As one of NRPA’s “behind the scenes” staff members, AMS Administrator Dave Wenner may not be the most visible face to members, but every member and staffer of NRPA has benefited from his work. In his four-plus years at NRPA, the “database guy” has pushed through a number of system improvements that have made NRPA’s information easier to navigate, access and apply, and he has automated a number of processes to make everyone’s jobs easier to manage.

Like NRPA, Wenner will be turning 50 in 2015. We learned more about his career, his life as a swim dad, the origin of his famous chicken costume and his notorious obsession with bacon.

Parks & Recreation Magazine: Tell me a little about your work as NRPA’s AMS (Association Management Software) administrator.

Dave Wenner: I basically work with our internal database and see my job as making sure anyone here can use the data we have to make the right decisions. Members, nonmember purchase history, anyone who has worked with NRPA — we have info in the database about that, and we can use it to make decisions for programming, decisions for products we want to implement, etc. The other part [iMIS Specialist Cara Bracamonte and I] do is to implement tools that make staff more efficient so they don’t have to do tedious things.

P&R: What are some of your biggest projects and accomplishments in your time with NRPA?

Wenner: The biggest thing was that we implemented a tool that really advanced and automated a lot of processes, like renewal notices. A lot of our certification processes are automated as well, which took the responsibility out of the users’ hands and lets the system do it for them. We also implemented a better solution for the online store and did a lot of cleanup.

P&R: What first drew you to work at NRPA, and what are some of your favorite things about working here?

Wenner: I was looking to get out of consulting — I had done not-for-profit consulting for 13 years. Also, working for NRPA has given me the opportunity to become a better dad. I live 1.4 miles away from the office, so I can do carpool in afternoons and have more time to become involved in my kids’ activities. Also, I have worked with 40 to 50 not-for-profit companies with my consulting work, and we have top-notch staff here.

P&R: You are well-known as the staff’s resident bacon aficionado. What’s with the bacon obsession?

Wenner: It started in college. When I came home for summer, maybe four nights a week I’d fry up a pound of bacon and put it all in one sandwich. Last Thanksgiving, we did 15 pounds of bacon. We’re big fans of pork products.

P&R: You’ve also appeared in internal staff videos wearing a chicken costume. Where did that come from?

Wenner: When my son was about 3, I asked him what he wanted me to be for Halloween, and he said a chicken. I always wanted [a chicken costume] — you never know when you might need it!

P&R: Finally, tell me a little about your family and your personal life.

Wenner: My wife, Kelly, and I will have been married 20 years next January. My daughter, Jordan, is 14, my son, Teddy, is 12, and we also have two dogs. Outside of work, I’m pretty much a swim dad. My wife and I heavily volunteer for the summer swim team — for six weeks a year we’re doing that nonstop, and one to two weekends a month I’m at a local park facility for swim meets.

I’m one of eight kids and had more than 50 foster brothers and sisters. My dad was a minister, and we always had a few foster siblings with us. Four of my siblings are adopted, including three former foster siblings.

P&R: Anything else?

Wenner: Members can help us a lot by filling out their profile when they connect to our website — we’re trying to understand members as well as we can. We just finished a database project to understand who our members are so we can better serve them.

Danielle Taylor is the Executive Editor of Parks & Recreation Magazine.