THE SKI & SPORTS CLUB OF WASHINGTON, DC

MEET YOUR VOLUNTEERS AND STAFF WHO MAKE IT POSSIBLE

The 2023 Election and Awards Meeting was conducted on April 6, 2023.  Ruth D'Alessandro was re-elected as President, and Beverly Ashcraft and Larry Langer were re-elected to serve on the Board of Directors.  Sylvia Harris and Carol Thomas were elected to fill the vacancies that occurred when Leo Boelhouwer and Mary-Jo Swinimer left the BOD.  This page was updated in April 2023.

Ruth D'Alessandro, President, Serving a Third Year

I have been a member of our club for over 36 years. Initially, I participated in tennis parties, instructional tennis, weekend trips, weekly tennis, and played softball.  I began skiing 3 years after I joined our club and benefited from many one day and weekend learn to ski trips. For over 30 years, I have attended approximately 3 ski trips a year. I was race coordinator on several trips, assisted trip leaders and hosted several pre-trip parties at my house. I have participated in Club Med and Viking Cruise trips.  Four years ago, I led the Park City/SFF ski trip; last year, I led the ski club trip to Winter Park, CO. Three years ago, I initiated and led a Club Med trip to Sandpiper Bay; over 40 participants safely attended. Last year, I researched the location, negotiated prices and assisted the trip leader on our first weekly golf and tennis trip to Hilton Head Island, SC. I led a very successful golf trip to Hilton Head this year

Several years ago, I began participating in our Wednesday evening golf program.  Since then, I have led 4 weekend golf trips to Blue Ridge Shadows in VA and 2 successful weekend golf trip to Shenvalee, VA. I have met many interesting people and made numerous lifelong friends while enjoying being active in our club.

Four years ago, I was able to spend more time giving back to our club; I was nominated and elected to the (Board of Directors) BOD. I learned about our operations and budget. It was a difficult year due to COVID and we suffered financially. The BOD made prudent decisions to cancel some events. We discussed cancelling all events for the year including golf, tennis, and softball. However, the BOD determined that would be detrimental to our club and membership; many of our members wanted to participate in outdoor activities.

During the past three years we have safely continued our outdoor activities including picnics in the summer and two Back to the Slopes gathering in the fall. Our biking and hiking programs have been revitalized. All outdoor activities and trips have been well attended. During the past two years, most of our ski trips have sold out. In the past three years, our membership has increased by approximately 300 members. As a result of our volunteers’ work, we are doing well financially again this year. For the first time in several years, we will be holding our election indoors at Auld Shebeen in Fairfax, VA.

I have been described by friends and colleagues as enthusiastic, dedicated and hardworking. I have ideas/incentives to entice new volunteers for our programs, implement new programs, continue to recoup our losses and build our club. 

Lastly, I worked for Fairfax County Public Schools for 32 years as a Social Worker and an Administrator.  The organizational, human relations and leadership skills utilized in my career have benefited me as I have been a volunteer, trip leader, member of the BOD and I am happy to be your President for a third term.  Ruth will serve until April 2024.

Board of Directors:

Beverly Ashcraft

I’m a long-time member who joined the club when I moved to DC in the late 90’s. SCWDC gave me new ski friends, a varied social network, and the opportunity to try non-ski activities such as golf which is now one of my favorite outdoor activities.  SCWDC has been a big part of my DC social life, and I want to help ensure that the club continues to provide a variety of activities. SCWDC offers something for everyone no matter the season – skiing, tennis, golf, hiking, adventure trips, and many social events.

SCWDC is recovering from the financially challenging years of Covid-19 and needs board members with a wide range of expertise to address how the club will meet new challenges for travel organizations in the future. I have been the club’s financial manager for the past 3 years and have learned a tremendous amount about the club’s finances and how we operate as a non-profit organization. In that time, we’ve implemented more streamlined accounting practices and are developing a strategic plan to continue to modernize SCWDC’s back-office.  If I am elected as board member, I plan to bring my knowledge of the club’s financial state and my expertise from leading numerous activities and serving on both the flights and ALEC committees to continue to implement the modernization of SCWDC’s back-office so that SCWDC is set for future year.  (Bev is also the club's Financial Manager.)  Bev's term runs to 2025.

