Parks guru named Employee of the Month

As the water in the swimming pool empties after a great summer season, New Rockford Park District Manager Dennis Nybo is there. He’s knee deep in his rubber boots, making sure that every valve is open and each line is completely drained.

This is his 34th year working with outdoor pool structures, and his experience is evident. So is his way of working with people, scheduling baseball and softball games, ensuring that the diamonds are in shape for play, and inspecting facilities to identify maintenance needs.

After one year on the job, he has earned the Chamber of Commerce’s Employee of the Month award, and it’s well deserved.

Nybo is one of those people that landed in this community at just the right time. When the park district lost its manager last spring, he was commuting to Devils Lake for work. After a bit of recruiting (and a little arm twisting) by board members, he agreed to take the position last August.

When presented with the award on Tuesday, he was quick to shift the credit to his staff, noting that they were in fact responsible for the success of the park’s programs this year. Nybo managed 24 employees this summer, from lifeguards and coaches to park maintenance and mowing.

Tiffany Schaefer nominated him for the award. She said, “Dennis was an all-around great guy to work with this summer! I dealt with Dennis throughout multiple events this summer. From following five baseball teams, swimming lessons, pool time, being the parent of a State Babe Ruth kid and everything in between, Dennis was always ready to answer questions and help. Dennis definitely has a full plate to deal with, but no matter where you saw him he was always friendly and had a smile. He is a great asset to the Park Board and our community.”

Nybo is a native of Grand Forks. He attended the University of North Dakota after high school, where he graduated in 1986 with a bachelor’s degree in recreational administration and dual minors in marketing and management.

He then moved to Rolling Meadows, Ill., a suburb of Chicago, to operate the community’s outdoor pool, skating rink and various programs. He spent three years in Illinois before receiving “an offer he couldn’t refuse” from the Bismarck Park District in 1989. “You name it, I did it,” he said, for 27 years.

His favorite activity is hockey. He loves hockey and skating, and he even got to referee seven state championship games for North Dakota high school hockey during his tenure at Bismarck. It was also in Bismarck that he and wife Alison raised their two sons, Jace and Bryce. Both played soccer for University of Jamestown (UJ). Jace is now a chiropractor in the Twin Cities, and Bryce is finishing up his last year at UJ in the education department. He is student teaching this fall and looking forward to graduation in December.

When he and Alison moved to New Rockford in 2016, he took a position with Devils Lake Parks and Rec, the very same place where he interned in the 1980s. However, on his bucket list was becoming a manager, and New Rockford was the place he would check that box.

“I wanted to help change the community for the better,” he said.

When asked about the differences between the large communities where he spent the majority of his career and the small town programs he manages here, he noted a few. The biggest difference is the nature of the work, which he describes as “much more hands-on.” His time in the lifeguard chair, at the concession stand and on the diamonds making sure everything is running smoothly are good examples of that.

“I won’t make an employee do anything that I wouldn’t do or haven’t done,” he emphasized.

Another big difference is in financial matters, as he spends more time fundraising and budgeting here. The concession stand at North Park and the snack bar at the pool are two places where the organization earns extra money each summer, and fundraising continues throughout the year. Next on the docket is the annual Homecoming Spaghetti Feed, which is just a few weeks away. They will serve on Thursday, Sept. 19 from 5-7 p.m. at the Eagles Club. There are also raffle tickets for sale at $10 each, with five great prizes up for grabs and only 500 tickets available. The raffle winners will be announced at the end of the third quarter at the Homecoming football game on Sept. 20.

The third, and perhaps the most notable according to Nybo, is the people in the community. “The community rallies around and helps out,” he said. He noted the service clubs such as the Lions and Eagles and how they not only financially support but also promote and do the work necessary to maintain the facilities and programs. He referenced the successful volunteer day in May hosted by NRABC and how they finished installing the new play system in Archie & Jessie Campbell Memorial Park much more quickly than he anticipated.

Nybo looks forward to the upcoming winter season, when he can set up and install the new ice skating rink boards and liner. Then he can do what he enjoys most- skate and play a little hockey!

Have you experienced great customer service from an employee of a local business? If so, please consider nominating that person for this award. Nomination cards and forms are available in the table tents and on bulletin boards at local businesses. Forms can also be printed from the organization’s webpage, http://www.cityofnewrockford.com/chamber. Nominations are accepted via email to [email protected].