My name is Dan Harrison and I'm the president of the Cottage Grove Athletic Association, better known sometimes as CGAA. I think starting to volunteer, it's a little bit in my blood because my dad was in charge of the uh Minnesota wrestling when I was a kid, but early on I figured out that it really had a good feeling when you did something for other people, even though I probably couldn't put my finger on it for about 10 years. He's more thoughtful than I think people understand. Like Dan takes everything super serious. And so the amount of times that Dan spends behind the scenes when the lights are off thinking about something or working through something or researching something or trying to figure out the best solution to something I think most people don't see that um they see you know whatever is in front of them. When I took over basically I had to start getting we have eight divisions and at that time when I took over there was basically eight individuals. Well, we actually are one corporation. So, got everybody in line understanding that it's not necessarily what I want, but there's laws, there's rules, the IRS governs things, and people started to see uh the importance of that. >> You know, an athletic association is actually a pretty sophisticated organization. Although they're mostly volunteers, there's a lot of roles that need to be filled and um there's a lot of leadership that needs to happen to make sure that you know all the way from T-ball through traveling programs that they're effective and they're um the coaches are certified. He's the one that basically kept the kept the gambling part of CGAA alive. that funds so much of what a Cottage Grove Athletic Association can do and that was going to go away and Dan kind of picked that up, cleaned it up. >> Without the Dans of the world, we don't have these programs or if we do have these programs, they become pay for play and and pay for play creates a whole new level of obstacles for for families and youth that want to participate in positive activities and wholesome activities. And uh we're able to provide this at nominal cost. you know, he's asking me questions like, "What are the other associations doing? How are people pushing the envelope?" Like, "What's the next development and training?" Like, you know, we talked about buildings, we've talked about um coaching uh development, like all of that stuff. He's noodling behind the scenes and then obviously comes with a, you know, more formalized thought, two presentations, two board meetings that I think people don't see. If I had to describe Coach Harrison in one word, I would say that he is genuine. He just wants to absorb as much as he can and then pass it on to people like me who he gets to coach. >> There's so many people that do it for a year or two and they're like, "All right, I'm burnt out. Like, I'm done." And he's been doing this so long uh for a community that he cares so deeply about. This community owes you a a debt of gratitude. So, thank you. >> Congratulations, Coach Harrison. I'm very happy and I'm very excited that you've received this award. the amount of time and energy you have put into your association, it is uh commendable, man. Proud of you, happy for you, and uh yeah, this is awesome. So, congratulations. You're the best. And uh appreciate appreciate all you do for me and for the community. >> Dan, congratulations on your volunteer of the year award. It's welld deserved. I've enjoyed the decades we've spent together working and collaborating together, and I look forward to uh many more good years in the future.