B J Barger

After two knee replacement surgeries, I’m back to skiing and loving it! I have SCWDC to thank for getting me back on slopes; I want to pay it back by continuing to serve on the Board. After one year on the Board I have a better appreciation for Club operations. This year we’ve struggled with the impacts of COVID, so my goal is to get the social and sports aspects of SWCDC back to normal. I’m a retired AF employee with experience in HR, training and development. I have Board experience with my homeowner’s association, LPGA Amateurs and American Singles Golf Association. With the Club, I’ve skied, biked and gone to baseball games. This year I’m going to add pickleball. I’m looking forward to another year of representing the members of SCWDC. BJ's term runs through April 2024.

Larry Langer, 2023-2024 Vice President

I have been a member of SCWDC for over 32 years. I have been skiing with the club since I joined and early on would go on several bus trips in addition to flight trips. In recent years I typically go on couple ski trips per year.  I have enjoyed meeting a lot of interesting and friendly people over the years, a number of whom I have known for over 30 years.  Many of you know me or will recognize me from all the trips that I have been on. When not skiing with the club I have had a season pass at Whitetail for over ten years and can be found up there skiing during the rest of the season and occasionally at Liberty.

I retired in August 2020 from L3Harris as a Controller with a staff of seven.  I am a licensed CPA in Virginia and also a Certified Management Accountant (CMA).  While I was working I did not have time to volunteer for the club.  Now that I am retired I would like to give back to the club.  I realize how much hard work everyone who volunteers has done and are currently doing and would like to help out.  I think my work experience would be helpful to the club in a number of areas particularly financial and budgeting matters.  This would be my first volunteer activity with the club, but you have to start somewhere and I think my work experience, knowledge, years of participation and contacts in the club would be useful.

In conclusion, I would like to do more volunteering with the club going forward in particular with the ski programs, Western, Eastern and one day trips.  Hopefully this COVID thing will end and next year’s ski season will be more normal.  Larry's term runs to April 2025.

Sylvia Harris

I have been an SCWDC member for over 26 years and served on the board twice, filling vacated positions. I enjoy travel, hiking, biking, skiing, cultural, and social activities.  I started out doing social and cultural activities with the club and later alpine skiing, going on two ski trips with the club almost every year.  I have also been on SCWDC Club Med trips, and participated in other club activities, such as hiking, happy hours, biking, and attending the annual picnic. 

I am a retired federal employee having worked for the Navy and the Dept of Transportation (DOT).  I have experience as a systems analyst and project manager.  I have served on boards for other organizations and volunteer as a tutor in an adult literacy program and a reading program with a local elementary school.

Over the years, the club has provided many activities for members to stay active.  I have enjoyed many of these activities and want to give back to the club.   Sylvia's term runs through April 2025.

Mary Thibault

I have been a club member for about 20 years and it has been a fantastic experience. My introduction to the Club began on the Potomac River on a 19-foot ‘Flying Scot’ sailboat. As a trip leader I organized many Tuesday and Saturday Potomac sails and was also able to take sailing lessons (provided by our volunteer skippers). In addition, I had the pleasure of participating in a week-long sailing trip in the Caribbean.  Skiing is also very much a part of my background, beginning back in the 1970s at Sugarloaf Mountain in Maine. More recently, it has been great to take advantage of ‘good times’ on Club Med trips; a magical Bike and Barge trip in Italy, golfing and hiking.

Needless to say – I benefited from all the wonderful experiences our Club offers. As a result, I have decided to seek a term on the Board of Directors. I am now retired and have more time available to focus on a new undertaking. As far as my skills, I have both education and career experience in the financial areas. Specifically, I have a degree in accounting from Boston College. Most of my work experience comes from positions with the federal government. Several years in auditing with Dept. of Health and Human Services., several years in budgeting and a then a stint as a management analyst with DOD. My last, longest and most gratifying was with US Geological Survey as a financial manager. I learned how to listen and understand a variety of situations that were new to me. I believe that this background gives me a solid foundation for analyzing data/information and exploring possible solutions as part of a team effort.  Mary's term runs through April 2024.

Carol Thomas

I have been a member of the Ski and Sports Club of Washington since 2010 and have been skiing since 1985. I have participated in at least eight ski/flight trips with SCWDC, and I led the Club’s trip to Canaan Valley just before the COVID lockdown in January 2020. I have also attended many one-day SCWDC social events such as annual picnics and parties.

