2022 Emax award nominees

The Town Crier announces the 2022 Ernie Maxwell Community Spirit Award nominees. They are Ken Dahleen, Anne and Barnaby Finch, and Jon King.

Please keep the following in mind when you vote: The individual should have demonstrated a tangible, perhaps physical, effect on the community. The honor is given to an individual or group who represents EMax’s spirit of community and volunteerism. Prior awardees took actions that created a spark sufficient to bring others into the fray just as Maxwell did with his activities involving the environment.

Ballots need to be submitted by 4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14. To help you decide who to vote for, we compiled all the amazing things that were written about each nominee, in the EMax spirit, of course.

Ken Dahleen: Very few in our Hill communities have impacted as many people, and for as long a time, as Ken, wrote Stephanie Yost, a prior recipient of the award.

As the founder and producer of the Idyllwild Summer Concert Series, which Ken does through his nonprofit corporation of the same name, Ken has brought music, joy, and a sense of community to many thousands of people throughout the 23 years he has provided the summer concerts.

Because the concerts are free of charge, Ken not only books, produces and provides the sound system and crew for the concerts, he must raise funds to cover his costs to pay the bands, feed and sometimes house them, advertise the concerts and supporters, and pay his sound crew (excluding himself, of course).

Ken has been a part-time resident since 1975 and a full-time resident since 1982. He also has been a business owner (originally opening Idyllwild Pizza Co.) and he has participated in other voluntary community endeavors, including the building of the Idyllwild Community Playground.

Originally, the Idyllwild Summer Concert Series was only five weeks long and over the years has been held at various locations. This year the series has expanded to nine weeks of diverse, but always entertaining, performances at the Butterfield Amphitheater.

Without Ken’s annual summertime concerts, summer would just not be summer in Idyllwild. For these reasons, I believe that Ken truly embodies the spirit of this prestigious honor.

Anne and Barnaby Finch: Anne and Barnaby, together with Lori and Frank Ferro, have organized and produced the current jazz festival at Ferro, wrote Peter Szabadi. They have returned all our favorite performers to our town such as Yve Evans, Jazzgrass, the Forbits, Deanna Bogart, Robin Adler, Lily McCabe, Sherry Williams, Greg Jones, Chuck Alvarez, Barry Baughn and many more. We missed them all during COVID.

“I would love to see Barnaby and Anne Finch be awarded the Ernie Maxwell Community Spirit Award for organizing the jazz series during the summer. It is fantastic!” wrote Myra Dutton.

Jon King: Jon King, who produces the online “San Jacinto Trail Report,” was Mark Dean’s choice.

“This guy spends more time in our mountains logging countless miles and hours to provide accurate information on our trail conditions. He’s absolutely amazing.

“I think last year he broke the record for lifetime achievement of number of San Jacinto Peak summits. He’s known the world over (literally) by PCT hikers who benefit greatly from his regular posts on his Trail Report regarding trail conditions. “

King provides these reports as a volunteer and also accepts donations.

That’s a little information about each nominee. Please remember to get your ballot (on page A4) into the Town Crier by Oct. 14. The winner will be announced in the Oct. 20 edition of the Town Crier and their name will be added to a plaque in the Town Crier office. Good luck to all of the nominees.