John Dockendorf

John Dockendorf was born in 1959. Dockendorf grew up near Baltimore, Maryland, but his impact grew elsewhere. He packed his skis and proceeded to the University of Vermont, like many other Middle Atlantic kids.

Dockendorf made his mark early in college. The University of Vermont graduate spent the 1970s cramming for numerous classes. Dockendorf, like many others seeking careers and pathways in leisure and park administration, found himself working for several professors as an assistant. Dockendorf pursued graduate studies in the same discipline, earning a Master of Management, Hospitality from Cornell University in 1992. Dockendorf was also the student body president and recipient of the John E.H. Sherry Scholarship at Cornell.

It gets personal when you develop an institution that lasts over 30 years. John Dockendorf is one of them. Adventure Treks Inc., a well-known teen outdoor program, ran for 28 years under his direction. Over 25 countries have sent representatives to Dockendorf's program and initiative. Experiences and adventures in some of the best untamed natural locations of the United States, Alaska and Canada.

The Adventure Treks program was big. In addition to the full-time personnel, it had part-time support. In 2020 and throughout the COVID shutdowns, the software was adaptable and adaptive. Given the program's nearly three-decade safety record, Dave McGlashan, the ten-year director of Adventure Treks, took over from Dockendorf in 2021.

They also reopened Camp Pinnacle in 2011, along with Adventure Treks. Since its founding in 1928, Pinnacle Summer Camp has struggled financially and closed in 2010. To reestablish Camp Pinnacle's status as one of North Carolina's favorite summer camps, The Dockendorfs and Steve Baskin, owner of Camp Champions in Texas, spent ten years totally remodeling the property. Pinnacle now books summer campers a year ahead of time. After the summer of 2021, the Dockendorfs relinquished control of Camp Pinnacle to the Baskins and directors Fayssoux and JG Moss.

The Flat Rock Park Development Committee turned a 62-acre golf course into an amazing community park, Dockendorf's first community involvement in Western North Carolina. Thanks to Dockendorf, Flat Rock now has one of North Carolina's best playgrounds. Dockendorf also chaired Mountain Community School's board of directors. Dockendorf also helped establish the French Broad River Academy in Asheville, North Carolina.

Aside from Adventure Treks, John Dockendorf's community contribution extended. On the Flat Rock Village Council since 2015, Dockendorf has been a civic leader. A member of the French Broad Metropolitan Planning Organization's Prioritization Committee and the Henderson County Transportation Advisory Committee, Dockendorf represented Flat Rock on regional transportation concerns. Dockendorf's greatest gift to his constituency was all of these jobs, each engaging. By 2019, Dockendorf was approaching an early retirement, and he began to scale back his commitments.

His family has been a driving factor for Dockendorf. Charlie, Ave Rees, Ella, and Audrey are the couple's four children, born in 1999 and raised by Jane Ganey Dockendorf and Jane Dockendorf. John and Jane have established a world of education, training, and efforts for their kids, spanning from 15 to 21 today. The COVID pandemic disrupted society at all levels and across the country in recent years. A key service offering, adventure socialization, impacted Dockendorf's structure and operations just as much as anyone else. The long-term benefits of persistence and adaptability are known to John Dockendorf. That's why John Dockendorf's community-based projects and commitments have always been successful for him..