I served on the Executive Boards of two different organizations prior to running for the Board of The Ski and Sports Club of Washington. I have also performed many volunteer and part-time professional jobs during my lifetime along with ongoing full-time employment. I was the President and a trip leader for a motorcycling organization called “Potomac Area Road Riders” for approximately 17 years. I assisted with the dissolution of this incorporated entity approximately three years ago, and subsequently helped to usher it into the status of an unincorporated social group in order to provide continuity to the members upon corporate dissolution. I am also a former Committee Chair and the current Vice President of the Virginia Dressage Association, Northern Virginia Chapter (VADA/Nova) – a board on which I have served for approximately seven years. VADA/Nova has approximately 200 active members and 385 total members on its roster and hosts many large events, so I am quite accustomed to working with large volunteer and non-profit organizations. Finally, I am a semi-professional musician and a dressage judge (equestrian sports) and perform many part‑time singing and judging jobs under the umbrella of my own incorporated entity entitled “EquiHarmony, LLC”. I work full time for SAIC as a Space Systems Engineer in Chantilly, VA.

I live in Alexandria, VA. When I am not working or performing volunteer tasks, I enjoy training and competing my three horses in the equestrian sport of dressage. I also enjoy international travel and skiing. I hold a B.A. in Political Science, a B.S. in Computer Information Systems, and an M.A. in Telecommunications. I look forward to the opportunity to apply my skill set to meet the needs of SCWDC’s membership.  Carol's term runs through April 2025.

Rita Togni

I am an SCWDC member since the early 1990's. I volunteered to lead many ski trips in the USA and in Europe, as well as some local hikes. I have served as a Director for the past 2 years, and then successfully ran for re-election in 2022.

I enjoy skiing, hiking, tennis, pickleball and other sports with family and friends. The Club has evolved and expanded from being only a ski club to including other sports and social events. Volunteers work hard to make it successful.

Pickle ball is my latest “passion” (it is the fastest growing sport in USA). and I would like to reinstate hiking events, at all levels.

I worked as an Architect, as an Interior Decorator and currently in real estate. Rita's term runs through April 2024.

Captain Cheryl Ann Wiseman, Ret.

Since becoming a SCWDC member in 1990, and subsequently a Columbia Ski Club member as well, the social and experiential experiences have been nothing short of transformational.  I have been close friends with past presidents and board members, giving me their unique perspectives as well. I am a strong advocate of recruitment and marketing the club’s leadership opportunities to more young people. Our current leadership is at the helm in navigating the club’s future, and as our society begins to venture out again in pursuit of more freedom of movement and social interaction, now is the perfect time to become more aggressive in marketing the club’s potential.

As a retired O6 of 30 years (USAF and USPHS), I have time now to give back to the SCWDC that did so much for my quality of life.  My education includes 4 Master’s degrees (Psychology, Epidemiology, Human Resources Management and Social Work).  I have served as a Government Task Leader / Contractor Officer Representative at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; a Senior Program Management Officer Consultant in CDER, FDA; a Regulatory Health Project Manager at the Office of Generic Drugs, CDER, FDA; a Senior Instructional Officer for the USPHS as well as a Transportation Officer (USAF) at Langley AFB and 32 TFS, Soesterburg, Netherlands.

I would be honored to serve SCWDC and play an instrumental part in making this organization thrive, grow and become a cogent social epicenter. 

Cheryl's term runs until April 2024.

BOD Secretary:  Carole Howe  

Carole is serving her fourth year as BOD secretary.  She is a retired surgical nurse for local hospitals and a local ophthalmologist.  She skies at least once a year with her husband and family.  Editor's Comment:  It's important for the SCWDC BOD to have accurate records of its discussions and votes.  Carole is diligent and helpful in every respect.  The SCWDC Board of Directors has an obligation to inform members of its deliberations and decisions.  Please look under the Home Menu item to read current and past BOD minutes.  President's Message & BoD Minutes

Senior Staff:

Treasurer: JoAnn St. Peter:  

JoAnn is well qualified for this job. She has a BS degree from Virginia Tech (VPI) in Business Administration, an MS degree from John Hopkins University in Real Estate Finance, Construction and Development and completed the Graduate School of Banking-University of Washington-Pacific Coast Banking School/Institutional Finance program. She worked for 22 years as a Real Estate Specialist/Professional Staff for a regional law firm and two international law firms. She also worked for 3 years as a Legal Advisor/Vice President at Allied Capital Corporation, and 16 years as Senior Vice President (US Bank).

