Greetings NENSA Community ~

As we enter the final 10 days of our April Fund Drive, I have a wonderful reason for you to give! We have a Board Match on the table of $8500 in pledges if we get 100 (or more) folks to donate to our April Fund drive in the next 10 days - that's just 10 donors a day!
But we need your help to reach this goal! As we wrap up an amazing season - we ask our cross country ski community for support in sustaining our organization and all the year-round programing we do to make our XC New England ski community vibrant and inclusive. Please think about what NENSA means to you and your family and consider making a tax-deductible donation to NENSA today. Thank you!

To sweeten the pot even more - we have some fun raffle prizes to give away to anyone who has already given or will give $100 or more during this month's drive. See box below ~ we will publish our winners and send these extra gifts in May.

We also need your help for our NENSA Awards 2022. We are looking for nominations of folks right here in our NENSA community who might be deserving of one of our annual NENSA Awards. We are looking for our community to nominate people they think might fit these categories:

John Caldwell Award: This award annually recognizes a single individual, or entity, which embodies the spirit, dedication, innovation, and pride of John Caldwell, and NENSA!

Coach of the Year: This award is given annually to honor a NENSA coach for their achievements and contributions in working with athletes, in support of NENSA’s mission to sustain a vibrant and active Nordic skiing community in New England.

Club of the Year: This award is given annually to honor a NENSA club that is making great strides in supporting the NENSA mission to sustain a vital and active Nordic skiing community in New England.

Chummy Broomhall Award: This award is named after Chummy Broomhall who embodied the spirit of being a volunteer as he was a man who gave his time to generations. It is in this spirit that this award be in his honor for the unsung heroes of ski racing.

Bill Koch League Youth Leadership Award: The Bill Koch League Leadership Award is for those community members who embody fun, community, and a lifelong love of the sport.

And finally, I wanted to share with you all two great articles (one from WBUR Boston and one from FasterSkier) on two great women and fellow NENSA members - Sara Mae Berman and Katharine Ogden. I hope you enjoy reading these as much as I did!

Here is what we have for you in this week's KickZone:
  • Please donate to our April Fund Drive - make these last 10 days count and help us unlock the Board Match!
  • Accepting Nominations for our NENSA Community Awards 2022 - click HERE to submit your nominations!
  • NENSA's Executive Director Job Posting
  • Coming Soon ~ #25kinMay !!
  • For Sale ~ NENSA's custom fabric SKIDA hats & neck warmers
  • From our Partners & In the News:
  • From WBUR Boston - article on NENSA member and racers Sara Mae Berman on the 50th anniversary of women running in the Boston Marathon (and her winning 3 years in a row!)
  • From FasterSkier ~ article ~ A Complete Person: Katharine Ogden Follows Her Own Path Toward Retirement

Be sure to check out all the great summer camp listings at the bottom of this newsletter ~
Best,
Amie

Amie Witten Smith
Executive Director
New England Nordic Ski Association
Amie@nensa.net

GIVING: DONATE to NENSA today, and thank you!

MEMBERSHIP: RENEW or JOIN today, and thank you!
Please take a few minutes to do that and support the organization that supports XC skiing here in New England, and beyond! NENSA is here for you, running programing for you, our ski community ~ we need your support this year, more than ever!

Thank you to all our NENSA Sponsors ~ they are such a HUGE part of our NENSA programming continued success, and we so appreciate all their support. I want to be sure we all acknowledge the businesses who support us and cross country skiing!

Be sure to follow us on fb, Twitter and on Instagram @nensa_nordic
NENSA News from the Field
Highlights and Notes from NENSA and the Nordic World
Please Support NENSA
in our 2022
April Fund Drive!
We are thrilled to announce a Board Match for the final 10 days of our April Fund Drive 2022. But we need 100 donations in the next 10 days (by 4/30) to unlock $8500 in pledges ~ please give as generously as you can to help us end our 2022 Drive on a high note!

