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Hi Everyone, 

We have a list of 2025 nominees from the membership.  So now it’s time to vote. 

 Member of the Year

Steve Banahan – Member comments 

  • Always there to lend a helping hand. Cabin, trail access and driving conditions. Daily monitoring of the beach in general.
  • Always on hand if you need anything. Helped w/people stuck in trail, took distress phone calls, and helped w/walking service
  • I respectfully submit Steve Banahan for consideration for Member of the Year.

Steve is a cornerstone of the RIMS Club community. His dedication is evident in his management of the Fiske Beach cottage, which is consistently booked by members seeking relaxation, fishing, swimming, and the natural beauty of the area. Steve ensures the cottage is meticulously cleaned and maintained each week, and he has initiated the installation of solar power to provide lighting and phone charging capabilities—enhancing the experience for all visitors. Beyond the cottage, Steve is a tireless volunteer. He is always present for beach cleanups, fencing projects, and any task that supports the upkeep and preservation of the area. He arrives early, stays late, and never hesitates to lend a hand. As a member of the safety patrol, Steve brings a calm and composed presence to challenging situations, always enforcing rules with respect and care. He is deeply engaged in community advocacy, attending meetings and speaking on behalf of beach access and RIMS property concerns, ensuring these issues remain a priority. (does not identify himself as a RIMS member)

Steve’s generosity extends to helping others on the sand trail—whether pulling vehicles out or walking alongside others during baby bird season when extra support is needed. His actions consistently reflect the values and mission of the RIMS Club. Steve Banahan exemplifies a member's spirit through his unwavering commitment, leadership, and compassion. He is truly deserving of this recognition.

Adam Ducki – Member comments

  • I give my vote to Adam Ducki in recognition of his effort spent away from his family to help others.

He and others helped dig and pull us out when we got stuck on the trail this past summer when it was super soft.  While there were several members who came to the rescue as well, Adam and Peter led the effort, brought the tow supplies and a tug vehicle, and quickly got us unstuck. (I'll give Peter his due in the next item).  I've seen Adam respond to the call on more than that occasion and he always tries to help the membership safely navigate the trail.  I think he deserves a little recognition for going above and beyond to make sure everyone is safe during stressful situations.

In unstuck times, he and his family hosted movie night at the lot.  All the kids enjoyed that so much on the 4th weekend.  My kids still talk about it a half a year later and we are hoping we get to do it again in 2026.

RIMS is about community and making sure the tradition of fishing is passed down to the next generation.  Adam and his family drive this mission and truly help make the club a club, not just a bunch of random people.

Debbie Gosselin – Member comments

  • Debbie took over membership at a time when the club needed someone.

Mark Judd - Member Comments

  • Mark has really been godsend this year and has put in many hours of his time and donating materials in helping with getting things done on the rental/shed renovations. Mark also assisted Doug Ford during the renovation of the lot 75 change room. I cannot thank Mark enough.

Justin Poole – Member comments

  • Justin has been an outstanding member for RIMS. He handles the Fishing Tournaments and lets everyone know what information they need from the beginning to the end of each tournament. He also has a fishing tournament for our Junior Members during the summer which is very well received by our members.

Deb Ursin-Magalis – Member comments

  • She went above and beyond in the events that she led
  • Debbie has been the vice president for the past three years. She has brought a new energy/excitement to the club events. Making themed events, new ways of providing food for the event attendees that is cost effective (cooking ourselves and bringing homemade dishes to share), great raffles that raise a lot of money that help offset the costs of the event. Because of her strong leadership more and more members are attending these fun events and she has integrated other committees into the events. For example on the day of the Potluck on the beach she was approached by and works with the chairpersons of RIMS STORE and Tournaments to make the Pot luck an entire day with a Pop-Up RIMS Store and Family Day Fishing Tournament. This year Justin even added a distance casting event. Thank you all for your years of service and great club events.

Margaret Wilford– Member comments

  • Consistently gives the club 110 percent, 100 percent of the time.

Todd Zagurski - Member Comments

  • Todd Zagurski #180 is a present board member with a very good attendance. He has multiple committees which keep him very busy. Todd handles our award committee which members are reluctant to participate in. Todd handles our Conservation committee which has a better attendance. Todd handles our RIMS website which he has updated to the current technology. He is very patient with helping members gain access to the website. At the November meeting. Todd has volunteered to take on another task. Todd is very committed to the RIMS family and deserves this recognition.

