1975 Team Executives

The day to day operation of the Alaska Goldpanners is handled by Don Dennis, who has been with the club since the latter part of 1967 when he moved to Fairbanks from Colorado.   Dennis serves as general manager of the club and in that capacity is responsible for all pre-season preparations and off the field activities year round.  The 35-year old Dennis, who doubles as editor of the Fairbanks Daily News Miner, this year was honored as the first National Baseball Congress "Executive of the Year" at the organization's annual banquet in February in Wichita, Kan., home of the national tournament.  Dennis came to Fairbanks as business manager of the team in 1967 following the disastrous Fairbanks flood, which put the financial condition of the team in disarray.  The team has since moved into the black and now operates on a $141,000 budget, nearly three times that of the mid 1960's.  In addition to the Goldpanners Dennis is extremely active in Fairbanks sports circles.  He serves as Executive Director of the Boys Club of Fairbanks; promotes and does the color work on University of Alaska basketball broadcasts; previously served for three years as the sports information director at the University of Alaska ; serves on the Board of Directors of the Fairbanks Quarterback Club ; is a league officer in both the Babe Ruth and America Legion baseball programs; served as tournament director of the 1975 Multiple Sclerosis Alaska Basketball Tournament of Champions; directed operations of the Fairbanks Amateur Basketball League during the 1974-75 season ; serves on the Board of Directors of the North Star Little Dribblers basketball association ; helped organize the highly successful University of Alaska Blue & Gold Club and on and on.  For his efforts, Dennis was recognized as the Fairbanks "Sportsman of the year" in 1973 by the Fairbanks Quarterback Club.   Previous to joining the Goldpanners in 1967 Dennis had worked three years with the Grand Junction, Colo. Eagles as business manager and in other capacities, and in 1967 he founded the Southern Colorado Diablos of Pueblo, the forerunner of the Olympia Brewers team which appears on the Goldpanners' 1975 schedule.