As someone who grew up in Cook County, do you ever wish you lived in another area of the United States, or what has kept you here?
I was born near Chicago, my family moved to Golden, Colorado when I was 2 years old, and I lived there until 6th grade when we moved up to Cook County. It was quite the culture shock moving from Golden to a place where there is only one stop light in the whole county.

After graduating from Cook County High School, I went to college at St. John’s University where I studied Computer Science. I moved back to Colorado after college and lived there for about 7 or 8 years. I was lucky enough to live in two of the most beautiful places on earth. Living in a big city like the Denver-Metro really shows you that there is a big world out there, but I love raising kids here and being part of our small community. 

I chose to move back to be closer to family. Trout Lake Resort has been owned and operated by my family since 1946 when my great grandparents, Bud and Char Kratoska started it. It’s 4 miles to the mailbox, so about as far away from the city as you can get.

Cook County is home. Now that I have a big family of my own, I realize that this is the best place to raise kids. They can have the big city with a million people trying to go in all different directions, the traffic and the hustle bustle. You get used to it when you live in it, but once you actually live up here, it is really nice to be out of it. If I have to turn my bright lights off more than 3 times on my 28 mile drive into work, that’s a heavy traffic day up here. I see more wildlife than cars on my commute.

Tell us what inspired you to start coaching youth football. Did you play in your youth or are your children involved in sports?
Coaching isn’t just about football, it’s about building confidence, teaching sportsmanship, and teamwork. Also, giving kids a positive place to belong in the community. I love being able to be a part of that.

I have always loved football and played growing up, including being part of the Cook County team that won the state championship for the first time in 1997. Winning that title was a big highlight of my high school years and something I will always remember. I am also a lifelong Chicago Bears fan, with my family being from that area. 

Cook County relies heavily on volunteers to keep youth sports going, and without enough coaches, sometimes there isn’t a program at all. I didn’t want kids, including my own sons, Anthony and Max, to miss out on the chance to play, learn, and be part of a team at a young age.

What was it like growing up at your family-owned Trout Lake Resort?
Growing up at Trout Lake Resort was absolutely amazing! You don’t realize it until you’re older how special that is. It felt normal when I was a kid because it was just normal life. Many of the same families have been coming to the resort for generations, so it always felt like friends were coming to visit every weekend. Now, some of the same kids I was playing with bring their kids and our kids are playing together at the same dock and I think that is really cool. We will be putting up a sign that says “80 years Family Owned” this year and we hope to put one up in 2046 that says, “100 years Family Owned”.

I was a boat boy, dishwasher, floor sweeper, bed maker, wood chopper, can crusher, fishing guide (at the age of 12) you name it. We all worked together to be able to enjoy living life on the lake and make it a place where other people could come relax and feel like family. Some of my favorite memories are catching crawfish at night by the dock and early Sunday mornings trolling with my dad, that was our church.

All of it taught me the value of hard work, responsibility, hospitality and family. It wasn’t just a place to visit for me, it was home, and it shaped who I am. 

What do you do in your daily job at Arrowhead Cooperative? Have you seen a lot of changes in your industry over the years?

As the Electric Operations Manager at Arrowhead Cooperative, I oversee our electric operations department, including our lineworkers. I manage day-to-day operations involving new construction and system improvement projects, also including maintenance of distribution power lines and substations, and outage restoration. A big part of my job is planning work, coordinating crews and sub-contractors, and making sure everything is done safely, reliably and efficiently.

There have been a lot of changes since I started as an Engineering Technician in 2013. We were one of the first Electric Cooperatives to build our own fiber optic broadband network in Minnesota. We worked with Cook County and MnDOT Communications to get power to remote location ARMER towers for reliable emergency communication. We upgraded our computer software, mapping and meter reading systems. Currently, we are in the middle of an 8 year RDOF grant project. We have a great team and I am proud to be a part of it.

In 10 words or less, how would your friends or family describe you?
I asked each of my five kids for two words to describe me. They said: best dad, perseverance, helpful, goofy, devoted, amazing, funny, smart, and loving.

I love their answers. I try every day to be the best dad I can for them, and I guess, from their responses, that means I’m doing alright.

Where is your favorite go-to place in the County where you like to unwind and relax?
My favorite place to unwind is honestly home. I live in the Colvill area with my wife, Christy, and our kids — Charlet, who will be graduating with honors from Augsburg in a couple months, Anthony(9th grade), Kylie(6th grade), Max(5th grade), and Ava(4th grade). It’s a place where we have family and friends over for BBQ’s and to watch the Bears games, where kids can be kids, and where we have our own space to just be together and enjoy life. Of course, trolling around Trout Lake is a close second.