Parry Sound North Star – Rotary Outlook
The Second Annual 2-4 Supporting Our Troops Bonspiel will be hosted once again by the Parry Sound Curling Club (PSCC) on March 4, 5, and 6, 2016. The event kicks off with a Beer and Wing Night hosted by the Royal Canadian Legion on Friday, March 4 starting at 7 p.m. Curling starts bright and early Saturday morning and will end on Sunday afternoon with Closing Ceremonies and presentation of prizes at 2.15 p.m. There will also be a cheque presentation to the Canadian Forces Morale and Welfare Services (CFMWS) Military Families Fund (MFF) in the amount of donations and pledges collected by the curlers. Last year we raised nearly $10,000 for the Military Families Fund and hope to do even better this year. Anyone interested in participating or making a pledge can contact the PSCC. All proceeds and pledges will go to the Military Families Fund in support of our local veterans and active service personnel who require assistance.
Tom Traversy, a veteran with the CAF and local curler on the organizing committee, has said, “The opening ceremonies will take place at the curling club at 11 a.m., Saturday, March 5. We invite all veterans, past and present, as well as, OPP and EMS personnel, firefighters, Legion members and Air Cadets to join all of the participating curlers in the opening ceremonies. We will be assembling at 10:30 a.m., ready to be paraded onto the ice, led by a local piper, along with a colour party from CFB Borden at 11 a.m. Veterans are welcome and encouraged to wear their uniforms and medals. It is a time for us to show our respect and appreciation to those who serve, or have served, our country. To show them we care. Following the opening ceremonies lunch will be provided for all veterans at the curling club. The opening ceremonies are a very significant and important part of the event. It gives meaning to our 2-4 Bonspiel.”
Information from the CFMWS states, “The (MFF) was established in 2007. It provides emergency support to military families when events related to conditions of Military service disrupt normal life. The MFF is proactive in that it links families to existing services. Some examples of support provided by MFF include: assistance to cover the cost of therapy for an autistic child; covering the costs of counseling for family members; reimbursement for travel, food, and lodging for members to return home to assist with a family crisis and covering travel expenses associated with medical treatments for family members. The expenses described were not fully covered by existing public and non-public programs; and, therefore, were supported by the Military Families Fund”. Visit SupportOurTroops.ca for more information.
The PSCC hosted the First Annual 2-4 Supporting Our Troops Bonspiel in March 2015 and since that time it has caught the attention of Curling Canada. Three Ottawa area curling clubs, including, The Ottawa Curling Club, The Rideau Curling Club and The Royal Canadian Navy Curling Club will host a 2-4 curling event on Monday, March 7, during the Tim Hortons Brier in Ottawa. Curling Canada has designated March 7, at The Brier, as Support Our Troops Day. Curlers from across Canada and spectators alike will have the opportunity to show their respect and appreciation to the men and women, past and present, of the Canadian Armed Forces.
“This is a wonderful development,” said Ray Pavlove, a veteran, who plans to attend and curl with Al Bourgeois at the Ottawa CC, representing The Parry Sound Curling Club – the home of 2-4 Curling. Anyone interested in curling in the 2-4 ‘Spiel Ottawa-Style at the Ottawa Tim Hortons Brier can contact Danny Lamoureux at danny@curling.ca 613-878-3682 or Ray Pavlove at rpavlove@cogeco.ca 705 746-9867.
Nanci Beers, who is coordinating the local bonspiel’s entries and draws, invites you to visit the Parry Sound Curling Club webpage for more information on the upcoming 2-4 Supporting Our Troops Bonspiel.