James L. Bass Manager Life Achievement Award
Gary Johnson
CEO, Paul Bunyan Communications (Bemidji, MN)
Gary started his 35-year career at Paul Bunyan as a computer programmer, gradually working his way up the company to become CEO in 2012. He led the charge to develop the all-fiber network that PBC is proud to offer today, and coined the term “GigaZone” to highlight the company’s offering of gigabit service. He built an operation that offers some of the most innovative concepts in the nation, including the GigaZone Gaming Championship and Tech-Expo; the Bemidji Technology Park, which leverages Paul Bunyan’s network to attract tech companies to a small town and has been a significant economic driver; and the 218 Relocate program, which attracts workers and their families to the greater Bemidji area. Gary serves on local boards with a particular focus on healthcare and economic development, and is active with dozens of non-profit organizations in his community. He is an industry leader, serving on NTCA committees, the NISC Board, Calix Leadership Advisory Board, and more. He is charismatic, passionate, and energetic, and as one of his friends described him: “Gary operates in the center of tough issues, not on the edges.”
James L. Bass Director Life Achievement Award
David Redman
President of the Board, RTC Communications (Montgomery, IN)
Since beginning his tenure at RTC in 1995, David has led the Board of Directors in overseeing an aggressive growth plan for the company. RTC has achieved record-breaking performance gains, including deployment of nearly one thousand miles of fiber, increasing top-line revenue by nearly 150%, increasing subscribers by nearly 400%, and more than doubling the number of company employees. Leveraging his thorough knowledge of the agricultural world that he loves and his background in education, along with his business knowledge and unwavering dependability, David’s leadership in telecommunications for rural Indiana extends to taking meetings with federal or state elected officials, local mayors and commissioners, and even young interns, displaying a genuine interest in everyone he meets while championing the rural broadband community. David has actively engaged with NTCA throughout his service at RTC, regularly attending conferences, earning his Director Core Curriculum Certificate, serving on committees and the FRS Board, and prioritizing RTC’s participation in the Smart Rural Community program to promote the benefits of broadband in rural southern Indiana.
Associate Member Outstanding Achievement
Nancy White
Vice President, NCSC (Dulles, VA)
Nancy works with NTCA members across the country to support the building of fiber-to-the-home networks in rural communities. Her roots in the industry run deep, having served as CEO of North Central Telephone Cooperative in Lafayette, Tennessee before taking her current role. Nancy serves as Chair of the Smart Rural Community Advisory Council and she has avidly supported FRS over the years, having served on the Board of Directors and played an instrumental role in the successful merger of the Foundation for Rural Education and Development with FRS. She is a friendly and familiar face at industry events, serving as a speaker and generously sponsoring conferences and initiatives.
Innovation
Brian Bissonette
Marketing Supervisor, Paul Bunyan Communications (Bemidji, MN)
Leo Anderson, Technology Experience Manager, Paul Bunyan Communications (Bemidji, MN)
Leo and Brian combined forces to create and lead the one-of-a-kind GigaZone Gaming Championship. In 2023, a Tech-Expo was added and this event grew to be the largest that Bemidji’s Sanford Center complex had ever seen. The addition of the expo brought in 35 exhibitors from a wide variety of tech-oriented industries and educational institutions, which joined the gaming tournaments and dozens of arcade games already featured at the event. The mission of the Tech-Expo piece is to create opportunity in tech-based industries for the school-aged gamers, and show them that the potential for successful careers in tech exists right at home in Northern Minnesota.
Innovation
Shawn Grosz
CTO, SRT Communications (Minot, ND)
SRT was the pilot telecommunications company involved in deploying North Dakota’s first end-to-end Internet Protocol 911 service, paving the way for the state’s transition to Next Generation 911. This statewide IP-based system increased 911 service speed, flexibility, efficiency, and reliability for North Dakota citizens and first responders. Shawn brought the telecommunications company perspective to discussions about IP-based 911 network design with the project’s partners, the North Dakota Association of Counties and the Dakota Carrier Network. Reviewing system diagrams with the project partners, he helped analyze scenarios to find the most effective path for 911 call delivery, and his unique blend of skills and temperament inspired innovation in this complex initiative. Shawn knew how to bring the right people to the table, and his technical knowledge allowed him to dialog constructively with other industry experts and find opportunities to approach the challenge at hand critically and creatively.
Outstanding Marketing Achievement
Russell Kacer
CEO, YK Communications (Ganado, TX)
Russell is an industry leader in video marketing whose expertise, creativity and innovation have led his team at YK Communications to create numerous successful campaigns. YK boasts an entire video library of content around advocacy, reliability, storytelling, education, and entertainment targeted variously at customers, industry peers, and local and national leaders. The company’s YouTube Channel has reached 1 million minutes of video content viewed, thanks in large part to the quality of writing, production, and in-house acting that Russell and team have achieved over the past several years. He has presented at numerous NTCA conferences and other industry events and served on marketing committees and steering groups. Russell’s generosity in sharing his tips and tricks with any of his friends when they pick up the phone to call with a question is second to none.
Key Employee
Jake Fostvedt
Sales and Service Technician, Mosaic Technologies (Cameron, WI)
Since 2007, Jake’s work at Mosaic has elevated the customer experience, supported his team, and established Mosaic’s brand as a friendly, community-focused service provider. He has performed hundreds of installations in his role in the field, and is sometimes requested by name for service calls. Subscribers can rely on Jake to spend extra time explaining each product and how to use it and helping them practice with the technology if they need assistance. Jake’s manager described him as, “the kind of employee who will do anything asked of him. He is versatile and willing to work any job – business, residential, school – and always generous in helping other technicians if needed.”
Community Outreach
Karla Krause
Project Coordinator, Lynxx Networks (Camp Douglas, WI)
Beginning in 2010, Karla Krause started a Christmas “Giving Tree” program. Designed to help children in need have a merry Christmas by providing gifts for those who otherwise might not have them, the Giving Tree represents about 75 children per year. Over the last 14 years, about a thousand children have had a brighter Christmas morning because of Karla’s efforts. Soldiers at nearby Volk Field Air Force Base play a big role in fulfilling gift wishes, and as one community member noted: “The Giving Tree is special because people WANT to give at Christmas, and Karla has created an opportunity for them to do just that.” Karla also collects cash donations that go toward grocery store gift certificates for families in need at the holidays. As Karla herself said, the Giving Tree – which started as a program for local children – has grown to serve a bigger purpose over the years: uniting a community.
Heroism
Nikki Harless
Accountant, RiverStreet Networks (Wilkesboro, NC)
Nikki and husband were driving in a remote area and noticed a vehicle off the side of the road in a shallow ditch. They pulled over to investigate and to her surprise, she found a fellow Wilkes/RiverStreet employee unconscious and showing signs of distress. Nikki and her husband sprang into action, calling emergency services and her colleague’s spouse. The spouse arrived on the scene a few minutes before emergency services and administered essential medication, ensuring that the colleague was stabilized until assistance arrived. It was a chain of events that put Nikki in just the right place at just the right time, and has she not stopped to check on the vehicle, the outcome may have been very different.
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