| OSMB News |
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| Date: October 30, 2006 |
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Marine Board Honors Boating Education Volunteers
Immediate Release
The Oregon State Marine Board recognized volunteer boating safety instructors at its fourth-annual volunteer banquet, in Newport. Volunteer Instructors provide low cost, high quality boating safety classroom courses to boaters that meet the mandatory education requirement.
Three instructors stood out over the 2006 boating season. LeRoy Bentley, of Hillsboro was honored as Instructor of the Year, for the third year in a row. He consistently offers classes in the Portland-metro area and engages the students in his one-day Boat Oregon classes. In 2006, Bentley taught 24 classes throughout Beaverton, Milwaukie and Hillsboro, educating over 400 boaters. “His well-rounded instruction caters to any learning style -audio, visual and hands-on. After going through one of LeRoy’s classes, students wind up retaining the information they’ve learned and become safer, more courteous boaters,” said MariAnn Koloszar, Mandatory Education Coordinator for the Marine Board. “It’s amazing how he can cover so much material and present it in such a way that makes learning fun and easy. LeRoy also goes the extra mile to make sure he’s on top of laws and regulations. If he doesn’t know an answer to a student’s question, he will find out and follow through with the answer.”
Another outstanding volunteer instructor, David Rasmussen, was also honored with Instructor of the Year. “Dave is not only an effective instructor; he goes the extra mile to help teach in areas that have a high demand for classes,” said Koloszar. Rasmussen, from Oregon City, taught classes in Eugene, Sherwood, Gladstone, Tigard and Oregon City. “This year he taught 20 classes and educated over 260 boaters,” Koloszar added.
The Marine Board also presents a special award named after a former Board Member, Randall S. Cummings. This award is presented to a Boat Oregon volunteer instructor for their significant dedication to safety, education and community involvement. Paul Cody, of La Pine, was honored for the second year in a row with the Randall S. Cummings award. Cody dedicates his time to the Deschutes County Marine Patrol as a second watch on the patrol boat and assists with boat inspections. He also volunteers his time at boat shows, and offers equivalency exams in Bend and La Pine. Cody contributed over 500 hours to the Deschutes County Marine Patrol and proctored 46 equivalency exams. “All of this on top of a serious back injury, and even that couldn’t slow Paul down,” said Koloszar.
The Mandatory Education Law was passed by the Oregon Legislature in 1999. In 2007, boaters 60 and younger will need to take a boating safety course and apply for their permanent boater education card. “This next year is our largest, with over 37,000 boaters needing to take some form of boating safety education,” Koloszar adds. “I believe more classes will be sought next year, and our volunteer instructors are ready to meet the need.”
For more information about the mandatory education requirement or about becoming a volunteer instructor, visit www.boatoregon.com or contact MariAnn Koloszar at (503) 378-5158.
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