
is due.
If you are unsure of what awards are
available go to the NSP website, sign
in, go to your member page and click on
the “Bookshelf” to access a listing of
publication downloads that includes the
NSP Policies & Procedure Manual that
has the Awards section including
application forms, instructions and
definitions.
If you believe someone you know is
deserving of recognition and is eligible
for an award, and you want to learn
more about the Awards Program, or just
plain need assistance in preparing one –
Please contact your Section Chief or
Tom Wright as early as possible for
assistance.
It will be well worth all of your
efforts when you see them receive their
much deserved recognition. As a
Region, let’s see if we can generate
even more nominations this season
Alumni Advisor
By Deb Stone
Hello Patrollers…I hope your winter is
going well and that you are getting a lot
of skiing in. It’s amazing how good the
snow has been this year considering the
weather. I would like to remind all
patrollers who are contemplating
retiring from active patrolling that we
have a very good alumni program.
Joining the NSP alumni program lets
you participate in many of the activities
that you enjoyed as a patroller as well as
many of the perks. Please visit the
alumni website and download the
manual, it will give you all the
information you need to make a
decision.
http://www.nsp.org/about/nsp_programs
/alumni.aspx
Thanks.
Assistant Region
Director ­ Proficiency
by Jason Erdmann
It has been an amazing season for our
programs so far. We’ve had excellent
turn out for our Senior events, both in
numbers of candidates participating and
in people helping to run the events. A
big congratulations to those that passed.
Completing Senior takes a good deal of
practice, time, and commitment, but the
journey is really worth the effort. The
new found skills, confidence, and
friendships will last you for the rest of
your patrolling career and beyond. The
friendships is really an overlooked
bonus of the events. Senior is truly a
Region wide event, with patrollers from
many different patrols coming together
and combining their efforts to put on a
great event for the candidates. Which
does lead to one problem for the Senior
Advisors that are running
these programs – many of
the people that volunteer
their time to help make
these events happen don’t
cross paths in person often
outside of these events, so
each clinic and eval has a
reunion feel to them. As the
former OEC Administrator,
I know firsthand how
challenging it can be to get
some of these events started
each day with everyone
wanting to catch up and say
hi. But we wouldn’t have it
any other way. These events couldn’t
happen without all of the people that
volunteer their time to work at the
events, and having the same people
coming back year after year – giving
their time, energy, enthusiasm, and
knowledge – it’s really an amazing
thing. And it’s why I’ve always been
such a staunch advocate of the Senior
program. Pass or fail, you can’t help but
leave with something more than you
came in with. New skills, new
confidence, new friends, any or all of
the above, it’s all worth it.
So why talk so much about this, when
this year’s Senior events will be done by
the time the Sweep has been published?
Because as soon as one year’s events
are done we are always looking forward
to the next year’s events. If you’ve
never done Senior but this you may
want to try it, then you can work on
your ski and toboggan skills for the rest
of this season, and help with your basic
OEC class this summer to really make
sure all of your skills are polished up. If
you’ve completed Senior, then you
might want to think about coming back
to the program next year to help us put
on another round of great events for the
next class of candidates. There is always
more to learn, and helping with the
program is a great way to get exposed to
new ideas and situations. And if you’ve
been helping run the Senior events, then
thank you all very much. You know who
you are and how much your work is
appreciated, and I can’t wait to see you
all at the next event.
Lastly, I’d like to specifically thank
Moe Minor (OEC Administrator), Tim
Weinand (Proficiency Advisor,
PSIA/NSP C Advisor), and Anne
Blaedow (Senior Advisor). This year’s
Senior events were some of the best that
I’ve seen, and they wouldn’t have
happened without A LOT of hard work
from these three.
Have a great rest of the season, I hope to
see you all at the Region Awards
Banquet this spring, and at a Senior or
other region program in the future!
Senior Program
Report
by Anne Blaedow ­ Senior Program
Administrator
Maureen Minor ­ OEC
Administrator
Tim Weinand ­ Proficiency Advisor
This year’s Senior program involved
more opportunities for training at the
region level than ever before. A busy
calendar of ski/toboggan training
nights as well as OEC scenario
practice sessions were held
throughout the region. Here is an
overview of what we have been up
to. Get inspired and get involved
next year. Keep growing as a
patroller and inspire others to join
you on the journey through the
Senior program.