Financial Manager: Bev Ashcraft 

SCWDC's annual budget is about $1 million and includes about 40 admission events.  While all of our events are planned and run by volunteers, we need year-round financial services to manage our various financial relationships and transactions, and these services come from our Financial Manager.  From 2006 to mid-2020, Brian Chollar, long-time SCWDC member and past president, served in this role. Now, Bev,  who is a long-time member, former volunteer ski leader & Meetings Chair, and current member of the Activity Leader Evaluation Committee member, has become our Financial Manager and serves today.  Her workload includes managing our bank accounts and 2,000+  annual credit card and check installment payment transactions, auditing Tour Operator invoices and leader financial reports, and providing the Board of Directors with timely advice.  One major aspect of financial work is due to the complexity of SCWDC ski trip vacations , which have multiple pricing options including "Ground Only" (participant books his/her own airline travel), "Single Supplement" (participant pays to occupy their own bedroom), and multiple lift ticket options.   We are lucky to have Bev serve because she knows how the club operates, backwards and forwards.  Length of Service as Financial Manager: Since May 2020.  2nd Member of Activity Evaluation Leader Committee.  Prior service as member of Flights Committee for multiple years, ski trip and activity leader, and service as Meetings Chair for 3 years.  

Administrative Manager and SkiGram Editor: Pete Campbell  Current Administrative Manager serving since 2009.  He is a long-time ski trip leader for  Western, Eastern, and International trips.  He has led more trips than any other serving ski leader, he has led 24, repeat 24 ski trips since 1999.  He is a prior Social and Eastern chair/multiple years, and each of those positions required many hours of work.  He has received most of the possible awards as a volunteer and is an Honorary Lifetime Member.  Also as a volunteer, Pete has been responsible for planning and leading many golf weekends, he serves as coordinator for most Monday Night Bowling at a Fairfax lane, 50 weeks a year.  As Administrative Manager he has been responsible for helping other leaders understand and "navigate" SCWDC financial and leader responsibilities.  Length of Service as Administrative Manager: Since January 2009.  He served as SCWDC President for 4 years, 2000-2004.  

Webmaster, Membership & Communications Chair, and Budget & Finance Committee member: Gary Rubens  SCWDC member since 1968; Past SCWDC President (four separate terms); Past SCWDC Director; Past and Current Committee Chair for Budget & Finance, Elections; Past Program Chair for Business, Meetings, Member Services, Public Relations, plus Tennis Program Chair for over 20 years!; Designer and Webmaster of the current SCWDC website;; Lifelong skier (over a dozen NASTAR ski racing medals).  

Magazine Editor: Leo Boelhouwer  Leo has served as editor since 2009.  While the club has reduced the number of issues and number of pages, we owe the "life" of the SCWDC magazine to Leo's efforts, without his work, we would not have had this magazine for many years.  Leo has composed 70 different issues of the SCWDC magazine.  Length of Service in this position:  Since April 2009, 13 years.

General Counsel: Peter Hartogensis  SCWDC Member since 1999. Board of Directors (BOD), 2013 to 2015 President, 2015-2017. Legal Counsel, 2009 to date.  Ski Trip leader, tennis party host. Silver award, 2013.  I managed the merger of The Tennis Group (TTG) into the Ski Club. For TTG, I served as President, Board member, newsletter editor, legal counsel, Team Tennis Coordinator, Team Tennis Captain, trip leader.  Professional qualifications and experiences:  City of Rockville, 1978-87. Elected to City Council, served 2 terms. Served on Board of Appeals as member and chairman, city Planning Commission.  Profession, Attorney at Law in Maryland and District of Columbia, now retired. Practiced in areas of real estate, contracts, Bankruptcy, torts, criminal law, estates and trusts, domestic and other areas.  Length of Service in this position:  Since 2010, 11 years.  Previously, President 2 years, BOD member 2 years. 

