Vienna, VA. November 20, 2019 — The Potomac Appalachian Trail Club’s annual awards banquet offered yours truly a wonderful surprise in the form of the club’s highest honor, the Myron Avery Volunteer of the Year Award.
PATC Myron Avery Award.
“Named in honor of the founder of the PATC, the Myron Avery Award recognizes a substantial achievement by a PATC member who most exemplifies the spirit of volunteerism through his or her contribution to PATC during the past year. This is the highest honor bestowed upon members of the club and is awarded to the PATC volunteer who most exemplifies Mr. Avery’s dedication and devotion to PATC’s mission. The contribution can be to any type or combination of club service activities, e.g., devoting many hours above and beyond the norm to service activities, including travel time, or making an exceptional contribution to a particular project.”* Avery also founded the Appalachian Trail Conservancy.
Two people are principally responsible for creating the Appalachian Trail. Benton MacKaye supplied the vision. Myron Avery got it done. Myron Avery
Volunteers are the heart and soul of the AT and our national parks. About 250,000 volunteer hours annually are needed to keep the AT properly maintained and open.
Thousands of volunteers across 14 states, hundreds from the PATC alone, give what they can in time, money and sweat for a labor of love. I’m proud to be counted among them.
Sisu
Well deserved Jim! I’ve worked with you / hoodlums for years and can vouch for your hard work – Terry
Sisu, as the PATC is one of the largest A.T. maintaining clubs, with many excellent volunteers who are deserving of such recognition, this is indeed a very special honour for you. Congratulations!! 👏👏👏 And, it could be my imagination, but that award looks to be an oversize tear drop or sweat drop; perhaps a reminder of some of those tough, sweltering days out on trail with the crew…
Canada Goose
Thank you. I prefer to think of it as a drop of ice cold water on a hot summer day.
Congratulations Jim. You are a true asset to the AT community of volunteers and hikers. I like that picture of you.
Congratulations! So well deserved! It’s great to see your dedication recognized. Especially with such a very cool looking award!
ZOWIE!! And Good For You!!! I didn’t know about this award before, but given the explanation of it, you most certainly deserve it. How nice to be recognized for such significant accomplishments. Godspeed Jim Fetig. . . . . .
You’ve worked hard–you deserve this. Congratulations!
Congratulations Jim. It is an important honor that is well deserved.
Some people are familiar with the work you do to maintain your personal section of the Appalachian Trail (AT) coming south bound down Compton Peak. Many people know of your efforts as part of the North District Hoodlums maintaining the AT and side trails in Shenandoah National Park (SNP). Others who have hiked with you for recreation have witnessed you rise to the challenges provided by thoughtless hikers who went before you or even by Mother Nature following storms such as those that so damaged the south district of SNP recently. You lead by example when you are on the trail.
Fewer people may know of your volunteer efforts to manage the Ridgerunner program for the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC) including recruiting, supervising and educating the ridgerunners who patrol the AT in northern Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and southern Pennsylvania. You are the man in the middle – coordinating the program between PATC, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) and the various landowners the AT traverses such as SNP, the South Mountain Recreation Area in Maryland, and Caledonia State Park in Pennsylvania to name just three.
Many more people know of you through social media and your use of it to educate hikers and backpackers and to protect the trails we all use.
Thank you for your dedication.
Hal, Thanks for your kind words and for all the effort you have put into the trail and into taking care of and policing up after the thoughtless ones too.
Jim,
Congratulations ! An honor well deserved ! You give yourself to the trail in so many ways and I know it is very much appreciated. Again, congratulations !
Congratulations!