September 2023
Savor
MEMBER NEWSLETTER
By Mark Richman, 2023 Club President
FROM THE PRESIDENT
The 2023 Staff Appreciation Night + Pool Party!
By Pete LaCoursiere, General Manager
From Your GM...
Employee Appreciation | Employee Scholarship Program As Mark touched on in his article, we had a nice turnout for our Employee Appreciation Pool Party & Scholarship Presentation this past month. We had nearly $24,000 raised for our Scholarship Program!! These funds go directly to those employees who are enrolled and have a college tuition balance, or have just graduated and continue paying down their tuition. The generosity from so many of our Members has certainly benefited our ability to retain more of our staff this past season. A big THANK YOU to the 50+ Members that donated to this program, to our Advisory Committee Members who volunteered for the event, and our staff that is a huge part of what makes Dellwood our home away from home. Of our 23 applicants, we had three top winners this year for the Scholarship Awards. The margins were razor thin among those who qualified for this scholarship and applied, but these team members stood out among their peers, and consistently put forth their best each and every day. Our three winners for 2023 are: Jack Thomas (Golf - Outside Services), Claire Wendland (Food & Beverage - Busser / Food Runner), and Jack Distad (Food & Beverage - Server). These three all display a tremendous work ethic & attitude. Needless to say, we want to recognize these efforts and I am confident that they will continue to be successful in their lives and future careers as they continue to prioritize a solid work ethic and positive attitude. Summer Concert Series I hope you had a chance to partake in one of our four summer concert series events at the Club over these past couple of months. These were a huge success, turning out as many as 150 in attendance as we filled our patio and wedding lawn for everyone to enjoy some local musical talent and our culinary team's wonderful food specials. Our Director of Banquets & Events, Katie Boyd, booked some very talented local artists, ranging in genre's while playing to their crowd. We will look to carry the momentum of this Concert Series into next season, and will be sharing a 2024 calendar of events in January 2024.
Dining Membership Have friends that would be interested in a Dining Membership at Dellwood? We offer a hassle-free Membership that allows you to establish a Membership that opens up the ability to partake in our social events (like Summer Concert Series!) as well as enjoy the wonderful food that comes out of our kitchens! Please share this LINK with your friends, and have them reference your name when they sign up. We'll be giving away a $100 Gift Card in the Golf Shop, entering those that have referred a Dining Member! Terms : $0 Initiation Fee, $0 Monthly Dues, $50 Food Minimum each month. Upcoming Events | Save the Dates We have a lot on the schedule, and plenty more once we break into fall with the start of holiday season. Don't forget about the offerings made available to you and your family here at Dellwood! From Oktoberfest to Wine Dinners, to Santa Brunch and Sleigh Rides, we have something in store for everyone - and every member of family. Click events in GOLD for registration or more information, and save the date for those later on this season. We'll be rolling out a complete 2024 calendar of events in January, including junior sports, golf events, and other special events throughout the Club. Stay tuned! September 1-2: Labor Day Classic Golf Tournament 8: Couples Closer Golf Event + Live Country Music 12: Divin' Doggies at the Pool! 21: Wine Education & Culinary Tastings 22: Oktoberfest 27-29: Mens + Women's Golf Closers October 2-4: Fairway Sanding 13: Wine Dinner - French Elegance Uncorked 22: DCC Halloween Boo Bash November Every Thursday: Game Night 23: Thanksgiving - To-Go Catering Available December Every Thursday: Game Night 3: Santa Brunch 31: New Years Eve Celebration & Sleigh Rides
From Catering & Events:
A huge thank you to all members who have attended member events this year, who have brought family and friends to the club, and who have spread the word that Dellwood Country Club is a great place to host and enjoy events! Our weddings and events calendars are filling, and I can only assume it is because people are enjoying life here at Dellwood CC. Let’s continue this trend! See you around the Club! Katie Boyd
by Katie Boyd Director of Banquets & Events
This month I would like to introduce DCC banquet staff member Cynthia! Cynthia has been in the hospitality industry for 9 years, and loves seeing people enjoy events while not having to worry about the little details she enjoys taking care of. If not here at DCC creating great memories for our members and guests, Cynthia is off in the water somewhere creating great life experiences, like scuba diving, or kayaking.
