2003 Service Award Winners
DAVE PRINE
Dave Prine has been active for many years in promoting orienteering through scouting. He is the scoutmaster of Troop 529 which dominates the Middle Atlantic Scout Orienteering Championships nearly every year. He has helped Ed Scott by serving as the "day of event" meet director. His troop, with the help of Mark Cornish and Glenn Piper, is the nucleus of the scout Venture Program that DVOA sponsors. He is also responsible for getting our scout championship event featured in the March issue of the scouting magazine "Boys' Life."
He runs a scout training weekend each year at Hawk Mountain Scout Reservation, in conjunction with the Girl Scout O-Patrol. This includes a public event on Sunday for the general membership. His troop has installed permanent courses, including the current French Creek course, the Hawk Mountain course,and the new course at Daniel Boone. One of the troop members is currently planning a permanent course for Ridley Creek as his Eagle scout project.
Dave has been a member of DVOA since 1991. He was elected as a trustee in June 1996 to fill a vacancy , and he served until his term expired in 2001. He helped on the Finish crew at our Pagoda A-meet, has done educational programs, directed local events, and has been available to help whenever needed.
Dave and his wife Barb live in Boyertown. They have two sons, Matt and Jon, who are iboth in college at the University Park campus of Penn State. They have both been active in orienteering for most of their lives. Dave's hobbies listed are scouting, computers, and reading.
ANNE FITCH
Anne joined DVOA in 1991, having discovered us through an article
in a newspaper. She became active immediately and by 1996 was elected
for a two-year term as club president. She has been one of the mainstays
at the Hickory Run training weekend, giving instructions at whatever level
is needed. She and Marie Reynolds, along with some others, dreamed up
a lot of ideas for social events such as a rock climbing session, apres-O
spaghetti dinners, birthday celetrations, and other activities which helped
form close friendships and good support for club activities. Those on
the long course at one French Creek events will remember that famous "water
stop," the Surreal Cafe, that she cooked up with Matt Marcinek in
the middle of a ruin -- a table set with tablecloth, fine china, and candelabra.
Anne is definitely a competitive orienteer, having been DVOA point champ for 1993, 1994 and 1997 and always placing high in the rankings, both locally and nationally.
Anne lives in Ambler and is a single mom of three. Grace is 19 and in college, Paul is 17 and Rebecca 16. Anne is a high school French teacher and has taken groups of students on Summer excursions to France and other countries since 1995. For hobbies she lists rafting , canoeing, running, skiing (both XC and downhill), traveling, and reading, though she recently discovered geocaching, and she enjoys coming to our events on her new motorcycle.
THE MANNY MENENDEZ FAMILY
The Menendez family came to orienteering through their son Eric's interest in 4-H and they joined our club in 1994. In case you didn't know, there is a 4-H project in orienteering. They are a good example of a family becoming involved through their children. They may not all be highly competitive orienteers, yet they all pitch in and help out however needed. Their three sons, Eric 18, Nathan 16, and Troy 14, have many other sports and school activities to compete for their time. (In fact, the reason they could not accept their award in person was because Eric was playing euphonium in a district band performance which they were attending.)
Eric is a senior interested in studying computer engineering and has narrowed his college choices to Carnegie Mellon and Penn State Honors. Troy is in several vocal and instrumental groups at school, as well as the math and young inventors clubs and the school play. Nathan spent two weeks this past summer at the Acadia Institute of Oceanography in Maine and participates in the academic competition team and several musical groups at school.
Marsha works as a physical therapist, helps with school activities and teaches religion classes at church. She lists bike riding and sewing as her hobbies. Manny has had a busy year at work with several trips overseas to South Africa and Taiwan. This has kept him from participating in orienteering as often as he would like. He lists music, biking, swimming and running as his hobbies.
This busy family still finds time to win awards at national orienteering events and to help out in various capacities at local events, including being meet directors and giving instruction to newcomers. They are keepers of the DVOA club O' suits, ordering a supply as needed and transporting them to meets. Marsha helped with the successful silent auction at our winter meeting last year, which helped raise money to support activities for the junior team.
