When Douglas Hartnett and Mary O'Rourke reminisce about their son Soren, his resilience and kindness are always at the forefront.
"He wasn't the fastest skier on the team, but he never gave up," O'Rourke said. "One thing we heard several people relay after he had died was that younger kids said that he was really nice to them. They were new on the team and didn't know anyone and they were nervous and he would come up to them and welcome them in and try to make them feel comfortable."
Although their youngest son died in the summer, it's the winter that brings them closest to his memory. Soren, an avid Nordic skier and biathlete, was a dedicated member of the Bridger Ski Foundation Nordic Ski and Crosscut Biathlon teams. Honoring his legacy through a scholarship funded by a yearly ski race each January has become a deeply meaningful tradition.
With the fourth annual Ski for Soren race approaching Jan. 11 at Crosscut, Hartnett and O'Rourke reflected on the overwhelming love and sense of community they feel as more than 400 racers come together each year to honor his memory -- a sentiment they describe as indescribable.
"It makes us feel so supported," Hartnett said.
Soren, a rising junior at Bozeman High School, collapsed in July 2020 while training. After suffering a sudden cardiac arrest, he never regained consciousness.
Three days later, on July 18, 2020, he died in a Salt Lake City hospital at the age of 16, leaving behind countless friends, teammates, his parents and his older brother Rowland, with whom he shared a close bond.
In the aftermath, it was discovered that an undiagnosed case of Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome had triggered the fatal heart arrhythmia during practice.
According to the Mayo Clinic, sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death for young athletes and automated external defibrillators (AEDs) improve survival rates after cardiac arrest, especially if used promptly, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
During those agonizing days in the hospital, Hartnett and O'Rourke were overwhelmed with messages, voicemails and notes from friends and family, all asking how they could help.
"We set up this scholarship fund right away and gave that as an outlet for people to donate to. The idea at the very beginning was to help local athletes who are in high school and compete in Nordic racing. We were able to pay for Soren's skis and entry fees, but I know for a lot of folks here it's not easy to come up with that money," Hartnett said.
Creating the Soren Joseph Hartnett Legacy Scholarship Fund, managed through the One Valley Community Foundation, brought the family solace, turning their grief into a lasting tribute that combined Soren's love for skiing with his genuine care for others.
In addition to supporting scholarships, a portion of the funds goes toward purchasing automated external defibrillators for local youth athletic groups and community spaces. Hartnett shared that 30 defibrillators have been distributed across town, with Bozeman Health facilitating training sessions to ensure they are used properly.
Since its creation in the summer of 2020, the fund has awarded approximately $120,000 in ski scholarships and $45,000 for defibrillators. Each year, Hartnett said they give away 10 to 15 $1,000 scholarships in the fall.
The only requirement to apply is to write an essay detailing how the funds would support their skiing goals and what the sport means to them. Hartnett said that this straightforward process was inspired by Soren, who, a few years ago, applied for biathlete Marc Sheppard's training trip to Norway by submitting a similar essay.
"We just get these really amazing letters from kids," Hartnett said.
The scholarships are funded through the annual event, which includes 20, 10 and 5-kilometer races, a sit-ski race, and an untimed 3K.
Hartnett said they included such a variety of races because it's exactly what Soren would have wanted.
"We've got to have a 20k there, too, because Soren would want to. He'd be like, 'I'm not going to do a 5k, I'll do the 20k,'" he said. "There's a lot of Soren in how this whole race has been put together."
In addition to the race, an online auction offers participants the chance to bid on items such as a two-night stay at Sage Lodge, an Xanterra-Yellowstone snow coach package from Mammoth to Old Faithful Lodge, and a full guided day of fly fishing for two anglers on the Yellowstone or Madison rivers.
The event is sponsored by Bozeman Health, Kenyon Nobel and Crosscut, with donations from over 30 local businesses.
As race day approaches, O'Rourke said she hopes racers leave feeling energized and recharged by the atmosphere rather than melancholy.
"We keep it very upbeat," she said. "Yes, it's called Ski for Soren, but it is not a somber situation."
Last year, as O'Rourke and her family were packing up after the event, the sky opened up, bathing Sacagawea Peak in warm rays of sunlight. At that moment, she felt certain that she was honoring her son exactly as he would have wanted.
"It just really felt like we'd done something really great," she said.
Registration for Ski for Soren closes at 3 p.m. Jan. 10. For individuals who cannot make it but still want to help, information on how to donate to the fund can be found at https://www.skiforsoren.org/scholarship.
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