Buddy Blackwelder
Dept: Ski and Ride School
Nominated By: Matthew Keith & Samuel Mullens
#1: A guest in a first timer lesson arrived at the lift without goggles or sun glasses. It was a very sunny day, eye protection was a must. Buddy let her know that he had a spare pair in his car that was parked 1/2 of a mile away, he walked briskly in his ski boots at 10:20, and was back with his group by 10:30 to start his lesson. The guest was extremely appreciative that Buddy went out of his way to get her eye protection and he was able to start his lesson on time.
#2: Buddy was assigned a first time group lesson with another instructor. One of our guests did not have appropriate eye wear for the lesson. Rather than taking the easier route, disregarding and continuing with the lesson, Buddy made what is a pretty big effort to walk back across the parking lot to Expedition Kirkwood and get his own goggles for the guest to use. The guest could not have been happier.
Christopher Watts
Dept: Lodging
Nominated By: Colby Dick
This Thanksgiving my family came up to stay at Kirkwood. They are a bit needy so i was worried. First they asked if they could check in before 4pm like normal people. Chris worked his magic and made the room available at 10:30am right when they got here. we then realized that we did not have enough oven space. Needless to say my family was freaking out. I Called Chris to see if he had any ideas. He said he might be able to let us use another units oven and he would call me back. Chris called me back and said that he had found a unit pretty close to ours that we could use. He also did this at no extra cost to us which made my family extremely pleased with choosing Kirkwood for Thanksgiving. Chris saved my families Thanksgiving and his customer service went above and beyond. Thank you Chris!
Doug Severn
Dept: Grooming
Nominated By: Kelly Keith
On 11/9 Doug was driving home after a shift of grooming. He saw a jeep on the side of the road with the hood up, Doug turned around as soon as he was able and stopped to see if the driver need any assistance. The jeep had a dead battery, Doug was able to give the driver a jump so he could continue on his way.
Gradyn Carthon
Dept: Human Resources
Nominated By: Emily Davis
Gradyn found out that a number of his flat-mates did not have enough money to buy dinner so Gradyn spent his own time and money and made a family-style dinner for the group.
AND THE WINNER IS....
DANIEL JUAREZ!!
Dept: Food and Beverage
Nominated by: Charles Needles, Jonathan Hooks, Eric Tiffany, & Natasha Buffo
#1 Daniel organized a Thanksgiving dinner on 11/23/17, out of his own pocket, and served dinner and pie to anyone on mountain employed with us in Red Cliffs Lodge. It was a true Kirkwood family Thanksgiving dinner, and he delivered an experience for us that was far beyond anyone's expectations. The love he showed for his teammates and our mountain was uncommon and epitomized the best of what this place can be.
#2 Thanksgiving day. Holidays in the industry are hard because you're away from family. What Daniel did was so giving that it defines the day we celebrate. This man went out of his way to go pick up Thanksgiving Dinner and provided it to any employees living on mountain. What could have been a depressing evening, Daniel created a fun family-style gathering and served us all. We were all lucky enough to be around family and eat because of Daniel.
#3 On 12/24, Daniel hosted a staff Thanksgiving dinner for our employees who live full time in the Kirkwood valley. Around 30 people showed up and enjoyed a full Thanksgiving spread. Daniel took it upon himself to help out his Kirkwood family and definitely made the mountain proud!
#4 Out of the goodness of his heart, with no ask or pre-planning with others, Danny purchased two turkeys and 15 sides from KFC to share with other on mountain employees for Thanksgiving dinner. He picked up the food on his own time, and prepared it, on his own, running the entire event solo. Around 30 people were able to enjoy a Thanksgiving dinner, that likely would not have without Danny Juarez. Moreover, they got to enjoy it with their Kirkwood Family.
CONGRATULATIONS DANIEL!