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Help select GCM's Most Valuable Technician

Details: Category: Industry; Published: Thursday, 14 April 2011 16:20; Hits: 35359

It's time for you to choose GCM’s Most Valuable Technician, presented in partnership with Foley United. From an initial field of 48 nominations, a five-person team of industry judges narrowed the field to 14 "semifinalists" and then to the three finalists featured here.

Please review the information below on each of the finalists and vote for the one you feel most deserves the title of 2011 Most Valuable Technician.

Look for the winner to be announced in the Insider: Shop column in the July issue of GCM. Voting closes April 24.

Finalist No. 1
Dan Leonard
Amherst (N.H.) Country Club

Calling him “the best equipment technician and person I have had the pleasure to work with” over his 32 years in the industry, superintendent Steve Wilson enthusiastically nominated Leonard for GCM’s Most Valuable Technician Award.

Despite only a short time on the job, Leonard has distinguished himself throughout the club for his positive attitude – even in the face of a personal family tragedy he dealt with this past year – his ability to maintain equipment that delivers a superior quality of cut, and a dedication to safety that he extends to the entire club as the chairman of the club’s safety committee.

In addition, the head equipment technician at Amherst CC also oversees facility maintenance at the club, making sure the clubhouse, maintenance facility and other buildings on property remain in top condition.

Read Dan Leonard's nomination »
Vote for Dan Leonard »

Finalist No. 2
Gary McBride
Daniel Island Club
Charleston, S.C.

Gary McBride, the head equipment technician and shop supervisor at the Daniel Island Club in Charleston, S.C., represents the best of both worlds in the eyes of superintendent Michael Fabrizio, CGCS.

Not only is McBride a professional manager of both people, equipment and budgets, but he’s also a hands-on equipment technician – one who “gets down and dirty” and doesn’t turn out the shop lights “until he achieves his desired result or goal,” says Fabrizio.

A 10-year veteran at the Daniel Island Club, McBride and Fabrizio have been teamed together for the past 15 years, working as a team for five years at Wild Dunes Resort in Charleston, before making the move to the Daniel Island Club. Fabrizio cites McBride’s ability to keep an aging equipment fleet operating smoothly, his fabrication skills and his dedication to his craft as the primary reasons he believes McBride should be GCM’s Most Valuable Technician.

Read Gary McBride's nomination »
Vote for Gary McBride »

Finalist No. 3
Gene Pascarelli
Colorado Springs (Colo.) Country Club

With nearly 40 years of experience and stints servicing equipment for a U.S. Women’s Open under his belt, superintendent Thomas Dimberio believe that Pascarelli, the equipment manager at Colorado Springs CC fits the bill for GCM’s Most Valuable Technician Award.

He has become a go-to guy not only for the golf maintenance department but also for the club in general, advising on everything from the repair of diving boards for the club’s swimming pool to kitchen appliances in the club’s kitchen area.

Dimberio lauds Pascarelli for his sound fiscal management and his skill in keeping equipment fully operational well past that equipment’s general life expectancy. He is also a stickler for safety, says Dimberio, who helps train operators on the proper use of each piece of equipment and has had no accidents in his work area for the past nine years.

Read Gene Pascarelli's nomination »
Vote for Gene Pascarelli »