Burke Mountain Resort Announces Expanded Team For 2025, Vermont Resort Pulls Ski Industry Veteran Tom Day Out Of Retirement….again
Burke Mountain Resort of East Burke, Vermont, announces new hires and promotions as the company settles into new operating life after nine years of receivership. Ski industry veteran Tom Day has come out of retirement to serve as interim General Manager. Kevin Mack, who has served as GM for the past 10 years, is now Vice President of Transition Services. Additionally Burke has hired Keith Fortier as its new Chief Financial Officer as well as retained a variety of industry experts to consult on various projects.
Ski industry veteran Tom Day put his retirement on hold for the fourth time to join the Burke family as Interim General Manager. Day started his career at Waterville Valley, NH as a lift operator and moved up through various managerial positions over the years until he landed at the GM position in 1997. He ran the mountain until 2010. From there he has helped various businesses in New England work through transitions to build new programs and execute visions for success. Most recently, Day spent five years at Gunstock Mountain in NH; where, during his tenure, he increased skier visits by 29 percent, increased revenue by 60%, executed $18 million in capital improvements without borrowing money and created systems to ensure Gunstock would continue to flourish upon his exit. Day will begin at Burke on June 5.
“It’s always an exciting thing to see an independent New England business have the opportunity to create a sustainable future for its staff and guests,” said Day. “Honestly, unretiring again to help Burke in this transition was an easy decision. It’s what I love to do. I bring a lot of energy to my work and I hope that integrates into the overall ethos at Burke. I’m really looking forward to getting to know the team and getting started.”
Keith Fortier has joined the team as CFO. He spent a decade at New Hampshire-based Pete and Gerry’s eggs where he built the finance, supply chain, and operations functions as it grew from a small regional egg company to a national name. Prior to Burke, he was a consultant for various businesses, assisting in creating sustainable financial systems for maximum efficiency and output.
In his new role as VP of Transition Services, Kevin Mack will oversee all business services for the resort and on-mountain hotel, including Human Resources, Accounting and more. Mack is a 10 year veteran of Burke and championed the mountain during its most challenging time during receivership.
“We are so excited to have Tom rejoin the industry to do what he does best - take a wide view of our operational needs and help create resort-wide best practices, as well as continue to elevate the positive energy of the team,” said Bear Den Partners CEO Jon Schaefer. “Streamlining our business with Keith as CFO and Kevin managing all the transitions and business processes makes the front office a solid foundation to build upon.”
Bear Den Partners has also engaged various industry professionals who have taken on advisory roles to usher Burke into this new era. Victor Waryas is helping with business development, marketing and programming. He has spent his career focused on driving growth and brand development for iconic resorts, consumer brands and top grossing touring artists. Matt Arrants, a 20+ year veteran in the hospitality industry, joined the team with consulting oversight of the Burke Hotel. Howard Wein, of Howard Wein and Associates is advising the resort’s food and beverage operation. Vermont-based communications professional Melissa Gullotti is managing communications and publicity.
On the advisory staff, Schaefer continued, “I’m honored by how quickly and professionally this task force jumped into the mix. They are all here to make everyone’s jobs at Burke easier and to usher through a quick transition to our new course for the resort, while leaving intact the existing operating team. Plus each of them is a skier, snowboarder, biker who loves the resort, the region and KT, and is motivated to see the mountain flourish. I personally couldn’t be more proud to have such an awesome team of staff and consultants to rally around our vision for Burke Mountain.”
