The following press release was recently received from NENSA. This is not a sponsored press release. I join everyone in American skiing who has ever met any of the Ogdens in liking this family a very great deal, and in mourning John’s far-too-soon death. Passing this along is truly the least I can do. Contribution link is at the bottom, or find it here. Here’s NENSA:
NENSA trustees and the Ogden family are thrilled to announce the endowment of NENSA’s youth programming position, the John Ogden Youth & Introductory Program Director.
Made possible through the legacy John left and the overwhelming response of family, friends, and dedicated supporters, the endowment secures the future of NENSA by supporting the growth & health of youth programming.
Through 16 years of official service on the NENSA board and many more as a skier, coach, parent, and community champion, John’s passionate vision inspired us deeply and remains a guiding principle for the work we do at NENSA. A champion of a healthy youth sport culture and community, John was a vocal advocate for programming that prioritized movement and athleticism, inclusivity, and fun. John was also fiercely committed to the sustainability of NENSA.
In a seminar for BKL coaches, John Ogden proposed this guiding principle, inspired by a Ben and Jerry’s bumper sticker, “If it’s not fun why do it?”. That wisdom and insight guided him throughout decades spent with NENSA as a skier, coach, parent, and board member. John was a loud and passionate champion of FUN youth and introductory ski programming. He believed that teaching kids how to love sport was infinitely more important than teaching them to excel. His goal was always to develop happy, healthy humans rather than elite athletes. Even so, he ended up fostering an environment within his own home club and throughout NENSA that boasts a community encompassing everyone from top-level Olympic skiers to the thousands of New England kids who try skiing for the first time each winter through NENSA’s Nordic Rocks Program.
John’s contributions to NENSA and specifically to the youth and introductory programming continue to inspire and guide the work happening today. Through a named, endowed position, we wish to honor John, to keep his insight and vision interwoven in our programming, and to secure the future of NENSA by supporting the growth of our Youth & Introductory programs. The John Ogden Youth and Introductory Programming Director staff position at NENSA will be partially funded through a permanent endowment in John’s name.
We invite you to join the family and dear friends of John and of NENSA in remembering John as we embark on this exciting project. We have a short-term goal in the first phase of this campaign to raise $750,000 and an eventual goal to fully fund the position. In order to do that, we aim to reach $1,500,000.
We are so grateful to this community and to the Ogden family for their ongoing support and guidance as we work to capture John’s energy and passion, ensuring it remains at the center of our work as an organization.
So, get out and ski when it snows, maybe take some kids with you, and please help us to seed this endowment and memorialize John’s legacy.
