Peter Strauss is well known in the Helena community, from his work with Big Brothers-Big Sisters, to helping out at the Helena Farmers’ Market, to the slopes of Great Divide on ski patrol.
Most recently, he was named the Northern Division Ski Patroller of the Year out of patrollers from Montana, Wyoming, and the Dakotas.
“I was absolutely stunned, absolutely stunned,” Strauss said. “We’re not doing this for accolades, we’re doing this because we love skiing and we wanna give back.”
This peer-nomination award makes him one of the top 8 patrollers in the country.
“Peter is always fantastic,” said Great Divide general manager Travis Crawford. “He shows up every day with a smile on his face. He works very hard to make sure all the other patrollers are having a great time. He’s outgoing with our guests, he’s the perfect ambassador that we love to ski out of ski patrollers.”
Strauss helped create the Great Divide Ski Patrol Foundation to fund a new ski patrol building, which opened in 2023, and buy safety equipment for the patrol to better help the Great Divide community.
Strauss has been skiing for over six decades. For the last ten years, he's volunteered with ski patrol, combining two of his favorite things.
“I also have a need to help people,” Strauss said. “I love skiing so much, I want everybody to enjoy it as much as they possibly can, because sometimes they need some help, and I'm happy to do that.”
There are around 30 volunteer members on the Great Divide ski patrol.
It requires taking medical training and knowing the mountain, with duties ranging from giving directions to potentially saving a life.
At the end of the day, Strauss says ski patrol is a team effort and is proud to serve his community alongside some truly remarkable individuals.
People should take care when they hit the slopes at great divide, but if something does happen, patrollers like Strauss will be there.
“You’re stuck in what can be a really dangerous area, out in the middle of the cold and snow, I'm gonna make sure you're gonna be ok,” Strauss said.
