The Chummy Broomhall Award is given out every year to a volunteer who embodies the ethos of Chummy, Chisholm Ski Club leader for 70 plus years, a 2 time Olympian, and builder of the Olympic race courses for Palisades Tahoe, Lake Placid, and Black Mountain. He embodied the spirit of being a volunteer, generously giving his time and energy to generations of skiers. It is in this spirit that this award be in his honor for the unsung heroes of ski racing. For significant contributions to our sport and community through roles such as coach, program leader, District Chair, NENSA board member, and contributor to numerous committees, it gives us great pleasure to recognize Sarah Holton of EMXC with NENSA’s 2026 Chummy Broomhall Award.
Originally from Wolcott, Vermont, Sarah began her skiing journey as a member of the Craftsbury Ski Club. In the decades since, she has served the sport in countless capacities from participant to high school coach, volunteer BKL coach, club leader, District Chair, NENSA board member, and contributor to innumerable committees and projects.
Sarah not only embodies NENSA’s vision of “lifelong learning, development, and community-building through the sport of cross-country skiing,” she has also devoted her time, talents, and energy to sharing that vision with countless others.
“Do you have a few hours?” asked Jonathan Brenner. “Sarah NEVER SLOWS DOWN. She is the joy, the enthusiasm, the spirit, the ENERGY. Our club would be nothing without her. She cheers every athlete at every race, dresses with sparkles and fun, and is always thinking about how to make our club and our sport better for each and every skier and family.”
Chris Li fondly recalls Sarah’s impact as coach of Newton North’s Nordic Team over 12 years ago, “She was one of the few coaches that truly believed that kids should be exposed to as many places as possible. She would bring her team up to do the Stowe Derby every year.” At that same time, Sarah was volunteering her time with the Eastern Mass Bill Koch League program, one of just a few coaches without kids in the program.
Over the many years that have followed, she has been deeply invested in EMXC’s BKL program, supporting the development of coaches and skiers alike. Michael Kurtz poignantly summarizes her countless roles at EMXC:
“Sarah can communicate the wonder of cross country skiing like nobody I’ve ever met, and she has a rare set of skills that make her effective as a leader – she is organized in a grown-up way, and joyful in a kid-way. She can cajole the middle schoolers to give a little extra push, and she get the first graders to smile on a windy morning. She can also switch gears between the two modes, and it’s all seamless and genuine. The mechanics of our club, because of this size, are hard, and the work that makes it function is unglamorous. There is a large coaching staff. Sarah is the sorting hat that aligns coaching teams each year. She is also our NENSA rep, and manages the logistics of a large group of kids at races. She also helps coach a country (a cohort of kids). She is our co-head coach, and helps determine the call for technique each ski day. At the festival on relay day, she is in the tag zone from start to finish, cheering, organizing, spreading joy. On the non-relay day, she helps wrap up the kids before the start, and gives them words to remember when they’re waiting to double pole away. It goes without saying, she knows it all – I’ve learned waxing from Sarah, technique from Sarah, how to coach my own kids from Sarah, how to have fun on snow from Sarah.”
Fellow coach Sari Pekkala echoes, “Sarah is what keeps our ski club going. She is the head coach who recruits and coordinates all other coaches, interacts with families, organizes events, and deals with all the issues that come up with a 200+ kid ski team. Not only that, she coaches the competitive group of 10-14 year old kids and is the most beloved coach of the team. Sarah Holton has been a part of the EMXC longer than I can remember and is the soul of the program.”
“As both a parent and a fellow coach, I deeply admire Sarah’s ability to break down technique and make it both fun and accessible for middle schoolers,” reflects Michele Smith. “But what really stands out is her personal connection with the athletes. We have around 250 kids in our club and Sarah makes it a point to know every single one. Whether she is running a practice or standing at the BKL Festival start line giving every EMXC skier a personal boost of confidence, she makes sure every child feels seen and supported.”
Chris Li adds, “As a BKL coach, you can tell the kids really enjoy skiing with her. She spends a lot of time thinking of ways to get through to the kids on how they can ski better. She understands that she has to be flexible and understanding with how to teach kids to ski. She will often reach out for help to get additional perspectives from other coaches to help as well. But most importantly, she keeps the kids engaged because skiing is fun.“
On that note, Sarah’s impact has increasingly grown far beyond her local communities. She joined the NENSA Board of Directors in May, 2024 and has brought strategic thinking and hands-on work to so many aspects of the organization’s regional nonprofit mission. NENSA Board President Chris City recognizes the strength of her contributions at NENSA: “I’ve known Sarah for many years through the Boston-area ski community, but I didn’t realize until I joined the NENSA Board just how incredibly fortunate we are as a region that Sarah shares her time, energy, and leadership with NENSA as a member of the Board. Sarah is such a creative and strategic thinker, and she has a remarkable ability to turn ideas into actions and events that strengthen the New England ski community. Through her vision, enthusiasm, and generosity with her time and energy, Sarah has made a lasting impact on New England skiing.”
Sarah is not only active in defining a vision, but in leading efforts to bring it to life. She was an instrumental member of NENSA’s World Cup task force ahead of the FIS Cross-Country World Cup Finals in Lake Placid last year. NENSA Operations and Programs Director Steve Bruner shared a reflection of what that meant in collaboratively achieving a big vision, “She brought enthusiasm, energy, ideas, experience, and lots of initiative. In the final few days before the World Cup, I expressed to Sarah that I hadn’t filled a couple of time slots at the NENSA activity tent at the Premier Expo. Without hesitation, she said she would bring sign and flag-making supplies and reach out to EMXC juniors and families for volunteers. Sarah was a huge part of NENSA’s successes at the World Cup. She’s the embodiment of a super-volunteer!”
Fellow NENSA board member and BKL Committee Chair Kate Koch illustrates the full breadth of her involvement by adding, “Sarah is one of those people who makes things happen. Everyone sees the positivity and energy she brings to practices and events. But, Sarah’s contributions run so much deeper. She’s thoughtful and insightful, and she rolls up her sleeves to do the work to make things happen. We are so fortunate to have Sarah building up our communities in Eastern Mass, the BKL, and NENSA!”
Through all of the roles she has held in the ski community, not to mention in life itself, Sarah models the tenacity, grace, and joy of a cross-country skier. Our community is immeasurably better because of this. She truly embodies Chummy’s generous, selfless, and dedicated spirit, and we are thrilled to honor her many years of service and contribution with this award.
Michael Kurtz so fittingly shared, “She’s a special person within a special sport.” Congratulations, Sarah, and thank you for the incredible impact you have on our sport and our community!