Historian: Kate Hayes Kate is a legend in SCWDC circles.  She became our historian in 1983 and faithfully accumulated history artifacts, photos, and accounts of SCWDC members, officers, and all events.  When the club began discussions of how to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 1986, she and others developed the concept of creating a "Yearbook" that would provide all members with an account how the club started, what every president accomplished in his/her year in office, and then gave an account of every program that the club had ever operated, who was started it, to whom was credit due.  The 1936-1986 Yearbook runs to over 200 pages and nothing like it has been attempted again. A copy o the Yearbook can be obtained from the SCWDC office, just by asking.  Kate has received every major award the club gives.  Length of Service in this position:  Since 1983, 39 years.

Program Chairpersons:

Note:  By a decision of Board of Directors, the Eastern Committee and the Flights Committee have been combined.  The set of bios for the Eastern Committee is left in place for a time to recognize the work of the Eastern Committee:  Ron, Charlie, and Brigid.  

Two Eastern Ski Trips Co-Chairs and one committee member:
Ron Rolfe  Ron has been a member since 2005 and has been the Eastern Program Chair or co-Chair since mid-2017.   As is typical of our leadership program, he first led an Eastern ski trip and then progressed to lead Western trips including Steamboat, Taos, and the 2020 Hakuba Valley, Japan trip.  He is leading the 2022 Aspen trip staying at one of SCWDC's favorite ski resort lodging, world-renowned "The Gant."  On his way back from Japan for the Hakuba Valley trip, he stopped in Manila, the Philippines, and this pic was taken while he was touring an WWII battlefield.  Ron and Charlie (see below) have collaborated to plan our annual Canaan Valley trip with ski instruction, and to other Eastern ski resorts.  Previously, the Club staged multiple one-day trips to Ski Liberty, Roundtop and Whitetail with ski instruction but unfortunately, Vail Resorts has purchased these ski mountains and these one-day trips won't be possible in the future.  Length of Service in this position:  Since 2017, 6 years.

Charlie Lorenzetti  Charlie joined the club in 2008 and has been a volunteer from almost the first day.  He served eight years as the Eastern chair.  He served two years as a BOD member.  He is currently serving as a member of the Budget and Finance Chair and resumed Eastern service as a co-chair until this program was integrated into the Ski Flights Committee.  He has led numerous ski trips and a sailing trip to the Caribbean.  He is also a golfer, a seasoned accountant and served as CFO/COO for several major DC area non-profits.   Length of Service in the Eastern chair position:  Since 2008, 15 years.

Brigid OBrien  Brigid is currently the Sports/Recreation Chair, and has been a member since 2018 and helping in the Eastern Program since 2019.  She has led a one-day trip to Ski Liberty in 2020.    She led the 2021 Canaan Valley trip.  She is the  2022 ski leader to Park City/Deer Valley during part of the 10-day Sundance Film Festival.   

Two "Flights" Ski Trips Co-Chairs for Western, Eastern, Canadian, and International Trips

Ken Eng  Ken has been a member since 1989 and has been responsible for many of the club's activities and successes.  He is currently co-chair of the Flights Committee and his ski trip planning services go back to 2001. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of world and North American ski resorts.  He has pioneered as a leader, trips to several ski resorts including Park City during the Sundance-Film-Festival and Hakuba Valley, Japan.  He has received every possible SCWDC award including Honorary Lifetime Member.  For nine years, he served as a promoter for the Warren Miller adventure films under SCWDC Sponsorship.  Ken''s love of snowsports is expressed in boarding and he is a long-time member of SCWDC's Ski School as a boarding instructor.  Length of Service on the Flights Planning Committee:  Since 2001, 20 years.  BOD Member, 6 years.

Joe Gilbert  Joe has been a member of the Flights group since 2010 and now is a co-chair,  He is an experienced ski instructor and boarder and serves in our Ski School as a boarding instructor.  He leads one ski trip a year, always a sell-out,.  He somehow finds time for pursuing a career in the financial services industry, making a lifetime commitment as husband and father, giving SCWDC his volunteer time 12 months a year to plan and manage SCWDC Flights Program, and possibly sleeping about 5 hours a night.  Length of Service on the Flights Planning Committee:  6 years.  BOD member, 2 years.

