A-Mazing Employees!

The following employees are being recognized as A-Mazing employees by the Arapahoe Basin team. This award is in recognition of their exceptional work and effort for the period of

January - March.

Here's why their managers think they are A-Mazing!

Base Area/ Building Mtce/Security	Greg Walentas	We want to give a huge shoutout to Greg Walentas for his unwavering dedication and incredible work ethic! Greg consistently works long shifts and is always available whenever we need him to step in and fill a shift. His commitment and flexibility have been invaluable to the team. But it’s not just his hard work that sets him apart—Greg is also the friendly, happy face that greets everyone with a smile. Whether it’s guests or fellow team members, Greg’s positive attitude creates an inviting and welcoming atmosphere for everyone around him. His warmth and approachability make a real difference in the experience of those who interact with him. If you ever get the chance to take some laps with Greg, don’t miss it! His deep knowledge of the mountain is unmatched, and you’ll surely learn something new from his wealth of experience. We’re grateful for Greg’s dedication, positivity, and the wisdom he shares with everyone on and off the slopes! Thank you, Greg!
Base Area/ Building Mtce/Security	Kelsey Greeson	We’d like to shine a spotlight on Kelsey Greeson for being an absolute powerhouse on our team! Kelsey is the embodiment of hard work, quick thinking, and fast action. When challenges arise, she’s always ready to think on her feet and act swiftly to keep things moving smoothly, never hesitating when it’s time to jump in and get the job done. Her ability to stay calm under pressure and make quick, effective decisions is truly impressive. But it’s not just her work ethic that stands out—Kelsey brings a level of positive energy that lifts the entire team. Her upbeat attitude and enthusiasm are contagious, creating a motivating and uplifting atmosphere wherever she goes. Kelsey’s commitment to getting things done with both speed and precision, while keeping the morale high, makes her an essential part of our success. We’re grateful for her hard work and the positivity she brings to the team every day! Thank you, Kelsey for being A-mazing!
Base Area/ Building Mtce/Security	Lawrence Romeo	We want to take a moment to recognize Larry Romeo as truly "A-mazing" for his exceptional dedication and work ethic. Larry consistently stands out for being incredibly reliable, independent, and punctual. Whether it's the start of the day or the end, he's always on the clock, ready to tackle any task with a positive attitude. Larry is never one to shy away from hard work—he's the first to grab a shovel and get to moving snow, ensuring that everything runs smoothly without hesitation. His commitment is unmatched, and he’s always watching for where the action is, staying one step ahead and making sure things are done efficiently. What sets Larry apart is his commitment to his team. He is often the last to ask to operate a machine, putting the team first and supporting wherever needed. His selflessness and strong work ethic make him an invaluable part of the team. Thank you, Larry, for being A-mazing!
Lift Ops	Felipe Tiscornia	Always eager to help out wherever he can with a great attitude.  Perfect attendance, very reliable.
Lift Ops	Santiago Peyrade	Does whatever is asked of him with a smile on his face. Very reliable.
Lift Ops	Chris Howard	very hard worker, takes initiative, goes the extra mile.  Perfect attendance, very reliable.
Lift Ops	Sophia Olszewski	good team mate, pleasant to work with, dependable, hardworking.  Very good with our guests
Lift Ops	Kelly Koehler	goes above and beyond, station always looks good, Lift Maintenance has given kudos to her as well.
Lift Ops	Derek Carmicle	great attitude every day, shows up ready to work, does very good snow work, good with guests.
Rentals	Nick Greninger	Nick Greninger our rental lead is the hardest worker, who is always looking out for the best interest of our team and the guest. His selfless leadership style and quality of work has elevated his reputation to the rock of the rental shop. The entire Basin is very lucky to have him!
Rentals	Nick Esch	Nick Esch a part timer in the rental shop but a full timer in our hearts! At a moment’s notice Nick is the first to volunteer any spare hours to help support the rental shop. Always eager to help and excited to learn Nick is immense joy to work with. The other Nick is the rock of the rental shop, and this Nick our precious Gem. I motion to re-name Nick, Gem- seems fitting!
Retail Shop	Danny Wilkin	Danny has been with us for 2 winters and this past summer.  Great communicator all things Arapahoe Sports, consistently on time and ready to go.  Dependable and willing to help not only with the guest but our staff with scheduling needs.  Accurate with all aspects of the POS when it comes to change giving, discounts and accurate pricing of items.  Great attention to detail.
