John Dendahl (September 28, 1938 – November 9, 2013) was an American business executive,

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

politician, and syndicated columnist from

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

. While attending the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University of Co ...

, he led two

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

champion skiing teams, won three individual NCAA titles and was a member of the U.S. ski team at the

1960 Winter Olympics The 1960 Winter Olympics (officially the VIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Squaw Valley 1960) were a winter multi-sport event held from February 18 to 28, 1960, at the Squaw Valley Resort (now known as Palisades Tahoe) in Squaw Vall ...

. He was inducted into the University of Colorado Athletic Hall of Fame and the New Mexico Ski Hall of Fame.

Childhood and education

Dendahl was born September 28, 1938, in Santa Fe, New Mexico where his great grandparents emigrated from Germany in the 1870s. His parents were John D. and Eleanor (née Hoge) Dendahl. The elder Dendahl owned a merchant business established in 1901 by his grandfather, Johann, and operated by the family for three generations. Dendahl attended public schools and graduated from Santa Fe High School in 1956. He attended the University of Colorado in Boulder and graduated in 1961 with bachelor's degrees in electrical engineering (electronics) and business administration (finance). He was a member of

Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Fiji, is a social fraternity with more than 144 active chapters and 10 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, in 1848. Along with Phi Kappa Psi, Phi ...

fraternity and was the university's Outstanding Senior Athlete in 1960.

Business history

Following college graduation, Dendahl joined Eberline Instrument Corporation (a subsidiary of Thermo Electron Corporation) full-time as an engineer for whom he later became chief financial officer and then CEO. Later, Dendahl was the first chief financial officer of the then-new Santa Fe campus of St. John's College. In 1983, Dendahl became general manager of a partnership owning more than 20,000 acres of undeveloped land near Santa Fe. Then in 1985, he started a term as president of The First National Bank of Santa Fe during which time the bank suffered from loan quality problems and was put under special supervision by the Comptroller of the Currency a few months after Dendahl had taken his office. Improvements under the management of Dendahl and his colleagues led to termination of the special supervision in 364 days. During and after his business career, Dendahl served on the boards of directors of numerous charitable organizations, including United Way, Sangre de Cristo Girl Scout Council, New Mexico Association of Commerce and Industry, the Santa Fe Opera, Santa Fe Preparatory School, School of American Research (now School for Advanced Research), Mountain States Legal Foundation (MSLF), and St. John's College. Dendahl was chairman of the board for St. John's College for two years.

Political history

Dendahl served as

's Secretary of Economic Development and Tourism from 1988 to 1990 a position he was appointed to by Governor

Garrey Carruthers Garrey Edward Carruthers (born August 29, 1939) is an American politician and academic who served as the 27th governor of New Mexico and the chancellor of New Mexico State University. He previously served as special assistant to the U.S. Secreta ...

. During the year prior to that appointment, Dendahl was a Carruthers appointee on the N.M. State Investment Council. In 1994 Dendahl unsuccessfully sought the

nomination for Governor losing to

Gary Johnson Gary Earl Johnson (born January 1, 1953) is an American businessman, author, and politician. He served as the 29th governor of New Mexico from 1995 to 2003 as a member of the Republican Party. He was the Libertarian Party nominee for Presid ...

. In late 1994 Dendahl was elected Chairman of the New Mexico Republican Party, a position he held until 2003.

Race for governor - 2006

Dendahl was the 2006 Republican gubernatorial nominee in New Mexico. He became so on June 17, 2006 when Dr. J.R. Damron, the unopposed Republican who won the primary election, withdrew from the election due to a lack of funds after strong encouragement to do so by the Republican party chairman

Allen Weh Allen Edward Weh (born November 17, 1942) is an American business executive, politician, and retired colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. He was a candidate for the Republican nomination for governor of New Mexico in the 2010 election, and t ...

. In accordance with state law, the Republican Party's state central committee met to name a replacement. Dendahl was the only person nominated and became the party's general election nominee. Along with lieutenant governor candidate Sue Wilson Beffort, Dendahl ran against and lost the election to the incumbent Democratic ticket of Governor

Bill Richardson William Blaine Richardson III (born November 15, 1947) is an American politician, author, and diplomat who served as the 30th governor of New Mexico from 2003 to 2011. He was also the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and Energy Secretary ...

and Lieutenant Governor

Diane Denish Diane Daniels Denish ( ; born March 7, 1949) is an American politician, who was the 28th Lieutenant Governor of New Mexico, lieutenant governor of New Mexico. She was elected in 2002, running on the same ticket as Governor Bill Richardson, and wa ...

Later years

Upon retiring from New Mexico politics in 2007, Dendahl lived with his wife Jackie in

Roxborough Park, Colorado Roxborough Park is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place (CDP) located in and governed by Douglas County, Colorado, United States. The CDP is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area. The pop ...

just south of Denver. In 2011, Dendahl became a candidate for the Intermountain Rural Electric Association (IREA) Board of Directors, but he failed to unseat the incumbent director Mike Kempe, who won by 61.45% to Dendahl's 38.54%. Dendahl died in Denver on 9 November 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dendahl, John 1938 births 2013 deaths American athlete-politicians American businesspeople American people of German descent Cross-country skiers at the 1960 Winter Olympics Olympic cross-country skiers of the United States New Mexico Republicans Politicians from Santa Fe, New Mexico State cabinet secretaries of New Mexico State political party chairs of New Mexico American male cross-country skiers