Ski School Director: Mike Cavallaro Mike's biography is in the area, "Ski instructors" in the Winter Sports part of the website.  He has served as SCWQDC's ski school director since 1987 and has been teaching for 35 years.  He is planning to be a part-time instructor or consultant at two West Virginia ski resorts, Canaan Valley and Timberline.  All SCWDC ski instructor bio's can be read at SCWDC's Ski School Instructor Bios.  Our Ski School is certified to teach children 13 and over and adults.  Length of Service on the Ski School Staff:  since 1985, 35 years.  Chair since 1987.

Travel Chair: Yingwen Prince

Yingwen joined the club in 1997 to participate in ski trips, Saturday and Sunday tennis, Viking cruises, and Bike and Barge trips.  She is a former Director, has served on the Elections Committee for many years.  She is now the new Travel Chair, having participated in many SCWDC travel events, especially Viking cruise events.   

Sailing Chair: David Toms David has a long career in sailing, starting with a career in the Navy.  He is qualified as a master-qualified captain of commercial vessels.  He picked up the SCWDC sailing chair position from other long-serving, dedicated SCWDC sailing chairs and co-chairs.  He has led Club Med trips, ski trips, sailing trips, and tennis parties.  He is a sportsman of major caliber.  Length of Service: 1 year, but previously a sailing leader for 5 years.  

Social and Cultural Chair:  VACANT, contact the SCWDC Office or President Ruth D'Alessandro to discuss the job.

Tennis Parties Chair: Casey Tarr & Jack Tarr, USPTR Professional 

Casey has been the Indoor Tennis Chair since 2005. This is meant that she has planned and run with considerable volunteer help, somewhere between 20 and 30 Saturday night tennis parties every year from September to May.  Every party requires a leader and usually an assistant leader, splitting the duties of paperwork, collecting monies, and planning a light buffet for the participants.  Recruiting and coaching 20 to 30 tennis party leaders and assistants a year is a big deal. Some years ago a second level of party management was created, "Party Supervisors" so Casey did not have to do all the work herself.  Her helper in every respect is her husband Jack who cooperatively initiated some better practices in the tennis program, setting up a system of regular and fair ability ratings and creating/publishing a newsletter to members of the ski club community as well as to others who were guests at our parties.  Every tennis party requires an advance plan for "Who will play in what ability group and when," and Jack has probably composed something like 350 to 400 individual party rotations that is the advance plan of four hours of play. Up to 80 persons attend any party and when a new person comes in, Jack often calls that person to learn how frequently they play tennis, in what ability group should they be initially placed in the available 10 courts? This means that the time to compose the rotation can be as little as two hours or as much as four, every Saturday afternoon that there's a party.  Jack is a USPTR tennis professional (graduate of the Dennis Van der Meer Tennis Academy).  When empty courts were available, he would give free lessons from 7-11.  We give great credit to this team for the success of SCWDC tennis parties.  In any one year, there have been as many as 700+ different players and 1,600 player spots.  Casey was selected as an Honorary Lifetime Member and Jack has received the Gold Award.  Length of Service for Casey and Jack:  since 2005, 16 years.

Sunday Instructional Tennis Co-Coordinator:  Yingwen Prince

Ying joined the club in 1997 to participate in ski trips, Saturday and Sunday tennis, Viking cruises, and Bike and Barge trip.  She is the SCWDC Viking Cruises trip leader and has served on the Club Election Committee for many years.  She and Janet Brown, have agreed to take over Sunday Instructional Tennis program beginning June 2021.  More about Ying is further down as the Viking Cruise Coordinator.  Length of Service for this position:  February 2021, Just started.

Sunday Instructional Tennis Co-Coordinator :  Janet Brown 

Janet joined the club in 2014 to participate in ski trips, Saturday night tennis, the Sunday tennis instructional program, and Viking cruises. She is an avid tennis player and will co-coordinate the 2021-2022 instructional program with Ying.  Length of Service for this position:  February 2021, Just started.

Ying and Janet have managed the Sunday Instructional Tennis program since the 2021 fall season.  They are passionate tennis players and long-time Sunday Tennis players.  They will also plan and run a Christmas party and an End-Of-The-Season tennis party.  The program has about 150 players.   

