The criteria for the Dr. Lydia Thering Meritorious Service Award states that a nominee need be an individual who has made substantial and innovative contributions to the principles of wellness in any society. The principles embrace personal responsibility, sensitivity to the environment, nutritional awareness, stress management and physical fitness.
 
It's safe to say that the 2024 award recipient meets the criteria, and then some.
 
For the better part of three decades, Jim Rakow has been a fixture among athletic trainers in the Upper Midwest. From UW-Superior to Augsburg University and today as the head athletic trainer at the University of St. Thomas, Rakow has had an impact on student-athletes and coaches that number in the thousands.
 
Athletic training, however, wasn't always Rakow's ambition.
 
"I graduated from D.C. Everest High School and was slated to go and play football at Montana State University. I had a substantial back injury my senior year, and my scholarship no longer existed," Rakow said. "My girlfriend went to UW-Superior and I liked the feel of the school. At the time, UWS still had football and I thought this would give me one more chance to play football as well and also compete in track and field."
 
Things didn't go according to plan, however, and Rakow war forced to call an audible.
 
"The fall of my sophomore year, my first at UWS, I reinjured by back in camp and I felt football was no longer a smart option. I was able to compete in indoor track and field, and then injured my back again, this time requiring surgery," he said. "The process of losing the ability to do something you love is difficult, but the care, compassion and commitment of the medical providers I worked with opened my eyes to a career path that resonated with my love for athletics and my desire to serve others."

Enter athletic training.
 
"I had a good friend in the athletic training program at UW-La Crosse, and he and I spoke about it and I made the choice to switch majors and focus on sports medicine and pursue certification as an athletic trainer. When I came back to campus, I talked with head athletic trainer David Kroll and started working in the training room," he said.
 
At that time, the athletic training students were given a host of responsibilities, including but not limited to work in the training room, assignments with specific teams and traveling to road games. The work meant Rakow and the other students needed to balance their time in the classroom along with the teams they worked with.

But that wasn't everything Rakow was involved with.
 
"While at UWS I took full advantage of what the school had to offer. I was a resident advisor for two years, served as a student senator for one year and then was the SUFAC chairperson for two years," he said. "I worked for IM-Rec and helped develop a program to expose individuals to camping, skiing, canoeing, etc.
 
"I also worked as a student manager at the Rothwell Student Center for two years and was the retail manager for the 1994 NCAA Division III Men's Ice Hockey Championships. The combined experiences served as a lab to develop all the skill I would need later in life."
 
A highlight of his time at UW-Superior was when Rakow worked with the 1993-94 Yellowjacket men's hockey team. That year, regarded as one of the best in program history, saw the Yellowjackets win the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) regular season and playoff championships while advancing to the final four, which were hosted at Wessman Arena.
 
"The 1993-94 sports season, and specifically working with the hockey team stands out. I was not certified as of yet and needed to finish my 1,500 hours of clinical experience, so David helped me set up jobs in the athletics department and I would function as, what was termed at the time an associate athletic trainer," he said. "I was assigned to help David with hockey. I was at the rink during the week so he could be at Gates Gym for all the other sports. I traveled quite a bit with the hockey team that year, as well.
 
"The experience I gained during the season and playoffs helped prepare me for by boards, and ultimately my career after leaving UW-Superior."
 
When asked about the single biggest impact from his time at UW-Superior, Rakow immediately points to Kroll.
 
"I am where I am because of David Kroll. He invited me into his program, mentored me, pushed me to be better, helped me develop and showed me how to do this job right while still staying true to your ethics and morals," he said. "He showed me how to balance that and modeled how to be a good father and husband. Outside of my parents and grandparents, I have been blessed with three mentors that embody my family core values and have helped me build on those. David Kroll is one of those three. The core of who I am as a certified athletic trainer, health care provider and caregiver are all a result of his guidance.
 
"I could go all day on this. The impacts are too many to count."