Ski/Toboggan Module Training
Sessions: I’d like to thank the
patrollers who served as
instructor/coaches during the
training sessions. Your advice and
drills helped our senior candidates
figure out that mastery of using our
edges to control our speed is the
key to success, whether you are
skiing, snowboarding, telemarking or
tobogganing. Thank you to Eric
Gesteland, Tim Weinand, Jeremy
McPherson, Bob Hudacek, Peggy
Butler and Mark Harring.
Ski/Toboggan Module Evaluation
Day: Cascade Mountain was host to
this years’ Senior evaluation. Thank
you to Rob Walz, Randy Axelson
and the staff at Cascade for allowing
us to share the slopes with their
patrons. The patrollers who
participated in the ski and toboggan
training sessions at Cascade spoke
highly of the practice time and
activities. We didn’t have moguls on
Mogul Monster until the week of the
evaluation, but we managed to
spend our final practice night
building moguls so that we could get
one run through them with a
toboggan. These were fun filled and
usually doubled as an OEC practice
with our chairlift discussions
focussed on OEC scenarios and
skill review.
Two patrollers completed the Senior
Program as a result of the day’s
evaluations. Congratulations to the
two Alpine Valley Patrollers : Larry
Golding and Mike Wood! Your
journey to Senior is complete.
Larry Golding, Mike Wood, and Tim Weinand
The following people successfully
completed the Ski/Ride Module of
the Senior Program:
Mike Wood ­ Alpine Valley
Dani McPherson ­ Cascade
Mike Finlay­ Devils Head
Ryan Hudziak ­ Alpine Valley
Larry Golding­ Alpine Valley
Bailey Gesteland ­ Cascade
Danielle Stoll­Tronnes ­ Tyrol Basin
The following people successfully
completed the Toboggan Module
evaluation:
Pete Curtis ­ Tyrol Basin
Mike Buss­ Nordic Mountain
Mike Wood ­ Alpine Valley
Dani McPherson ­ Cascade
Larry Golding­ Alpine Valley
Bailey Gesteland ­ Cascade
Danielle Stoll­Tronnes ­ Tyrol Basin
We would like to thank the entire
staff that helped train, prepare and
evaluate these candidates. Eric
Gesteland, Tim Weinand, Jeremy
McPherson, Peggy Butler, Dale
Stephens, Dean Dolence, Tom
Merritt, Tony Ortega, Bob Good,
Katie Voss, Ron Frank and Mark
Harring. We also had several guests
from North Central join us. Thank
you Chuck Jonas and Keith
Robinson and our QA staff Jim
Woodrum. In addition, the following
people did yeoman’s work as
drivers, riders and uphill
transportation: Mike Hare, Chris
Driscoll, Eric Gesteland, Bob
Hudacek, Pat Kelly, Joe Munns,
Chuck Jonas, Anne Blaedow, Tim
Theisen and Randy Gardner.
OEC Module Module Training
Sessions:
We held 10 Senior OEC training
nights around the region to help
candidates prepare for this years’
evaluation day. This was the largest
number of organized practice
sessions that have been
coordinated at a region level. We’d
like to thank the following patrollers
for their help in offering these
sessions, planning effective practice
skills and scenarios to help our
people polish their problem solving
skills: Tim Weinand, Kevin Ketter,
Paul Fuchs, Larry Golding, Peggy
Butler, Mike Husar and Eric
Gesteland. The local patrollers and
instructors from the candidate’s hills
also helped serve as patients and
assistants. Everyone involved with
these activities benefits from the
practice!
OEC Module Evaluation day at
Little Switzerland was an overall
success. Thank you to Mike Schmitz
and Kevin Ketter for hosting this
years event.Special thanks to the
Little Switz patrollers for their
assistance with our real live
scenario. Candidates participated in
3 mock incidents where they lead a
team of patrollers to assess the
problem, treat all injuries and
managing challenging aspects of the
problem. Thank you to the following
people for their time and talents as
evaluators, patients, helper
patrollers and organizers:
Congratulations go out to the 6
patrollers who were successful:
Dani McPherson ­ Cascade
Mountain
Mike Buss­ Nordic Mountain
Mike Hare­ Nordic Mountain
Pete Curtis­ Tyrol Basin
Tim McCaigue­ Little Switzerland
Tim Theisen­ Devils Head
The event could not have been done
without the incredible evaluators,
Four of these fine people completed
helper patrollers, patients and
their goal and are full fledged Senior
support staff. Under the leadership
Patrollers..... way to inspire: Mike
of Maureen "Moe" Minor, the teams
Hare, Tim Theisen, Pete Curtis
portrayed challenging problems and
and Dani McPherson (not
gave good feedback to help
pictured).
everyone grow in their knowledge.