Retail Shop	Shona Koetteritz	Shona has retired from teaching and joined the Arapahoe Sports team.  Her husband Fred is in rentals.  She is always looking to help, stock and stay busy while in the shop.  She enjoys everyone she works with and that is reciprocal with the staff working with her.  Great addition to our team.
Guest Services	Olivia Harback	The Guest Service team has chosen Olivia because of her sunshiney self, she adds joy every time she walks in the room. Olivia’s personality is infectious and helps each team member elevate their performance. She learned all the pages and pages of GS stuff, including RTP, super-fast. Olivia contributes now to teaching others.
Guest Services	Carson Mitchell	The Guest Service team has chosen Carson because of his outstanding work ethic, he’s here early every morning even when battling ‘the crud’, in addition he’s consistently open to learning and growing. Carson is a team player and is efficient in his work. Carson’s willingness to teach others as they join our team has been an invaluable contribution as well.
SnowSports	Joy Manguso	Always believing that there is a way to make anything happen.  Moving us forward with fulfilling from the office, being creative with the guest in mind when developing products, quick turn around on inquiries and is an amazing human.
SnowSports	Nick Steinmetz	Amazing with guests of all ages, always a comforting presence, excellent at getting the snacks off the top shelf
SnowSports	Sarah Cady	Engaging, kind and understanding with our littlest guests.  The quiet one that goes about the work and delivers the magic.
SnowSports	Autumn Leishman	Helping run the Lil Kids Club program, always a friendly face, outstanding with parents and kiddos, has a knack for helping kiddos get through tough times.
SnowSports	Amber Leishman	Spearheading indoor operations, running late arrivals, sick-n-sad, jumping on snow as needed, and consistently taking initiative to keep things running smooth.
SnowSports	Amelia Davey	An instructor nominated Amelia saying “I’d like to nominate Amelia for an amazing award. Though she’s been at A Basin for a couple of years, this is her first year as a team leader, responsible for making sure instructors have their groups assigned to them and passing out lesson tickets when appropriate and necessary. She has done an excellent job of bringing order out of chaos. She never seems flustered, and not only gets the job done, she also is cheerful and responsive to myriad questions during the busiest time at the ski and ride school. And best of all, she’s still smiling at the end of the day! And that means a lot to the rest of the team who sometimes need some extra encouragement.” So to sum it up, as someone else said in their nomination for Amelia - “So friendly and effective in her new role”
Legends FOH	Francisco DeMaria	Francisco embodies the spirit of the Legend in our Café: he works hard and plays hard. I’ve been so impressed by his work ethic, desire to learn, and willingness to do what needs to be done. He’s a team player through and through. Thanks for your hard work, Francisco!
Legends BOH	Kim Wagner	. She has help train all the new staff on a daily basin as well as help fill in all the gaps  to overcome peoples day off needs!
6th Alley FOH	Madison Hollabaugh	I nominate Madison Hollabaugh.  Madison joins us this season by way of Alabama.  Her low key and down to Earth demeanor can contribute to her “flying under the radar” at times, but she is friendly to her guests and teammates alike, she is efficient and hard-working, and above all she is a great team player.  She will always go the extra mile for the good of the team and has developed into one of 6th Alley’s best and most reliable servers.  Outside of work, Madison is a foodie through and through.  You can usually finder her either with a burger in hand, smashing sushi at Nozawa, or at Gigi’s chicken, her new favorite.  Great work Madison!
6th Alley BOH	Vlad Guerrero	Vlad is always willing to help and get make sure everything is done correctly in a timely manner. He also brings a very positive energy to the kitchen, in turn helping keep everyone else happy!
BML BOH	Sully Gill	Sully is an all-around great guy!  He is willing to help where ever needed.  Sully comes to work happy and ready to rock every day!
BML BOH (Requested no FOH, Amazing #2)	Andrea Serrano	Andrea is such a hard worker and she is our Spanish speaking translator.  She is always ready to work and does it with a smile!  We appreciate Andrea’s work ethic and expertise!
Il Rifugio/Steilhang	Rafa Garzon	Just a few things that make Rafa so A-mazing are his fun loving personality, ability to remain calm, cool, and collected under pressure, and his attention to guest satisfaction.  He’s a great unifier amongst the resort staff and we’re lucky to have his talent on the team!