Committee Chairpersons:

Activity Leader Evaluation (ALEC) Chair: Bernie Gilbert Bernie has been our credit card transaction manager since 2006.  He is the current chair of our Activity Leader Evaluation Committee  (ALEC) and has been a member of that group for years. ALEC helps the club evaluate all ski leaders so their performance is up to our standards.  Bernie has also led ski trips.  In 2020, he was recognized by the BOD as an Honorary Lifetime Member.  Length of Service as member of ALEC:  Since 2006, 15 years and chair since 2016.

Budget and Finance Chair:  Lawrence Langer.  Larry retired from L3 Harris as a Controller.  He is a Licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in Virginia and also a Certified Management Accountant (CMS). He was elected in 2021 to serve a 2-year term as an SCWDC Director and was re-elected in 2023 to serve another 2 year term.   

Nominating Committee Chair 2020-2023:  Geoffrey Pennoyer, thank you!.  Geoffrey Pennoyer is one of the most dedicated volunteers of the last 20 years.  While he enjoyed many activities as a member, in 2005 he agreed to be the Sports and Recreation Chair, and served until he retired in 2021.  Under his watch, he managed these programs:   Volleyball, Golf, Softball, Hiking, Biking, Spectator Sports, and Tuesday Night Tennis.  He also served as a BOD member several times.  He has been able to recruit many other sport-minded leaders to help him.  He has also served as an Eastern and Western ski leader many times.  Length of Service in this position:  Since 2005, 17 years.  Previously, an BOD member, 3 years.

Elections Chair, 2021-2023  Bill Johnston.   Bill is a past president/3 years, former Budget and Finance Chair/5 years, and former Tennis Chair/ 6 years. 

Past Presidents Advisory Chair: Howard Fisher  Howard has been a continuing major volunteer presence in SCWDC matters since joining the club.  He served as president twice, 1987-1988 and again in 1995.  He was not the founding member of the "Past Presidents Advisor"  group but she has been the chair for several years.  As Policy Chair, he has advised the Board of Directors and the president about various club matters, and when there is a proposal to change our Policy Manual, he does the analysis and formulates the wording. As best he can, remains neutral on issues although he will give us advice when asked. At the time he became president there was no "introduction guide" to the role, it was learn as you go, ask questions, and so on. To fill that gap he created the President's Manual and passes it on to every new president, then stays in touch to offer help and advice without being intrusive.

Policy:  Howard Fisher  Every club needs a foundation of policy guidance and operating rules.  For many years, Howard and a few members have both initiated changes and responded to BOD & member change requests.  Some chapters of the Policy Manual require 2/3 membership approval at the annual membership meeting, while other chapters are maintained and controlled by the Board of Directors.  Howard and committee helpers are known for their balanced approach - listen carefully for the intent behind any proposal, evaluate the possible impact and give advice the Board of Directors about how to proceed.    Previously, SCWDC President, 2 years.

President of Snow Sports Museum and SCWDC Member: Kim Williams  Snow Sports Museum at Davis, WV Snow Sports Museum Web Site 
The museum seeks small donations from interested SCWDC members.

Each winter, certain areas of West Virginia are blessed with a tremendous amount of snow. In 1950, members of the Ski Club of Washington DC were flying over Canaan Valley. They noticed an open meadow with huge snowdrifts in the late spring. In 1951, the Ski Club opened Dirftland near present-day Canaan Valley Resort bringing snowsports to the Southeast.  After Driftland opened, other resorts were founded. A few resorts closed but several are thriving such as Blackwater Falls State Park, Canaan Valley Resort, Olegby Resort, Snowshoe, Winterplace, and White Grass. These resorts helped develop and continue to contribute to a thriving tourist industry.  Snow sports enthusiasts work hard and play hard. This attitude has spawned a plethora of stories and legends. Longtime West Virginia snowsports enthusiasts believe in the importance of preserving and documenting these amazing stories. A group of these dedicated individuals founded the Snows Sports Museum of West Virginia in 2018.  

The current address of the museum is 6459 Appalachian Highway, 6459 Appalachian Highway, Davis, WV 26260.  The museum is open Thursdays through Sundays and by appointment at other times.  Phone:  334.663.1172.  Email:  wvsnowsportsmuseum@gmail.com.  They plan activities in the spring, summer and fall to bring skiers and friends together including social events, golf tournaments, and so on.  Visit the web site to see the current plans.