Evaluators included:
Thom Rabaglia,
Steve Paladini, Dean
Dolence, Rick
Wayne, Jason
Erdmann, Mark
Harring, Deb
DelForge, Bob
Guenther, Paul
Fuchs, Jim
Riedemann and
Anne Blaedow, Mike Hare, Moe Minor, Run Plumer
Kevin Ketter. Our
"Helper Patrollers"
included Peggy
Butler, Jim Kulas,
Steve Sundquist,
Sara Milligan, Sharon
Long, Wayne Billings,
Jeff Zignego, Matt
Poser and Peter
Zeltins. Our patients
were great and we
thank them for laying
in the snow all day in
Ron Plumer, Moe Minor, Pete Curtis, Anne Blaedow
your moulage and
presenting a
consistent scenario.
Without your efforts,
we could not do this
program. Thank you
to Region Director
Ron Plumer and
Division OEC
Supervisor Sue
Hayes and North
Central Region OEC
Admin Mike Olson for
your support.
Ron Plumer, Moe Minor, Tim Theisen, Anne Blaedow
South Central Region Banquet
Saturday May 2, 2015
Ausblick Ski Club
W260N6395 Mary Hill Rd,
Sussex, WI 53089
Schedule:
5:00 - 5:45 Registration, Meet & Greet, Bean Bag tourney on the Deck
6:00 – 7:30 Banquet, Memphis Style BBQ by POP’S BBQ. (Dress Business Casual)
7:30 – 8:15 South Central Region Awards Presentation
8:15 – 9:00 Door Prize Drawings
Directions from Madison: I94 east to Rt.83 (Exit 287) Turn left (North). Take Rt. 83 North to Highway 16. Turn Right
on Highway 16 (East) to County Rd. KF (Exit 186) Turn Left on County Road KF (North) to Richmond Rd. Turn Right
on Richmond Rd. (East) to Mary Hill Road (About 1/3 mile). Turn left on Mary Hill Rd. (North) to Ausblick Ski Club.
(About 1 hour &10 min from Madison)
Directions from Milwaukee: Take I94 west to Highway 16 North/West. Continue on Highway 16 to County Rd. KF
(Exit 186) Turn right on County Road KF (North) to Richmond Rd. Turn Right on Richmond Rd. (East) to Mary Hill
Road (About 1/3 mile). Turn left on Mary Hill Rd. (North) to Ausblick Ski Club. (About 30 min from Milwaukee)
Buffet dinner includes Beef Brisket, Baby Back Ribs, Pork Shoulder & Chicken with two side dishes. Vegetarian
Burgers available if requested. Beer, wine, and soft drinks are included.
Registration due by April 24, 2015
Price: $23.00/per person
Registration:
Please indicate preference:
Patroller : __________________________________ BBQ_____ Vegetarian ____
Patroller : __________________________________ BBQ_____ Vegetarian ____
Guest
: __________________________________ BBQ_____ Vegetarian ____
Guest
: __________________________________ BBQ_____ Vegetarian ____
Guest
: __________________________________ BBQ_____ Vegetarian ____
Total attending: ___________ x $23.00 = Amount Enclosed $____________
Make Checks Payable to: Paul S. Fuchs
Mail Checks to: Paul S. Fuchs
1116 Highland Lane
Glenview, Illinois 60025
Phone:
(970) 480 7614
E-mail:
[email protected]
Women's Clinic
by Jennifer Thompson
The inaugural South Central Region
Women’s Event at Tyrol Basin on
February 15, 2015 was a huge success
despite the chilly single degree temps!
Registration spots filled up rapidly with
a waiting list being generated for
hopefuls. The day of the event thirty
women grasped the opportunity to
improve their ski skills and toboggan
skills with some of the best PSIA and
toboggan instructors in the Region and
Division. Women could choose to focus
on PSIA, toboggan, or a little of both
for the day. The choice was up to them.
The response to the clinic offering was
so overwhelming that we were forced to
cross gender lines for instructors. But
with a little coaxing we were able to get
a few guys to “get in touch with their
feminine side”.
The PSIA skill set allowed the ladies to
choose various areas of focus from
“Back to Basics”, “Steeps” or “Bumps”.
