The Mahre Family

In the late 1940s, in a small town in Eastern Washington, a skiing family was born. Since then, three generations of Mahre’s have been groomed by “The Old L” at White Pass Ski Area, from the Olympic twins Phil and Steve to newschooler Andy. This is their story.

Three generations ago, on the farms and orchards of the Yakima Valley in central Washington, two extraordinary people—David Robert Mahre and Mary Ellen Chott—were raised about five miles apart, children of the great cultural and economic migration from Central Europe. Dave attended Tieton High School, while Mary Ellen was enrolled at a Catholic high school for girls. The two met at church one day, hit it off, and their eventual union in 1947 produced good fruit, as it were, bringing into this world nine stalwart offspring: Kass, Old Weird Harold, Critter, Jet, Steamer and Beamer, Buns, Toots, and Uncle Rudy. Hold tight, we’ll get into the names later…

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