Humanitarian of the year

John Alho - Member comments

  • John used his truck many times to help many motorhomes that got stuck this summer.

Peter Alter – Member comments

  • Member that wears the most hats and is always working

Pat Morris  – Member comments

  • Miss Pat is one of our originating RIMS members. Miss Pat was present when RIMS was formed from the very beginning. She assisted her husband Don Morris with multiple tasks. She is the only living member that I know of that was arrested in the past while standing up for rights of way to the beach. In the last few years, Miss Pat has been very involved in the RIMS Memorial Garden. She has donated money, time, and effect to the Memorial Garden. Miss Pat has been and still is a valuable source of RIMS history.

Jeff Parmalee – Member comments

  • Always there to help.

Margaret Wilford – Member comments

  • Tireless effort in leading and representing the club, RIMS store, educating members.
  • Always there for lending an ear and support of all functions going on

Todd Zagurski - Member comments

  • His willingness to help with anything that is proposed for the betterment of RIMS, especially working the web site and always lending his hand to various board members to make their jobs easier. His patience with guiding members that are not computer savvy. His leading of different work party's, helping new members to meet their required volunteer hours. etc !!!

Outstanding Member

Peter Alter - Member comments 

  • Works an incredible amount of time on the club and club interests
  • His constant giving to RIMS, whether it's working on the properties and organizing work details, updating trail access with live videos, monitoring Facebook etc. Just an all around will do, kind of guy!!!
  • He deserves it for all his hard work.
  • Peter is a member with a lot of hats. He is a chairman for our Facilities, our Facebook Administrator and our Safety Patrol Captain. Whenever any of our facilities, which are many, need anything Peter is there on top of everything right away. He keeps us notified about anything club related thru our facebook account. He gives a ride down the sand trail to let us know how our property is and the beach is down at Quonny. Also as Beach Patrol Captain he makes sure that everything is safe down on our property and that all rules and regulations are being followed by our club members.

Ted (Hedley) Davidson - Member comments 

  • Ted was the treasurer from 2007 until Nadine took it over from him in the mid 2000 teens. It’s been a true family affair. Teddy guided the club through the Special Assessment period, the lawsuit and then the purchase of the cabin property noe lot 82. I even believe that Ted paid down the mortgage as we had a bit more money so that it was paid off early. In addition to that, making sure that all the club’s bills were always paid. He still works with all of the landscaping work parties at the Woody Hill Rd property and assists Nadine with the Memorial Gardens. Since I have known Ted, he has always been a “Behind the scenes” Leader of the Club. Quiet most of the time, but very honest with the board and membership as needed. Thanks for all of your years of service.

Doug Ford – Member comments

  • Doug has been instrumental in helping to maintain RIMS properties for many years, donating his time and talent as a skilled carpenter has been invaluable beyond measure. The impeccible work that was completed on the lot 75 change room this year is just one the many examples, not to mention the repairs to the picnic tables that are done every spring. And he's also one hell of a sportsman whether in the woods or out on Quonnie!

Arthur (Butch) Taylor – Member comments

  • Butch Taylor 083L has served the membership in an extraordinary way and has done it for a very long time. Butch has served years on the RIMS board, managed the spring annual outings, served on the Beach Patrol, and managed the RIMS Cabin for years. Butch may have been rough on the edges but his love and dedication to the RIMS membership is undeniable. I have witnessed Butch perform multiple RIMS committee tasks when our Membership participation was at a very low state. He always volunteered to help as needed.

Todd Zagurski - Member comments 

  • Todd runs a lot more than is often visible and puts in a ton of work for the club. He runs several key work parties every year which has high external visibility for our club and helps keep our properties in the best share possible. He runs the website which has world wide visibility for our club. He's a down-right nice guy and always wanting to help out, guide, and talk about fishing with some of the more novice folks like myself. I've only been a member for a few years, so I don't know a lot of the history and people who brought us up, but I do know that today, my vote goes to Todd for continuing the legacy of those who came up before him and he is a role model for all members to look up to.

 

You can vote by using the online form above, or you can download the ballot form here and mail your choices back to me, or emailing me at toddzagurski@mail.com with your choices.

Mail to:

RIMS

C/O Todd Zagurski

36 Marie Street

Plainfield CT 06374

Deadline for submission is 2/28/2025 (But, please don’t wait until the last minute)