Instructors Chris Moe­Herlick, joining
us from Northern Michigan Region,
Katie Voss, Eric Gesteland, and Tim
Weinand, all from South Central
Region, took groups out in the morning
and afternoon and worked on the
various skill focuses. The clinic
attracted a group of women telemark
skiers that enjoyed the opportunity to
work with Eric on basic telemark skills
up into those just desiring lots of
repetition and those looking to gain
confidence, review skills, and even
some candidates looking for more input
prior to their local hill test. Again the
reviews were positive with, “Kerstin is
AWESOME”, “loved Anne and
Kerstin!”
in the morning and more advanced
skills with Chris in the afternoon. Tim
took the challenge of the ladies looking
to tame the bumps, Chris and Eric
tackled the steeps with their groups,
while Katie brushed up skills with those
in “back to basics”. Several groups
started their sessions with dry land
exercises. At the end comments were
offered such as “learned specific things
to improve on, really liked being
videoed”, “learned techniques to
advance my ski proficiency where I
needed to”, and “the instructors were
great!”
Those looking to tune up their toboggan
skills got the chance with some
excellent instruction from Kerstin
Hammarberg, Anne Blaedow, and Bob
Hudecek. Kerstin joined us from the
Buck Hill Ski Patrol in the Western
Region, and Anne and Bob are from our
own South Central. Special thanks to
“sherpas” Doug Meier and Tom
Terbilcox for keeping the toboggans in a
speedy cycle up the chairlift and always
having a toboggan ready and waiting at
the top. Toboggan groups were divided
Lastly, special thanks to Samantha
Pegalow for her assistance as a local
contact person with Tyrol Basin. At the
end of the day there were endless
positive comments from both
participants and instructors. Comments
such as “loved the camaraderie,
confidence building and learning
atmosphere”, “loved the flexibility and
choice of focus”, “easy going attitude
made everyone comfortable”, and
“couldn’t be more impressed!” Many
comments were also received about
plans to attend next year and
encouraging other women to attend.
Instructors commented on the distinct
changes in the women and the growth of
confidence over the day. Overall the
program has kicked off its first year as
an outstanding success. Plans are
underway to offer the event next year at
a different location, in addition to
possibly adding additional women
specific events in OEC, MTR and low
angle rescue throughout the year.
SCOTT TAYLOR
MADISON­
Scott Taylor,
age 46, passed
away
unexpectedly
on Tuesday,
January 27,
2015 at his
home. He was
born on May 12, 1968 in DeKalb,
Illinois, the son of Gloria Taylor. He
worked for many years at the National
Wildlife Health Center (USGS). Scott
became a member of the NSP in 2000
and joined the Cascade Mountain Ski
Patrol. He transferred to the Tyrol Basin
Ski Patrol in 2004. Most recently he has
been a member of the Monday evening
shift. Scott was kind and generous. His
caring assistance during incidents will
be missed. Scott was always one of the
first volunteers when some menial task
needed doing. He was there at the end
of the evening with a great story to tell
and laughs to share with us. With his
many health issues he still made it out
to the ski hill for his shift. We will miss
Scott.
Scott loved spending time with his
children and shared his enthusiasm for
skiing and snowboarding with them.
Winters in Madison when he wasn’t at
the ski hill he could be found at one of
the outdoor rinks playing hockey or
teaching his children to ice skate. He
also loved surfing and spent a number
of years living near the ocean and many
vacations in search of that next big
wave.
Scott is survived by his children, Noah,
Claire and Stella Newman and their
mother Julie Newman, all of Middleton;
his mother Gloria Taylor and many
extended relatives.
In lieu of flowers an education fund has
been setup for his children. Donations
can be set in care of:
Julie Newman
7268 Ziegler Circle,
Middleton, WI 53562­4256
608­824­0682
Dennis Kennedy
evaluator, advocate, helper, patient and
for a couple of years he was in charge
and ran that event.
Back in the late 1980’s Dennis was the
South Central Region WEC Advisor,
overseeing the refreshers at 16 patrols in
southern Wisconsin.
Dennis started as a patroller in 1978 at
Tyrol Basin in Mt. Horeb WI. Work
took him from the Madison area to
Wausau WI where he patrolled at Rib
Mountain, currently named Granite
Peak. Dennis came home to Madison
and has been at Cascade ever since.
Dennis Kennedy will be remembered
and mourned by hundreds of patrollers
in Wisconsin. I say hundreds without
any exaggeration.
He was the Crew Chief of the Sunday
crew at Cascade Mt. in Portage WI. For
the prior four years he was the
Instructor of Record (IOR) for the
Cascade OEC refresher with over 120
members. He was a fixture and the
consummate instructor for the past 25
years of the Madison WI area basic
WEC/OEC class. That class was held by
the four area resorts, Cascade, Devils
Head, Tyrol and Blackhawk. Each year
roughly 30 members were OEC trained
and Dennis was there. For a couple of
years Dennis was the IOR of that class.
