Each year, the club selects the Volunteer of the Year and the Groomer Operator of the Year.
Mark Heeren received the Volunteer of the Year Award. Mark has given countless hours serving the Sno-Eagles.
Not only does Mark help with trail maintenance, but he also helps at the groomer shed, cleaning, and organizing.
Staffing the concessions was a huge challenge this year. Mark rose to the challenge. He often was the first to sign up and for multiple shifts! If we needed more help – he never hesitated to pitch in.
The most remarkable thing is, he doesn’t even own a snowmobile, nor does he ride! He volunteers his time and talent simply to help the club.
This year, Keith Nettesheim received the Groomer Operator of the Year Award. Keith has devoted numerous hours keeping our trails in great shape.
In his own words, here are some of the reasons Keith is so passionate about grooming.
“I’ve always been deeply passionate about snowmobiling and making it a safe and fun sport for myself, my family, and the entire community. No one likes bad trails! To make them good we need a lot of volunteers, good equipment, and dedicated groomer operators to fill the night schedules and smooth out the bumps and knock down the snowbanks.
Many people will ride where trails are good. We have a lot of local businesses that support the club with map ads and/or donations. Our responsibility is to keep the trail system top-notch leading to these businesses. If it’s brushing, grooming or donations, the club needs help in all these areas to keep our equipment running so we can keep our trail system safe and smooth.
Brian Scheid spends a great deal of time and energy getting us the right equipment, coordinating all the brushing, grooming, maintenance, and the many other things he is involved in. I never really knew how much time, effort, and money it took to maintain our trails. Volunteering gives me great gratification knowing that I can help make a difference.
Also, it’s very rewarding to see the happy sledders give you a thumbs up or stop and thank you for working the trails. It’s nice to visit area establishments and hear people talking about how nice the trails are.
Furthermore, I have met a lot of great people that help with the volunteer work. I learned a lot and I really feel good about investing my time and my money into the club.
I have come to realize how important the Sno-Eagles club is to this community and all the businesses that benefit from snowmobiling. Eagle River would not be the same if our club does not remain strong”.
Congratulations to Mark and Keith!
You help make the Sno-Eagles the great club it is!!!
We appreciate all you do!