The AMOA-National Dart Association (NDA) is proud to announce the pair of individuals who will be inducted into the association’s Hall of Fame this spring.
Long-time NDA Team Dart volunteer/supporter Paulette Marsh of North Dakota and Terry O’Hara of Midwest Coin Concepts in Minnesota will become the 33rd and 34th inductees of this prestigious group when they are officially recognized for their achievements at the Hall of Fame induction ceremony conducted during the President’s Reception at the 2022 Team Dart on Tuesday, April 12, 2022, at Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. Since its inception in 2006, NDA’s Hall of Fame Committee has voted in two persons each year.
For Paulette Marsh, NDA and Team Dart is a family affair. Her husband of 44 years, Bernie Marsh, formerly of Lady Luck Vending, Dickinson, ND, has been a long-time fixture at NDA, having served as NDA President, head referee and himself a member of the NDA Hall of Fame (Class of 2012). Paulette recalled that she and Bernie first got involved in NDA when Bernie responded to an ad seeking volunteers to work at a dart tournament in the NDA Throwlines Magazine … and for more than three decades since, Paulette, Bernie and the members of their growing family would travel to Las Vegas for Team Dart, working alongside the many NDA charterholder operator/owners and dart league coordinators who would volunteer to run the annual tournament that, at the time, would span two weeks.
Born and raised in Dickinson, ND, Paulette was involved in cheerleading, FFA (Future Farmers of America), gardening and craft making. She and Bernie have eight children and 15 grandchildren. Together, they got involved in the industry back in 1987 when they purchased Bernie’s Esquire (bar) and in 1990, Lady Luck Vending.
She points to her family and their unwavering work ethic as highlights that she is proudest of when it comes to NDA achievements.
Paulette credits her and Bernie’s parents (Helen and Orin Christianson and Charles and Eleanore Marsh) for their support and help with their kids…” so that we could do the work and have fun” and grow the business. “And of course, I thank Bernie and my kids for their support.
Among her NDA highlights, Paulette cited the co-workers she has met, the players, the traveling and all the friends she and Bernie have made along the way. “It doesn’t get any better than this,” Paulette said.
When informed she had been elected by the NDA Hall of Fame Committee, Paulette said “it took my breath away, as I thought Dawn (Orloff-Niesen) was calling for us to get our paperwork in for working (next year’s tournament).”
“I feel very privileged for this honor and thank everyone who helped me along the way. They played a big part in my honor.”
Terry O’Hara grew up around the bar and coin-op business in St. Cloud, MN. After World War II, his Dad traveled from Long Beach, CA to St. Cloud, MN with $300 and before long, he owned a barbershop, bar, and grocery store in town. The youngest of six kids—four brothers and one sister—Terry was five when he started stocking shelves and doing chores around his Dad’s businesses.
His two oldest brothers bought a foosball table for their Dad’s bar in 1970 and the pair purchased their Dad’s bar in 1978. Terry cooked and bartended there until he was 25, when he moved about 60 miles away to run a satellite office of Brothers Music and Games for five years.
By that time, the company, T & M Novelty, had become involved during the early evolution of electronic darts in the coin-op industry and signed on as one of NDA’s founding charterholder operator members in 1986.
“When darts first got going, my brother Chip and I were both played darts three nights week. We put teams together and played at many locations.” Terry recalled. “We were actively involved as it started to take hold, and we started to establish strong relationships with those other bars we played at.”
The growing family coin-op business changed its name to Midwest Coin Concepts in 2000 and both he and Chip have served as leaders in state and national industry organizations. Terry has been on the board of MOMA (Minnesota Operators of Music and Amusements) for more than 20 years. Currently, he is President of MOMA. He also was a member of the NDA board of directors, serving alongside Paulette’s husband, Bernie, Incoming NDA President Stefan Reichert, and NDA head referee Whitey Tolliver.
Married for 28 years, Terry has two grown children, a daughter and son who is now working full-time in Midwest Coin Concepts.
Terry says his Dad never hunted or fished or had hobbies outside of work. He inherited his father’s work ethic, with his day starting at 5:30 a.m. These days, the company has strived to stay ahead of the curve by engaging in non-traditional areas such as card systems, unmanned venues and pull tabs.
For his business and himself, Terry credits NDA as being a great resource of information and ideas and camaraderie.
“I was humbled and shocked when I was informed about the NDA Hall of Fame honor,” Terry said. “There are so many deserving folks, especially here in the Midwest, who have done a lot to support and grow the dart business. Here at our company, we have a lot of talented people—route guys and league people, both old and young—who have helped grow our dart program.”
In particular, Terry acknowledged his older brother, Chip, as a key mentor in his career. “I feel very honored to be elected to the NDA Hall of Fame. I thank everyone at NDA who has helped me along the way and look forward to continuing to push forward and make us better.”
NDA looks forward to welcoming Paulette Marsh and Terry O’Hara into its Hall of Fame next April when they are inducted during Team Dart 2022 in Las Vegas.