Hello Members, Summer has begun to fall behind us, but rest assured that the Dellwood Country Club gatherings, culinary splendors, and memorable moments shall continue! Throughout the fall and into winter some of the member favorite events are hosted, including: Oktoberfest, Boo Bash, Thanksgiving Buffet, Santa Brunch, and The Year End Celebration. Of course, we have a few other great gatherings sprinkled in between these events that have become a tradition for many families here at the Club. You may have begun thinking of how you would like to spend the holidays with your loved ones this season. Please keep in mind that we have three great spaces to host gatherings here at the Club. The Tamarack Room, The Fireside Room, and The Ballroom. Our Dellwood CC staff assists in creating and executing events that boast warmth, elegance, amazing culinary tastes, and legendary libations. Most importantly, it is an honor to provide a space where our guests are able to relax and enjoy an event that they helped to create. The best part is, DCC staff takes care of the cooking and the clean-up!
Hello DCC Members, This year the Club Championship Weekends had a combined 59 of our members battling it out to win the bragging rights for this year’s Club Championship. The weekends had some great weather and great golf being played within each flight on both the men’s and women’s sides of the event. Congrats to our overall stroke play champion Brian Moores who shot 75-69 over the two days and beating Andy Paulson by 1 shot. Congrats Olivia Herrick on winning the Women’s Club Championship shooting 75-75. The Senior Club Championship winner on the men’s side was Jim Simon and the Women’s Senior Club Championship was Sue Ryan. Below is a list of all the Flight Winners. Men’s Club Championship Club Champion-Brian Moores Flight 2-Mike McHugh Flight 3-Dustin Abrahamson Senior Club Championship Senior Club Champion-Jim Simon Flight 2- Don Odegard Women’s Club Championship Club Champion-Olivia Herrick Senior Club Champion- Sue Ryan The Dellwood Pro-Am partnered with River Valley Charities was a great success this year. We had 23 fivesomes play this year and the weather was great alongside some great golf being played. The winning team of Eddie Wynne, Tim Lawin, Jeff Jones, Charlie Cory, and Mike McGrath won the team competition at 26 under. The low pro for the event was Don Berry with a great score of 66. Congrats to all the winners and thanks to everyone who played in this year's event.
Happy September from Culinary! August came and went, but the memories of those hot humid summer days will be with us all for a while…until February when we are begging for 95 degrees!I’ve now been in Minnesota long enough to understand that I’m never supposed to be happy about the weather and loathe whatever season I am in.The grass isn’t always greener, but there were definitely days in August where -10 would have been a dream. As the season winds down, I wanted to lay out the blueprint for culinary this fall and winter.With the success of the Cozy Cantina last winter, we will be rolling out an Italian inspired night twice a month once the course closes.We will alternate each week between a Mexican night and an Italian night, which will be a blast!The first restaurant I ever worked at was a small family-owned Italian restaurant in Coeur d’Alene, ID, and a lot of my favorite things to cook (even to this day) are inspired by my time at that restaurant.Look for our homemade meatballs, lasagna, fresh pasta, and tiramisu to be a bi-weekly reason to get out here during the winter as well as all of the staples of the Cozy Cantina that we rolled out last year on alternating weeks!The Sunday Smokehouse will reappear during the football playoffs, and just because the Packers won’t be in the playoffs (Hi Ritchie) doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy delicious BBQ every Sunday during Playoff Season. As the pool winds down and the course slowly but surely slows down, the focus in culinary will be shifted towards specials and menu items that showcase the club in a different way.More attention to the smaller details that this decrease in business allows.When the pool and grill and patio are humming along at full speed, we are full systems go downstairs in the kitchen.The fall and winter allow us to branch out and try new and exciting things and put a different twist on our menu and Member experiences and dining. This month, I wanted to give a shout out to an absolute rock star and one of the pillars of the Dellwood Culinary team, Maddy Raleigh. Maddy started as a dishwasher 3 years ago, and to tell you all the things that she is responsible for now would take a whole separate newsletter article. But the highlights: The meatballs on our appetizer menu (she makes them better than I do and I’ve been making them for 15 years) the monthly crème brulee special in the grill as well as all our homemade desserts, leading the breakfast team on Sunday mornings, picking up PM saute shifts when cooks go on vacation, working banquets and events, and literally everything in between. We are all better at our job because Maddy is here and I have told her numerous times that I would be honored to work for her one day, if she’d have me. If you see Maddy (you can’t miss her and her Cat Diesel Power hat that she’s always wearing) tell her hello. She loves it here and we love having her here. Thank you, all! See you at the Club! Michael
From the Kitchen
From the Pro
By Clayton Johnson, Head Golf Professional
by Michael Lopata Chef de Cuisine
Taylor is a brand-new employee, hired just under one month ago! She has previously worked with Katie, our Director of Banquets and Events, and came very highly recommended for her many years of experience in the hospitality industry. We are lucky to have her as part of our team heading into the fall! Taylor is from Cambridge, MN and also is a skilled commercial painter in her free time – she loves painting houses! Her favorite menu item is the Mahi Mahi with avocado and corn salsa – on our entrée menu. Give it a try next time you’re in! A fun fact about Taylor is that although she isn’t the best at regular golf, she is a highly competitive disc golf player! Be sure to give a warm welcome next time you see her serving in the grill or behind the bar! Keep an eye out for some upcoming member events coming this month as well! We have our Divin’ Doggies Yappy Hour with Tito’s on Tuesday, Sept 12th at the pool to wrap up the warm weather season, as well as a Wine Tasting Event on Thursday, Sept 21st in conjunction with Small Lot Wines! Don’t worry, we will have another event with Small Lot in October you won't want to miss! Sign up will be live early September for our next wine dinner, "French Elegance Uncorked", so keep your eyes peeled for that. As always, Cheers! Brita
by Brita Van Guilder Food & Beverage Director
Food & Wine
Summers in Minnesota are just too dang short! Hard to believe we are coming up on crisp weather, falling leaves, and shorter days. I want to take a minute to thank all of our seasonal staff for an amazing summer! Our Food & Beverage team was on point this year! I was lucky enough to have quite a few returning staff members that really helped with the transition into the busy season. Thank you for your hard work, dedication, and fun attitudes that made this season great for our members and their guests. We have a great crew of year-round staff as well and this month I am featuring new-hire Taylor Shelton!
