Newsletter 51 - March 2023 - ISEE Black Hills Chapter

Sep 15, 2026

Uploaded by Ophelia

March 2023 newsletter highlights key updates for the Black Hills Chapter of ISEE, featuring award recognition for long-time member Paul Sterk at the National ISEE Conference in San Antonio, Texas. The issue also recaps the January membership meeting in Rapid City, including networking, elections for the Board of Directors, door prizes, and reminders for upcoming national and local events. Additional sections list scholarships, conference planning, and chapter contact information.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages7

Reading Time18 min

AccessFree to download

Newsletter sponsors

BHC Member Paul Sterk Receives Award at National ISEE Conference

Black Hills Chapter January Membership Meeting Recap and Election Results

Elections and board positions

Upcoming conferences and registrations

| I ns ide
t h is iss ue :
Sterk’s Award ........ 1-2
BHC Meeting............. 3
Scholarships ............. 3
Best in the West........ 4
PT’s Award ............... 5
BHC Awards ............ 5
WY DEQ-LQD ............ 6
Joe Wood ................. 7
Chapter Contacts ...... 7 | | --- | | Newsletter sponsors :
• AAMCOR LLC
• Blaster’s Tool & Supply Company
• Dyno Nobel
• Eloranta & Associates
• Nobel Insurance Services
• Nomis Seismographs
• Rothenbuhler Engineering
• Sayre Associates
• Stemlock Inc.
• Strayos | If you have any questions regarding this newsletter or would like to update your communication preferences, please email Carrie at carriej @[sayreassociates.com](sayreassociates.com) Thanks for reading! BHC Member Paul Sterk Receives Award at National ISEE Conference Black Hills Chapter of ISEE long-time member Paul Sterk was awarded the Distinguished Service Award at the Annual ISEE Conference, held in San Antonio, Texas, in February. Over 125 exhibitors and close to 1,600 people attended the conference from over 50 different countries. The national conference included technical sessions, poster sessions, workshops, socials, exhibit hall, and awards banquet. Paul ’s son Dan Sterk offered the following remarks on Paul’s remarkable career in the explosives industry: “Throughout Paul’s time, he was always looking for ways to become more wellrounded in the explosives field and expand his own toolbox. He attended conferences whenever the opportunity presented itself, and read everything he could get his hands on concerning new and different ways to break rock. Paul joined the ISEE in 1987 and even served on the Board of Directors for 6 years. Paul wrote the underground chapter of the ISEE Blaster’s Handbook that we all use as a reference today. The ISEE afforded Paul the opportunity to expand his network of drillers and blasters, to make life long colleagues and friends, and to grow his reputation in the industry. Due to his involvement in the ISEE and that reputation, Paul was able to be a guest lecturer at many universities, and appeared on television with NOVA Science and the Discovery Channel. Since 1991 Paul has been a member of the Black Hills Chapter of the ISEE working in various roles. He still attends meetings today and helps out with the planning of the annual Best in the West Drill and Blast Conference. If you get the chance to attend, Paul is not hard to find at the banquet: he will be the only person there wearing a tuxedo T-shirt. Paul was always generous with his time, and his various company’s money, in working with the Crazy Horse Memorial in South Dakota. Paul was able to get each of the different companies that he worked for to donate product to the mountain carving, and then Paul would act as the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ► 1 Continued: Sterk Receives Well-Deserved Award Technical Representative for that product. This provided Paul with a chance to learn about mountain carving, develop some new skills, and be involved with one of the coolest explosives projects out there, that just happened to be in his backyard. Throughout his explosives career Paul always looked for ways to not only make himself better, but also the drillers and blasters he came in contact with. If someone had a question, even if you were a competitor, Paul was there. If you were a student and needed help with finding scholarships or internships, Paul was there. If you needed someone to have a beer (or two) with and share a good laugh and a story, Paul was there. Paul didn’t and still doesn’t, know how to say no when it came to helping others in the explosives industry and takes pride in the successes of those around him. There are very few of us who can look back on our career and be able to have the reputation as an “expert” in our field. Being an expert doesn’t come from a book or a classroom. It comes from putting in the hours on the ground, and in Paul

FAQs

What award did Paul Sterk receive, and where was it presented?

Paul Sterk received the Distinguished Service Award at the Annual ISEE Conference in San Antonio, Texas.

What happened at the January membership meeting recap?

The meeting included food, networking, elections for Board of Directors positions, speakers, and door prizes in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Which upcoming events were mentioned for members to register and attend?

The newsletter reminds members to register for the National ISEE Conference in San Antonio and to attend the Best in the West (BITW) Conference in April.

Sep 15, 2026

Uploaded by Ophelia