In Profile: 2017 WCTA Life Member Award Recipients

Two individuals were recognized for their outstanding achievements at the recent WCTA Conference and Trade Show, held in Penticton, BC, February 15-17, 2017.  Presented with WCTA Life Member Awards were Rod MacDonnell, Hope Golf Club and Dan Cooper, Oakcreek Golf & Turf.  Congratulations to you both!

Rod MacDonnell says a few words after accepting a WCTA lifetime membership award.

Rod MacDonnell: A Few Career Highlights

Rod started thinking about turf in the late 1960's when his dad bought him a "Lawnboy" push mower.  He quickly established a list of 10 regular customers who wanted lawn service.  In 1972, his dad encouraged him to apply for a job in his hometown of Kingston, Nova Scotia at the Paragon Golf & Country Club.  Successfully hired, he worked after school and through the summer months.  During this time frame, Rod was involved with Boy Scouts and was considered Canada's Top Boy Scout during 1973. He attended National and International Jamborees, where he learned much about the environment and the land we live on.

Upon graduation he hitch-hiked out west, seeking employment in the forestry industry to gain experience that would allow him to attend Forest Ranger School in New Brunswick.  Arriving in Vancouver with only a couple hundred in his pocket and with no immediate jobs in forestry, he went through the phone book and was hired sight unseen, resulting in five years of employment at Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club.  Rod enrolled in BCIT's night school program for Turfgrass Management in 1978 and was awarded one-year membership into the WCTA through sponsorship for his high marks in the program.

Rod’s next move to Hope, BC in 1981, was his last in the golf industry.  For the ensuing 33 years, he worked at the beautiful 9-hole Hope Golf Club not only as superintendent, but as mechanic, irrigation tech, spray tech, logger, welder, architect and so on.  Particularly challenging was the major renovation work required after severe flood damage to the course by the raging Coquihalla River where the single lane suspension bridge was destroyed and several acres swallowed into the river.  All restoration projects were done in house by Rod and his team and he went as far as designing an additional 9 holes for future development.

Rod was involved with the local justice system, providing restitution for those caught by the law and whose penalty was community work hours. The School Board of Hope also liaised with Rod with onsite work experience for many years.  For many who worked with Rod, it was their first job resulting in lifelong positive memories from what began as a less than ideal situation; some even went on to higher levels of education within the turfgass industry. He was lucky to have all four of his children work with him at the course, both of his sons working full time for over 5 years each.

He brought a lot of his own tools to work on the course’s equipment and grounds and designed/built his own sawmill supplying the course with material for different construction projects. Rod became an accomplished woodworker, building fine furniture, sheds, log structures, garages and his dream home.  As a result, the Hope Golf Club was well known for immaculate conditions on a very small budget due to Rod's hands-on capabilities.

While admirable, Rod’s efforts are practically normal for a golf course superintendent and it needs to be said that the Board’s rationale for his life member award deservedness has less to do with his ability to grow grass and more to do with his selfless efforts toward the golf industry as throughout his career, Rod volunteered much if his spare time helping others.  Whether it was his role as BCGSA secretary/treasurer, organizing and attending countless chapter meetings, offering advice to the up-and-comers or calling around making sure local superintendents remained involved in the industry, you might say Rod was the glue that kept the golf maintenance community in the Fraser Valley together for over three decades.

Rod is also a pretty good artist, creating snow sculptures that made the local news and he has a talent for painting bodies, both automobiles and live models.  In retirement, he has now turned his hobby of collecting auto parts and restoring vehicles, mainly International Scouts, into an international business called ‘ScoutPluSS!!'

Dan Cooper, right, accepts WCTA Life Member award from Cary Blue of Oakcreek Golf & Turf

Dan Cooper: A Few Career Highlights by Cary Blue

For those who don't know, Dan has had two lives, life before Oakcreek and life with Oakcreek.  He’s not sure which was better!

Born in Prince Alberta, Saskatchewan, he moved to Calgary at one year of age where he grew up and graduated from high school.  He went to college at Mount Royal and played on the golf team at the 1974 Canadian University Championship in Toronto.

Upon moving to Vancouver, Dan managed the old Mulvaney’s Restaurant on Granville Island.  He started working as a bartender at the Richmond Inn and had a long run in the bar industry.  Knowing him now, I am sure he was a great bartender.

The contacts he made included Jack Skellern, Power Built Golf Club rep, who was good friends with Barb Dodge, then owner of Oakcreek Developments, the Yamaha Golf Car distributor for western Canada.  His reputation was passed along to Barb who was looking for a BC sales rep and early in 1988, it got him an interview.  It was sort of like the meeting of Smith & Wesson.

So in 1988, he was hired to call on golf courses throughout the province of BC and was one of the first Oakcreek employees.  Back then, there was only the golf car line and British Columbia was a new frontier.  He wasn't just a territory rep, he was THE territory rep. 

In 1989, Oakcreek picked up the Toro commercial products line for western Canada.  Dan was appointed the Manager of BC and now had 2 salesmen and 4 mechanics.  In 1991, the Toro Golf Irrigation line was added and the staff became 13 strong.  Later on, branch locations in Kelowna and Duncan were opened.

The company continued to progress, currently with 6 branches and approximately 80 staff.  With Dan on board as salesman, manager, partner and eventually shareholder, the company came a very long way.

Those who know Dan, know that throughout his career customer service has always been his top priority.  Calls at night, weekends or when he was on holidays didn't matter, he was constantly ready to serve.  Customers always came first and the next call was always the most important.  Customers knew this and never hesitated to ask him for a favour and he was always around to do what was needed even if it was to give some friendly advice.  Oakcreek and the industry is so grateful for his service.

Dan was a member of WCTA for many years, as well as various other industry memberships. He attended conferences, regional meetings, field/demo days and other events that are too numerous to count.

Editor’s note:  Dan contributed far more to the turf management industry than just good service.  Not only was he a big part of Oakcreek’s formative years, an accomplishment in itself, Dan gave back by volunteering at dozens of golf events, large and small including 7 PGA tour stops and 3 LPGA Canadian Women’s Opens.  He gave of himself with unparalleled energy and enthusiasm, a quality that exemplifies the spirit of the WCTA Life Member Award.  In an email Dan stated, “It was a very rewarding, challenging and fun career and at no other time in my life did I have a chance to work with the most professional and dedicated group of individuals whose life work is to grow grass and take the game of Golf and all Sports to new levels.”