Decades of Dedication
EMILIANO HUERTA , A LONGTIME NEWPORT BEACH COUNTRY CLUB TEAM MEMBER , HAS DEVOTED HIS TIME AND EFFORT TO THE PROPERTY FOR NEARLY 29 YEARS , TAKING ON ANY TASK THAT IS ASKED OF HIM .
BY ASHLEY RYAN
As a member of the golf operations team at Newport Beach Country Club , Emiliano Huerta does anything and
everything . “ I ’ m a handyman , pretty much ,” he jokes . “… A normal day is I ’ m pretty much busy all day .”
Although he stays busy day in and day out , Huerta isn ’ t new to life at NBCC . In fact , he ’ s been working his way through tasks at the club for almost 29 years . “ I started in 1992 ,” Huerta explains . “ I just started working on the weekends . I was going to school Monday through Friday . … I was just looking for part-time .”
This weekend job was his introduction to NBCC , and it clearly left an impression , as he moved into a full-time role and has remained at the property ever since . Initially , Huerta worked in gardening , keeping the landscape near the course neat and trim . This was an obvious move for him , as his previous job was with his uncle ’ s gardening business .
However , he has since become someone that many people around the club rely on — especially given his can-do attitude and willingness to work hard . His usual tasks vary day by day . Starting each morning at 6 a . m ., you can find Huerta doing everything from working on golf carts to parking cars as a valet , assisting with golf tournaments and fixing golf clubs .
Running back and forth around the property ensures that Huerta gets a nice workout at the same time . He says that his step counting app reveals that he often walks 8 to 12 miles a day during his shift .
While much of his job is behind the scenes , Huerta maintains that his favorite thing about his position is interacting with the members . “ They ’ re all really nice ,” he says . “[ It ’ s ] easy to talk with them , … get to know them , get to know their needs , get to know their bags . When you have a tournament [ and ] you ’ re looking for a bag , you cannot go to every single bag and look for the name . You ’ ve got to be able to spot the bag from far away .”
In addition to enjoying time spent around NBCC members as well as his coworkers , Huerta says that he really likes that his job keeps him moving and active . “ I got offered a couple of jobs in an office and I ’ m not an office guy ,” he explains . “ I can ’ t be sitting in a chair for eight hours .”
When he ’ s not on the clock , Huerta likes to golf at NBCC , though he says COVID-19 has impacted his ability to do so this year . “ I used to play twice a week ,” he says . “ Try to get my handicap down , break 80 .”
He also likes to explore Orange County on his bicycle , often venturing from his Santa Ana home to Yorba Linda or Huntington Beach along the Santa Ana River Trail . He also enjoys traveling to a variety of nearby places , including Ensenada , Mexico ; Las Vegas and Palm Springs .
And when asked what his dream job would be , Huerta insists that he is content with his role at NBCC , revealing , “ I ’ m happy where I ’ m at right now .”
56 BAY WINDOW