EAST BURKE — Burke Mountain Resort has appointed Gabe Porter-Henry as its new general manager, bringing more than two decades of management experience in the ski and outdoor industries to the Northeast Kingdom resort.
Porter-Henry will join the mountain December 1 to work alongside interim GM Tom Day, who will transition out of his role at the end of the calendar year.
For the past decade, Porter-Henry worked at Berkshire East Mountain Resort, holding numerous leadership positions at the resort and its affiliated companies, Zoar Outdoor in Charlemont, Massachusetts, and Big Red Cats in Rossland, British Columbia. He managed Thunder Mountain Bike Park, served as GM of Berkshire East through COVID, and most recently led Zoar Outdoor Adventure Resort, helping transform it into one of New England’s premier year-round adventure destinations.
Porter-Henry also held international leadership roles in experiential education, directing operations in Peru, Thailand and Mexico. During his tenure, he helped grow an organization from $3 million to $28 million in annual revenue while building programs combining adventure, cultural exchange and community service.
Tom Day came out of retirement in early June to serve as interim general manager at Burke. Day spent more than three decades at Waterville Valley Resort in New Hampshire, then five years at Gunstock Mountain in New Hampshire, where he increased skier visits by 29 percent and revenue by 60 percent.
Day has overseen all departments at Burke as new operating systems were implemented and supported the team during the transition from receivership to active ownership through the purchase by Bear Den Partners.
“There was already a great team at Burke who unfortunately went through a nine year period of not having an owner dedicated to making Burke a better place,” Day said. “The team has been willing to jump in and do whatever necessary to make the mountain more successful both internally and forward facing for our guests.”
Jon Schaefer, Bear Den Partners chief operating officer, said he has known Porter-Henry since age six.
“Not only did we build Berkshire East up, we added Catamount, Thunder Mountain Bike Park, Big Red Cats, and a lot of other fun things,” Schaefer said. “I couldn’t be more proud to hand him the keys to Burke and point him at one of the most special communities in New England.”
