The Iron Mountain-Kingsford Kiwanis Club and Lake Antoine Park Partners each received a $13,500 check, made possible by the generosity of event sponsors and participant donors.

This year’s major sponsors were Bacco Construction, First National Bank & Trust, M.J. Electric, Pine Grove Country Club, Radio Results Network, Enbridge Inc. and TV6 and FOX UP.

The community event saw about 600 participants, taking advantage of the mild temperatures as they snowshoed on the lantern-lit and glow trails, and warmed up with hot cocoa by the fires.

Many out-of-town snowshoers also traveled for evening activities, FSCA President Jean O’Dette noted, adding, “It’s exciting to see that the word about the event is spreading.”

Lake Antoine Park Partners on Thursday received a check for $13,500 from the Family Snowshoe Charity Association, raised from the fourth-annual Stomp the Snow event Jan. 17. From left are FSCA board members Deb Hanson, Diane Blaskowski, Jessica Zeuske and Patti Carollo; LAPP Treasurer Ann Hruska; and board members Jean O’Dette, Beth Linn and Paula Hogberg. Not shown is board member Sarah Oradovec. (Terri Castelaz/The Daily News)

O’Dette said that in addition to the good weather, the trails were in perfect condition.

“The people showed appreciation of the group’s efforts and had a good time,” she said. “Some even walked all four trails.”

Participants commented on social media on how much fun they had on the trails. One even stated, “It was the best night ever.”

“You could hear their laughing echo in the woods,” O’Dette said.

During the event and into the evening, Pine Grove Country Club offered an all-you-can-eat pizza and pasta bar, along with specialty drinks, serving more than 180 meals.

Jennifer Christy of Iron Mountain was the winner of the snowshoes donated by Hardcore Outfitters of Iron Mountain for the fourth-annual Stomp the Snow event Jan. 17 at Pine Grove Country Club in Iron Mountain. (Terri Castelaz/The Daily News)

The local Kiwanis Club focuses on supporting many service projects to help children at the local and international level, with members fundraising internally each year.

“This is a huge opportunity to do the things that we have wanted to do, just haven’t been able to do,” IM-K Kiwanis Club President Hillari Runsat said.

The organization is currently responsible for maintenance and upkeep of the corner lot in the 25 Location on Iron Mountain’s west side, which has been dubbed the Kiwanis Park.

The funds will allow them to tackle some of the bigger projects, including updates to the tennis courts.

The board is now working with Kingsford on sponsoring a second park.

“Our goal is to help all the youth in the community, and kids love the parks,” she said. “It’s a really great thing for us to be able to do.”

“We have all kinds of little projects throughout the year, with the donation we can even do more,” Runsat added.

Although the group doesn’t have large membership, they help with several annual hands-on community events.

“Our volunteers had great feedback and a lot of members want to come back next year,” she said.

Runsat added, “I got to snowshoe the whole time. I had a lot of fun, it was great. It was a really rewarding event.”

Lake Antoine Park Partners’ mission is to preserve, improve, promote and protect the Dickinson County park for the benefit of the general public.

The funds will be used for Phase II of the “Everyone Plays!” Playground at Lake Antoine Park, LAPP Treasurer Ann Hruska said.

“These funds will go toward a zero-transfer spinner, which is similar to the zero-transfer swing that was installed as part of Phase I,” she said.

Additional playground equipment of Phase II will include a small spinner, toddler swing with an accessibility aspect and climber.

LAPP still has about $100,000 left to raise for the total cost of the project, Hruska said.

Construction on Phase II will begin after Labor Day.

Hruska noted that because LAPP has a small board they were able to bring in additional volunteers, which allowed them to be a recipient.

“I’m just amazed by the amount of donations they accrue for this one-day community event,” Hruska said. “They are a great running machine, with the right chemistry of board members and relationships within the community — and it really shows.”

“It’s awe-inspiring,” she added.

The board thanked both recipients for the volunteers they brought to help set up before, assisting during and then clean-up afterwards.

“Without their assistance, the event would not have been possible,” O’Dette said.

The fifth-annual Stomp the Snow event is scheduled for Jan. 16, 2027, at Pine Grove Country Club.

The Family Snowshoe Charity Association is currently accepting applications from local non-profit organizations for consideration as next year’s recipients. Any interest group can request the application by emailing stompthesnow@hotmail.com or going to the Stomp the Snow Facebook page.

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Terri Castelaz can be reached at 906-774-2772, ext. 85241, or tcastelaz@ironmountaindailynews.com.