Pete and Denise Christopher

The idea behind this 25 in ’25 special publication is to shine a spotlight on 25 individuals who have given to the community in a variety of ways. But sometimes when it comes to involvement, a group effort can be just as noteworthy.

So it is with Pete and Denise Christopher, two individuals who prove that together is better.

“We’re like a team,” Denise said. “We tag-team off each other.”

Since 2002, the couple has been ubiquitous in the Mat-Su. Whether it be serving on chamber of commerce boards, volunteering with the food bank or Colony Christmas, or as the public face of the Mat-Su Miners summer baseball team, the Christophers have become a bit of a Valley institution.

Not bad for what was originally going to be a one-year stay here in 2002, when Pete was offered the job of general manager at the Miners, following two years of disarray after the death of longtime GM Stan Zaborac.

“Things were bad with the Miners,” Pete said. “Lot of things were falling through the cracks. There was junk everywhere.”

Infrastructure at the ballpark was crumbling, and no one had a steady eye on sponsorships.

“Well, you could give it a year,” Denise recalled telling Pete at the time.

The organization was in need of a full-time GM, and the whole Christopher family – Pete, Denise, and their two young sons – chipped in. More than two decades later, with their sons grown and moved on, the Christophers are still here, deeply involved in a community they love.

They agreed the Mat-Su and its people have been an attraction from the beginning.

“The community pulls you in,” Denise said. “The Mat-Su is such a great community. Our friends are like family.”

Pete elaborated.

“You’re not going to get better people anywhere,” he said. “I’ve lived in four states and never met people like here in the Valley.”

The Christophers’ longevity has been a boon to the Miners organization, which has probably never been in better shape. But it was not an easy, or quick, transformation.

Baseball has always been in Pete’s DNA. He played catcher on the field, including in an over-30 league in Oregon in the 1980s. He also spent 14 years as a scout for the Kansas City Royals.

He said the early goals when he took on the Miners job were basic: increase the fan base, increase sponsorships, and upgrade Hermon Bros. ballpark.

“That year, we didn’t even know which bills would get paid,” he said.

Today, the Miners play before full seats in a comfortable refurbished stadium that might be the most scenic place in the country to take in a ballgame. And where there used to be a couple dozen sponsor billboards, there are nearly 90 now.

“We still have sponsors that we got that first year,” Pete said. “People were receptive to us. The Valley is proud of their team.”

Much of that comes from the Miners’ onfield performance. By Pete’s third season – and the first that he had taken over annual recruiting duties from the coach – the Miners were at the top of the Alaska league and went on to finish second in the National Baseball Congress World Series in Wichita, Kan. Significantly, 22 of the 26 players on that roster went on to play pro ball. In the last 15 years, the team has never finished below second-place in the league.

The Christophers attribute much of the overall success to a tireless army of volunteers.

“They mean everything to us,” Denise said. “People call and ask how they can help. There’s a sense of community here that Pete and I don’t want to lose.”