Dennis was an OEC Instructor Trainer
(IT). Annually he went to other hills in
the Region to quality assurance (QA)
their refresher and recertify OEC
instructors through observation and
feedback.
For over 20 years Dennis was an
indispensable part of the OEC Senior
program. In several capacities,
When Dennis’ passing was announced I
received over a dozen e­mails
identifying Dennis Kennedy as the
reason they joined the Patrol. For me
personally Dennis was my mentor. As a
rookie IT I called Dennis regarding
observations I had made at my first
patrol refresher QA. When I was asked
to step up as Region OEC Advisor,
Dennis was there for support and
feedback as to issues he encountered
while in the position. When I was
elected Region Director, Dennis was
always there to lend me support and
insight, “consigliere” extraordinaire.
Most OEC instructors will acknowledge
that there are many correct way to
perform an OEC skill. In evaluating
interventions Dennis would always
say,” if it meets the objective it is done
correctly”.
Dennis, my thanks, my thoughts and my
prayers.
Thom Rabaglia
Patrol Representative Cascade Mt Patrol
Portage WI
Louis Anthony Fons
III
On January 29, 2015, the Alpine Valley
Ski Patrol and National Ski Patrol lost a
long time and valuable member. Lou
Fons passed away in his home, losing
his battle with congestive heart failure.
Lou was the last active founding
member of the Alpine Valley Ski Patrol
starting when the resort was opened in
1964. Lou served his entire patrol career
(over 50 years) at this resort. During his
career, Lou was actively involved in
Patrol affairs as Patrol Director, Patrol
Treasurer, Section Chief and Assistant
Region Director. He was awarded
National #5202 for his extraordinary
service in 1978. He received numerous
other awards for his service and could
always be counted on to help whenever
asked, as a tester, trainer and Alpine
Valley Board of Directors member.
In addition to being an exceptional
patroller, Lou was also a dedicated and
loving family man. He is survived by
his wife of over 50 years, Doris and
three loving children Kevin, Jeffrey and
Karen (Hartlaub). His entire family
served as patrollers in the past. He
taught all of his children how to ski and
they developed a shared love of the Ski
Patrol. He set an example for all of our
members by his dedication to duty and
constant praise for our great
organization. All of the patrol kids loved
him and fondly called him “Uncle
Louie”.
Although it is sad to see him go, we will
always have great memories of Lou. We
have great longevity on our patrol with
many of us patrolling alongside Lou for
most of his career. We know that when
Lou crossed the rainbow bridge to
heaven, he signed on to patrol and
continue the sport he loved.
James Francis
Slattery, age 64
The Tyrol Basin Ski Patrol (Mount
Horeb, WI), The Blackhawk Ski
Patrol (Madison, WI), and the
National Ski Patrol lost a dedicated
patroller on November 25, 2014
after a long and courageous battle
with cancer. James Slattery (Jim)
joined our ranks in 1998 and became
a Senior Alpine Patroller in 2004. He
also consistently served as an NSP
instructor. His caring and
compassionate service to the skiing
public was a model for all patrollers.
Not only was Jim a fine patroller, but
he was also an avid ski racer and
member and coach of Tyrol Basin’s
and Blackhawk’s Ski Teams. He
would generously share his racing
expertise by offering annual tuning
and waxing clinics for Tyrol and
Blackhawk Patrollers. Under Jim’s
tutelage, his one son, Jimmy went on
to be a talented racer.
Jim was born on Sept. 10, 1950, in
Freeport, Ill., the son of James F.
Slattery and Mildred (Krell) Slattery.
James married Bobbie King in 1988. He
graduated from Aquin High School in
Freeport in 1968 and attended Arizona
State University. He served four years in
the U.S. Air Force and was awarded the
American Spirit Honor Medal. James
worked on the railroad as did his father
and grandfather for 10 years. In 1984,
he started a telephone company in
Madison and worked in
telecommunications until 2012.
Jim’s hallmark was his tenacious and
competitive spirit. He loved outdoor
sports, especially racing cars, and he
was a member of the “150 MPH
Club” at the Bonneville Salt Flats.
Never did he display his spirit and
determination more than in the last
few years of his life. Even as he
struggled with his own disease, he
served other cancer survivors by
offering them support as well as
transportation to and from
appointments. And regardless of his
health, he never missed an OEC or
On­Hill refresher, or any of his Ski
Patrol obligations. He loved the
people he worked and skied with,
was the embodiment of hope and
perseverance, and will be greatly
missed by those whose lives he
touched.