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Edited
by Phillip Brents
Posted on Oct. 5, 2002 It takes a great deal of behind-the-scenes work to build a successful hockey club. For the past four seasons, the WCHL has recognized those individuals who have turned in exceptional performances from the other side of the ice with awards in a range of categories. The reigning Taylor Cup champion Fresno Falcons and runner-up Idaho Steelheads, perhaps not surprisingly, topped the list of 2001-2002 recipients. Fresno earned honors as the WCHL’s Organization of the Year for the second consecutive season to become the first two-time recipient of the award. The Falcons, who experienced tremendous growth in corporate sales, ticket sales and community development for the second consecutive year, ranked among the top-20 minor professional hockey teams in average attendance last season, setting a new club record, while nearly doubling their season-ticket base. “To earn recognition as WCHL Organization of the Year in consecutive seasons is quite an accomplishment,” said Adam Keller, who recently stepped down from his role as the WCHL’s acting commissioner and vice president of hockey operations. “This recognition reflects the hard work and effort Chandar Sports and the Falcons organization has put into revitalizing the Fresno hockey market.” Fresno set a number of team attendance marks last season. The Falcons per game attendance rose from 3,249 fans per game in 1999-2000 to 5,957 fans per game last year --- an 83 percent increase. The team experienced a 13 percent attendance growth from the 2000-2001 season as the Falcons hosted a record 214,459 fans at games in Selland Arena. The organization also made its mark in the community in a variety of ways. The team raised funds for the Leukemia and Lymphona Society with its 2001 Light the Night Walk event. Falcons staff and players also worked with the Clovis and Fresno school districts to promote attendance and reading programs, as well as devoting time for a countless list of other area causes, including the Fresno Blood Bank and Fresno Food Bank. Previous WCHL Organization of the Year award winners included the San Diego Gulls (1999-2000) and Bakersfield Condors (1998-99). Fresno’s Brian Clark, now in his fourth season of broadcasting Falcons games, received recognition as the WCHL’s Broadcaster of the Year. Besides his on-air duties, Clark also co-produces all broadcasts, including selling corporate advertising and assisting in promoting on-air partners. He also coordinates much of the Falcons public relations efforts, assists in the production and design of the team’s media publications and coordinates game night operations. Fresno General Manager John Tull called Clark “one of the hardest working and most professional broadcasters” that he had worked with in his 14 years of professional sports, calling Clark “a tremendous asset to the Falcons and hockey fans in Fresno.” Clark, along with Jennifer Gaebe, shared the WCHL Communications Director of the Year award the previous season. Idaho’s Cunningham named WCHL Executive of the Year Idaho Steelheads Vice President of Business Operations John Cunningham earned selection as the WCHL Executive of the Year. In just his second season with the team, Cunningham was instrumental in making Idaho one of the most successful franchises in minor league hockey. The Steelheads averaged 4,785 fans per game last season in the 5,100 seat Bank of America Centre. “John Cunningham is the epitome of a professional,” Keller said. “John is one of the hardest working individuals in the league and his primary concern is ensuring that all attendees of Steelheads games have an enjoyable experience. He treats everyone with respect and in turn has earned a large amount of respect within the WCHL.” Before joining the Steelheads, Cunningham spent five seasons as the General Manager of the Boise Hawks baseball club where he was voted Northwest League Executive of the Year in 1996. He joined the Steelheads and Diamond Sports, the operating arm of the Steelheads, in September of 2000 after spending 16 months as the General Manager of the Bank of America Centre. His endeavors with both the Steelheads and Hawks have had a profound effect on the Boise community for much of the past 10 years. “John’s leadership on the business side of our operation has been just as important as (head coach) John Olver's leadership on the team side,” said Diamond Sports President Bill Waller. “John is the behind the scenes guy who makes it all work and doesn’t always get the credit, he is truly deserving of this award.” In other organizational awards, forward Dan Shermerhorn was selected as the Bill Campbell Community Service Award recipient. Completing his second year with the team, Shermerhorn has become a leader in the Steelheads community service programs. “In all honesty people think we have a tough job and it is, but the reason we have a job is because the fans come and support us,” Shermerhorn said. “When you are a kid you look up to professional athletes, as an athlete if you can make a person smile or make a difference in their life by taking a couple of minutes it is completely worth it.” "Although this award isn’t for on ice prowess, we feel it is just as important as any on-ice award because of the involvement in the community,” Waller said. “Without the community we would not have a team and for Dan to volunteer and assist with our programs show that he recognizes the importance of the community to the Steelheads organization.” Bakersfield’s Chris Freshour and San Diego's Jim Kersten shared the WCHL Marketing Director of The Year award. Bakersfield’s assistant general manager, Freshour led the Condors in new corporate sales dollars for the 2001-02 season. He established partnerships within several new business categories, including a program with the California Department of Conservation's Recycling Division that included all four teams in the WCHL's Southern Division. He also brokered a sponsorship with the SBC Pacific Bell Smart Yellow Pages that featured the Condors on the front cover of the 2002 Bakersfield phone directory that was distributed to more than 360,000 homes in Bakersfield and Kern counties. “The Condors footprint within the Bakersfield community couldn't have been accomplished without Chris' tremendous work ethic, great customer service skills and strong rapport with the staff. His efforts and leadership have contributed greatly to the organization's success,” said Matt Riley, president and general manager of the Condors. Besides his marketing duties, Freshour oversaw the community relations and ticketing departments, game-day staff, sales training programs and assists with day-to-day operations of the franchise. Kersten, the director of sales and corporate marketing for the Gulls, led the franchise to a sizable increase in corporate marketing revenues. Under his direction, the Gulls secured 43 new corporate partners and increased total corporate dollars by 15 percent compared to 2000-01. Jim Kersten continues to bring fresh and innovative ideas focused upon bringing the marketing partner a considerable return on their investment,” Gulls Vice President Jeff Longo said. “Jim has a great talent for building programs that drive traffic and move product. The success of Jim and the entire corporate marketing department is a source of great pride for the Gulls organization and is the cornerstone of our continued success as an organization.” In other WCHL organizational awards, Curtis Nelson of the Tacoma Sabercats was named WCHL Communications Director of the Year. WCHL,
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