From the Course
By Eric Peterson, Superintendent
We are heading into Fall and for the golf course that means project time and fairway topdressing. Due to the extreme warm temperatures we're expecting, we'll be pushing fairway sanding to the first days of October.We have been topdressing for about 10 years and we started this process to improve the condition of our peat fairways. In the years before sanding we would have difficulty with maintaining quality conditions due to the lack of firmness and drainage in the fairways. Every rain event had a big impact on playability and cart usage. Although we still have a ways to go, our playability has dramatically improved and once we move off cart paths in the spring we typically want golfers to drive in the fairways versus driving in the rough. The improved drainage has improved our ability to keep the turf healthy. Although we haven’t had a lot of rainfall in the last few years whenever you combine heavy rainfall with poor drainage your turf will be negatively impacted. Poor drainage increases disease pressure, it doesn’t allow the turf to carryout transpiration and respiration, and standing water and sunlight basically cook the grass. The drainage has helped a lot throughout the winter as well. When we have wet winters or a number of freeze/thaw cycles this sand offers a space for the moisture to go.In years past the moisture would sit at the top and often times a thaw followed by a freeze cycle would kill grass. We have seen very little of this since undertaking the sanding. Although mostly anecdotally, we feel like the frost heaving that we used to have most years has been dampened. This could be due to milder winters with more snowfall insulating the ground but we feel the sanding has had a benefit. In the inset photo you can see the heavy peat at the bottom of the profile followed by the sand cap we have created.It helps to visualize the space that has been created.The dark peat below has very little pour space whereas the sand with its larger particles creates large pour space.
by Peg Kelly Director of Instruction - Tennis & Pickle Ball
We completed a fabulous summer season both with the Junior and Adult programs. It was so fun to see new faces picking up the game, as well as all the improvements in returning clientele. With the uptick of participation we are adding fall options for both groups! Adult Drills: Mon and Wed 1:00-2:00 and also 2:00 -3:00 starting Wed., Sept. 6th. The cost is $20 and you can sign up directly with me via email to pkelly4@comcast.net or text to 651-246-1662. I am also available for private or semi private lessons as well! Junior Fall Tennis: This is a 5 week session with lessons on Mondays and Wednesdays starting Monday, Sept .11th thru Wed., Oct. 11th. The cost is $225. Ages 11 + 3-4pm Ages 9-10 4-5pm (we will also have courts for older kids if they cannot make the 3pm start time) Ages 6-8 5:15-6pm These sign ups can be done directly me as well via email or text. Pickleball Patter: As with tennis we saw a very nice increase in both court usage along with the Mixer/Clinic on Monday nights in August from 5:30-7, with a wait list as well! I am offering the mixer again on Monday Sept 11th, and Monday 18th. Space is limited so get your spot reserved soon! Cost is $10 If you are interested in beginner to advanced beginner lessons or small clinics, please let me know! I am planning to continue teaching until weather dictates otherwise. Wishing everyone a good transition into the new school year, and want you to sincerely know how much I enjoy working with all of you as well as your kiddos. I consider myself very fortunate and blessed to be a part of your experience here at Dellwood. Peg
Tennis Talk
DELLWOOD COUNTRY CLUB 29 EAST HWY 96 DELLWOOD, MN 55110 651.426.3218 CLUBHOUSE 651.426.4733 GOLF SHOP