As an additional incentive ~ we have some fun raffle gifts to give away in early May to anyone who has donated or will donate $100 or more to this years drive! A sneak peak if a few of the great prizes in the photos below!

We hope you will take a moment to contribute to our 2022 April Fund Driveand support all that we do here at NENSA. Our goal is to raise $50,000 this month ~ please help us continue to create and sustain the top-notch programs and events for you, your family, as well as old & new friends to participate in. Click here to DONATE and to make your donation today - we made it easier than ever to make a contribution! Let's celebrate the NENSA staff's superb work and close out the fiscal year with a bang ~ get your donations in by April 20th. Thank you.
NENSA is looking for Nominations for our 2022 NENSA Awards
These awards are given annually to honor the achievements and contributions of our members who work to support NENSA’s mission of sustaining a vibrant and active Nordic skiing community in New England.

The NENSA staff is accepting nominations for folks in our New England ski community who fulfill the ideals for our Annual Awards. Click HERE to submit a nomination in any of these Award categories. THANK YOU!

John Caldwell Award: One of NENSA’s finest traditions is presenting the John Caldwell Award. This award annually recognizes a single individual, or entity, which embodies the spirit, dedication, innovation, and pride of John Caldwell, and NENSA!

Coach of the Year: This award is given annually to honor a NENSA coach for their achievements and contributions in working with athletes, in support of NENSA’s mission to sustain a vibrant and active Nordic skiing community in New England.

Club of the Year: This award is given annually to honor a NENSA club that is making great strides in supporting the NENSA mission to sustain a vital and active Nordic skiing community in New England.

Chummy Broomhall Award: This award is named after Chummy who embodied the spirit of being a volunteer as he was a man who gave his time to generations. It is in this spirit that this award be in his honor for the unsung heroes of ski racing.

Bill Koch League Youth Leadership Award: The Bill Koch League Leadership Award is for those community members who embody fun, community, and a lifelong love of the sport.

See past receipts here: https://nensa.net/past-award-recipients
THANK YOU TO OUR ASSOCIATE SPONSORS
L.L.Bean and SWIX & Salomon!
Coming Soon!!! #25KinMay
Stay tuned for updates on the third edition of #25KinMay. Originally designed to bring our community together during the isolation of the pandemic, this ongoing program has grown to connect folks across the East and the world. Rollerskiing is a fun way to challenge yourself and access beautiful places in a new way! #25KinMay is the perfect way to build towards the positive social energy of our summertime programs. In 2020, many folks returned to rollerskiing or tried it for the first time due to the excitement around #25KinMay.  2021 drew solid participation numbers as well and together we have skied nearly 20,000 kilometers together!
Whether you are a coach, parent, volunteer, or athlete, we all play a role in providing a safe environment for the sports that we love. U.S. Ski & Snowboard  Athlete Safety policies, the SafeSport Code, and the U.S. Ski & Snowboard MAAPP help us support that culture of safety.  
  • If you witness or are aware of inappropriate behavior or misconduct - REPORT IT!
  • Reports may be made anonymously!
  • Child Abuse and Child Sexual Abuse – Report to law enforcement or child protective services in your jurisdiction immediately.
  • Reports to the Center - SafeSport hotline at 833-5US-SAFE (587-7233) or CLICK HERE to complete an online reporting form.
  • Reports to U.S. Ski & Snowboard - CLICK HERE

You may see QR codes posted at events this season. The QR codes open a page on www.usskiandsnowboard.org for quick links to reporting from your smartphone.
Learn more about reporting and try the QR Code:

