Northeast
Recreation
Coordinator
Ken
DeLong
hobnobs
with
Olympic
athletes
and
Grammy
Award
winning
musicians.
The
soft
spoken
20-year
agency
veteran
never
brags
about
his
famous
friends,
but
he's
not
shy
about
introducing
them
to
our
at-risk
youth.
"I
enjoying
helping
our
youth
build
social
skills,
engage
in
team
building
that
increases
trust,
and
have
fun.
There's
a
world
beyond
their
four
walls,
and
I
want
them
to
see
it."
When
working
at
the
Olympic
Training
Center
in
1984,
Ken
joined
a
four-man
bobsled
team.
A
national
official
for
many
years,
he
was
appointed
International
Official
for
Bobsled
and
Skeleton
in
2002.
Ken
has
taken
nearly
50
youth
from
our
Children's
Home
to
Lake
Placid
during
the
past
12
years.
In
1998
the
Northeast
team
won
the
gold
medal
at a
local
Friday
night
bobsled
race.
"One of the boys was so happy that he offered me his gold medal. Of course I wouldn't accept it, but the gesture meant a lot to me." The boy wore his medal to school and under his jacket during bobsled races.
Our
youth
also
benefit
from
Ken's
involvement
in
music.
In
2008
Ken
co-produced
Tim
Seabolt's
"Grandpa's
Gibson"
which
featured
several
Grammy
Award
winning
musicians,
including
Eric
and
Leigh
Gibson
(a.k.a.
the
Gibson
Brothers).
Afterwards
Tim
held
a
songwriters'
workshop
at
Northeast's
Children's
Home.
Ken
has
taken
youth
to
see
Adirondack
musician
Roy
Hurd,
and
multiple
visits
from
local
band
Skeeter
Creek
have
been
a
big
hit.
Throughout
the
years,
Ken
has
orchestrated
hundreds
of
activities
including
basketball,
volleyball,
softball,
arts
&
crafts,
movie
nights,
board
games,
and
Super
Bowl
parties.
Some
of
the
most
memorable
outings
were
a
whale
watch
in
Boston,
trips
to
New
York
City,
watching
the
filming
of
The
Other
Guys
in
Albany,
and
being
spectators
at
New
Jersey
Nets
games.
"Ken
has
quietly
improved
the
lives
of
2,500
youth
during
the
past
20
years,"
says
Northeast
Vice
President
of
Community
Living
Services
Kevin
Walsh.
"He's
an
unsung
hero."