F&B (Extra A#2)	Bill Sodetz	Bill Sodetz, what can we say about a true Legend at the Legend. He has without a doubt been a vital and incredible team player for F&B and many other supporting departments the last couple of years. From his charismatic and positive demeanor, greeting everyone with a smile and a laugh in the morning, to his quick-witted and smart-ass comments, he makes sure the wheels keep turning around here. You can always count on him to have the coffee going first thing in the morning, to know exactly where to find that one thing we ordered and stashed a year ago, and to help “pick things up and put them down”. Beyond being an amazing employee and coworker, Bill is just a good person and shining light in life. We love you, Bill!
Ski Patrol	Lindsay Wiebold	She’s the ying and I am the yang.  Unlike most, Lindsay has multiple jobs here at the Basin.  In addition to being our most tenured Supervisor, she has the additional responsibility of dealing with my shortcomings.
Ski Patrol	Cole Ross	Battled hard this season, coming back from shoulder surgery and he has stayed strong in the game. His commitment to A-Basin is obvious between working for snowmaking, fnb, and ABSP. There are probably others.
Ski Patrol	Leah Weisman	Promoted to stage IV this year, “jack (or Jill) of all trades, master of all”.  Leah is critical to our team in so many ways, but above all her knowledge and experience needs shared with our younger rookies.  Leah has also stepped up this season to help with bridging ABSP’s injuries and absences to making sure we stay consistent and on the same page.
Ski Patrol	Dave Norick	aka “Mr.Smiley”:  This guy just nailed his staging promotion from 1 to 2 and is so ready for this next step in his career.  As one of the youngest patrollers on our crew, he has proven himself to be one of the most valuable.  He is a quick study, always willing to help with a smile.
Ski Patrol	Kacie Bell	Rumor has it, we have a future leader amongst us, and I am super excited to see Kacie Bell move her career in a direction that is going to leave most of us in the lurch.
Safety ($200)	Lift Ops	The lift Ops team as a whole has crushed it lately in a few different areas. For one, they had no findings of any kind at our latest random Tramway inspection, which is incredible! Further, In a time where lift incidents pose a higher level of legal risk this team has time and time again protected the guests of Abasin. Being timely with slows and stops, and paying close attention to those who may need more help getting on the lift have been key this season in preventing lift incidents. We have also had two operators successfully deploy a willie bag to soften the landing of a mis-seated guest which requires fast action and an operator who is always paying attention. (Josh Settle, Caid Fisher (almost), John Page) Kudos to the Lift ops team overall and the ABLO management team for staying dialed, investing in new equipment that keeps people safe, and for always looking out for one another and our guests
Sustainability ($200)	MR Knackstedt	Mike and I would like to nominate MR from Legends Café for the Sustainability A-Mazing award. She singlehandedly spearheaded an employee reusable mug initiative, where employees can grab a reusable to-go vessel for free. This has diverted many single-use coffee cups from the landfill. And where does she get all these mugs?? Well, she collaborated with GS to use their lost & found vessels, and has also encouraged employees to donate their unused mugs/cups. Circularity at work!
Grooming/VM/Snowmaking/LM	Maddie Pierce	Pending
Grooming/VM/Snowmaking/LM	Alex Ranz	Pending
Grooming/VM/Snowmaking/LM	Josh Miller	Man, the myth, and now the movie! Josh has done a stellar job keeping the cat fleet up and running, among our other company assets. He’s able to manage his time between turning wrenches and ordering parts, with a positive, upbeat attitude! There will be paperback book about him soon.
HR/Marketing/Accounting/IT	Jeff Burns	Jeff has been an A-Mazing shuttle driver from the very beginning, and his dedication to the team has not gone unnoticed. He consistently goes above and beyond to support his fellow shuttle drivers, always stepping in to help whenever needed. His willingness to accommodate any request from HR with a positive attitude speaks volumes about his reliability and teamwork. Beyond his hard work, Jeff’s friendly demeanor and welcoming presence make a lasting impact on everyone he encounters. Whether he's assisting a coworker, helping a guest, or simply greeting others with a smile, his kindness does not go unnoticed. He has been such a valuable addition to the team, and we truly appreciate everything he does to keep the employee shuttle running smoothly! Thank you for your hard work and dedication, Jeff!