Warm Memories Ski Patrol Members From Mount Spokane Will Gather For A Reunion That Will Look Back On Decades Of Proud Service

Skiing conditions should be horrible up on Mount Spokane Saturday.

But members of the Ski Patrol are expecting one of their best days. More than 150 past and present members of the Mount Spokane wintertime rescue unit will be getting together to shake hands, swap stories and celebrate a proud volunteer tradition that goes back to 1938.

“We’re calling it an alumni reunion,” said Donna Larson, a former patrol director who has spearheaded planning for Saturday’s event up on the mountain. “I think everyone’s excited.”

The Spokane patrol, which provides first-aid and transportation down the slopes for injured skiers, has twice been named the best unit in the nation.

Larry Connell, an original member of the search and rescue team, summarized the group’s mission: “Help the guys that broke their legs up on the hill.”

But anyone familiar with the training requirements and time commitment can tell you that this is not a bunch of carefree ski bums.

“They definitely make the slopes safer,” said Marlen Guell, who used his local involvement as a springboard to become director of the national ski patrol system for six years.

According to Larson, perhaps the most important part of Saturday’s festivities, scheduled to run from noon until 5 p.m., will be the taping of interviews with patrol old-timers. They are, after all, the ones who can talk about the organization’s roots and early evolution.

Original and longtime patrol director Ken Henderson died a few weeks ago, before Larson could record conversations with him. “And I just kick myself,” she said.

The group had a get-together in 1988 to note its 50th anniversary. But Larson, who was the first woman to head the local patrol, said this week’s gathering should be the largest in the group’s history. “This is probably a one-and-only,” she said.

Former Spokane patrol directors are coming from California, Bellevue, Olympia, Great Falls and elsewhere.

The Ski Patrol building will be the activities hub.

Seth Fletcher, current director of the Mount Spokane patrol, said present members definitely feel a bond with the men and women who served before them. “They’ve heard the stories,” he said. “Now they’ll get to meet some of the faces behind the names.”

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