Thank you for your diligence in maintaining sport safety and protecting our athletes. 
NENSA is looking for it’s next Leader ~ Executive Director Job Posting
The New England Nordic Ski Association (NENSA) is looking for its next Executive Director to lead this vibrant and thriving XC Ski Non-Profit Organization.  Founded in 1995, NENSA is a member-supported service organization that promotes the culture of cross-country skiing by creating opportunities for youth, athletes, coaches, officials and skiers of all levels. NENSA also provides the support structure necessary to bring cross-country skiers to their highest potential at regional, national and international events.
FOR SALE!
NENSA's custom fabric SKIDA Hats & Neck Warmers will be for sale on www.NENSA.net
This custom fabric was designed by Kait Miller, NENSA's Youth & Introductory Program Director. Each snowflake contains one of 5 Northeastern states that NENSA had our programing ~ Vermont, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and New York! We are excited to offer these great new custom NENSA hats and neck warmer to our ski community!
Link to purchase HERE. Thanks for supporting NENSA this way ~ $40 for the fleece lined alpine hat and $30 for the fleece lined neck warmer ~ this includes shipping & handing.
Field tested and NENSA Staff approved!
The Boston Marathon once barred women from participating.
Sara Mae Berman ran anyway
Fifty years ago, women were not allowed to run in the Boston Marathon due to a myriad of false assumptions about the female anatomy.
Sara Mae Berman ran anyway. She reflects on what it meant to run then and what it's like to see women run now...Read and/or Listen to the full story here on WBUR
Sara Mae Berman, at her home in Cambridge, Mass., wears a medal she was presented for her Boston Marathon wins in 1969, 1970, and 1971. The Boston Athletic Association began recognizing women racers officially in 1972. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)
THANK YOU TO OUR NENSA CONTRIBUTING SPONSORS:
First L100 Coach Developer Date Set ~
NENSA Regional Coaches Clinic – US Ski & Snowboard L100 ~ Craftsbury, Vermont. July 7th, 2022
Please note: Coaches can register at any time as long as they have a current coach membership and those basic membership requirements have been met. The U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership season runs from July 1 through June 30 annually. However, we open registration for the upcoming season the first week of May. Memberships become valid July 1. 
For more information on how to sign up for the first scheduled practicum follow this link: http://usskiandsnowboard.org/sport-development/coaches-development/welcome-cross-country-level-100-coach-certification
THANK YOU TO OUR NENSA SUPPORTING SPONSORS:
From our NENSA Partners:
IN THE NEWS:
From FasterSkier ~ by Ella Hall l April 18, 2022:

A Complete Person: Katharine Ogden Follows
Her Own Path Toward Retirement

Anyone who has had the pleasure of interacting with Katharine Ogden, also commonly known as KO, can tell you that she is humorous, kind, and thoughtful – both in regard to others as well as in her own self-introspection. She is also a wicked good skier, proving herself both nationally and internationally in competition. Ogden recently shared that she was stepping away from professional skiing, having already experienced a range of career ups and downs at her relatively young age of twenty-four.

I had the privilege of overlapping with Ogden for two years as teammates on the Dartmouth Women’s Ski Team, during which time I was undergoing my own personal, though distinctly less significant, reckoning with ski racing. Thus, when Ogden announced her retirement at the end of last month, I asked to be the one to write this piece, hoping to do justice to the story of a career that is as important in its low moments as it is at its heights. Ogden herself wrote an eloquently expressed reflection of her career on the SMS T2 blog which can – and should – be read here.  
Katharine Ogden, of the Stratton Mountain School and U.S. Ski Team D-team, in the women’s 20 k classic at 2017 U.S. nationals at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. She finished second among the senior women.
(Photo: U.S. Ski Team)
THANK YOU TO OUR NENSA OFFICIAL SUPPLIERS:
Upcoming Events
A Look Ahead at the NENSA Calendar
Upcoming NENSA Events:
If you already shop Amazon ~ please link to Amazon Smile
with NENSA as your beneficiary!
Did you know that NENSA could benefit from the Amazon purchases you are already making??! Please link your Amazon account to Amazon SMILE (with /smile) and choose NENSA as your non-profit beneficiary! All the purchases everyone is already making, all add up, and we would love to be able to benefit from that! Thank you!!