In The News

HBA Annual Holiday Party

Our Annual Christmas party was held Friday, December 9, at the Whitetail Inn in St. Germain. Approximately 50 members and guests were in attendance on a cold but beautiful December night. The event was a nice kick-off to the holiday season.

Following dinner, drawings were held for a number of door prizes that were generously donated by our members. There was also a 50/50 drawing, announcements by HBA president Randy Nilsson, and a presentation by Brian Grueschow with regard to a special Home Show participation offer by Wausau Area Home Builders (see page 11).

Awards were presented to those who participated in the "Northwoods Hunt" membership drive; new members who were recruited during the drive included Ritchie Lakeland Oil, LBS Insurance Group, Lee Construction Co., and First Supply Co. Each new member received $50.00 in "Builder Bucks" which they can use to pay for a variety of HBA-sponsored activities in the upcoming year. Recruiting members included Randy Nilsson, Nancy Hilger, and Jim Hein; recruiters were awarded $10.00 in Builder Bucks for each member they recruited and the three names were entered into a drawing for a oil-free turkey fryer which was provided by Jensen-Akins Hardware & Appliance. That prize was won by Randy Nilsson.

Members also generously donated non-perishable food items for the Vilas County Food Pantry’s Holiday Drive. Food pantries across the country are experiencing a record number of families in need of their services, and our donation was much appreciated. Special thanks to Jeff VanCaster and his crew for delivering our donations to the Food Pantry location in Eagle River.

We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season!

GOLF OUTING

The 16th Annual HBA Golf Outing was held Friday, August 26 under near perfect weather conditions at Wildwood Golf Course in Minocqua. Eleven teams met for the 9 hole Best Ball Scramble; the winning team of Tim Sanderson, Mark Geier,Chad Marquardt and John Ohoson was sponsored by Peoples State Bank.

Thank you to Dennis Herman for all his hard work as this year’s event chairman. A special thank you, also, to Bob Rynders and Rynders Design/Build for their generous support and for providing the beautiful facilities.

Hole and Cart sponsors included: VerHalen, Inc./Pella Windows, Peoples State Bank, Deer Run Stone, Boone’s Building Supply, Lee & Associates, Sherwin Williams Paint Co., HT Glass and Mirror, Merrill Millwork, Inc., M&I Bank, and Winter/Plewa Construction.

A very special hole-in-one prize was provided by Lee & Associates. A golfer attaining a hole in one on hole #4 could have taken home a prize package worth $5000, including a Husqvarna riding mower, trimmer, generator and chain saw.

Congratulations to the winners, and thank you to all who participated and/or donated time, energy, and prizes to help make the 16th Annual Golf Outing another success!!

Scholarships Awarded to Area Seniors

Representatives of Headwaters Builders Association recently attended the awards ceremonies held at three area high schools where they presented scholarships to graduating seniors who will be furthering their education in a field related to the building trades. On Monday, May 2, 2011, Val Dreger presented a $200 scholarship to Clint Kittleson, a senior at Northland Pines High School. Clint has spent time over the past year helping his father remodel a house in St. Germain, and will be entering the Nicolet College Building Trades program in September. Clint was also the recipient of the $500 Headwaters Builders Association/Nicolet College Foundation Scholarship.

Jeff Labs attended the Rhinelander High School Awards night on Sunday, May 15, and presented a $200 scholarship to Christopher Hirman. Chris will also be attending Nicolet College’s Building Trades program in fall with the hopes of eventually owning his own construction business. Chris stated that the highlight of his high school career was building a house as part of Mr. Germain’s Residential Construction class.

On Wednesday, May 25, at the Tomahawk High School awards program, Jeremy Cordova presented a $200 scholarship to senior Alex King. Alex’s future plans will also include a degree from Nicolet College in the Building Trades program.

Congratulations and best wishes to these three gentlemen.We wish them the best of luck and look forward to following their progress. Thank you to Val, Jeff and Jeremy for volunteering their time to present these important awards to our future industry professionals.

Associate Night and Contractor Education Day 2011

Despite a significant spring snowstorm, the 9th annual Associate Night and Contractor Education Day event was held on Wednesday, March 23 at the Waters of Minocqua. Even with a few cancellations due to weather, the event was a success.

The day began with a 3-hour continuing education course for contractors, presented by Joe Nagan, owner of Home Building Technology Services in Kaukauna and technical director for the Wisconsin Energy Star homes program. The two part session included "Dew Point for Dummies" and "Hybrid Ventilation Systems." Following the education portion of the event, builders were invited to view the many booths provided by HBA’s associate members.

An hors d’oeuvre buffet and cash bar were provided as well by the Waters Hotel, and associate members donated a number of very nice door prizes for a drawing held at the end of the evening.

Our thanks to the following Associate Members who participated in this year’s event: Area Glass; Enterprise Wood Products; Focus on Energy; Jensen-Akins Hardware & Appliance; Kwaterski Bros. Wood Products; Lakeland Overhead Door Co; Lampert Yards; Lee & Associates; M&I Bank; Mid Wisconsin Bank; Nasi Roofing; Norandex Building Materials; Northern Waste; Northland Overhead Door; Peoples State Bank; PFI; Sherwin Williams Paint Co.; TW Masters; VerHalen Inc/Pella;Winger Concrete.

The annual Headwaters Builders Association Christmas party was held Friday, December 10, at the Whitetail Inn in St. Germain. There were 45 members and guests in attendance. Prior to dinner, guests were treated to a performance by members of the Northland Pines High School Madrigal Choir, directed by Mrs. Kate Janssen. The a capella choir, dressed in Medival European costume, performed a variety of classic Christmas carols for the enjoyment of their audience.

Thank you to everyone who donated door prizes to add to the evening’s fun. Also, a very big thank you to those who donated to the Lakeland Food Pantry at this year’s event. As a result of our members’ generosity, we were able to contribute 108 lbs. of food to the Pantry at this time of increased need.

2010 Golf Outing

The 2010 Golf Outing is in the books! Approximately 70 golfers took advantage of the lovely Wildwood Golf Course on a perfectly beautiful day. Congratulations to the winning team from Mid Wisconsin Bank, which included Larry Snedden, Darren Rubo, Dave Cox and Greg Gremban.

Cash prizes were also awarded for longest drive, longest putt, and closest to the pin on specified holes. Door prizes were provided by members, sponsors and area businesses, and the 50/50 raffle prize was $111.00.

Thank you to the following hole sponsors: Deer Run Stone, Design/Build by Visner, Enterprise Wood Products, Lakeland Overhead Door Co., Peoples State Bank, SL Custom Builders, Sherwin Williams Paint Co. (the beer guys), VerHalen, Inc/Pella Windows, and Van Strydonk Construction.

Also a big thank you goes out to Dennis Herman of Rynders Design/Build who coordinated this year’s event and who, along with the staff at Wildwood Golf Course and the Rusty Putter, provided us with a great golf experience and an outstanding dinner. We hope to see everyone at next year’s event!