The Courtenay team won the 2019 Mayor’s Cup, Friday at the Comox Valley Sports Centre — which means Comox Mayor Russ Arnott will wear the Don Cherry jersey when he presents the cup to Courtenay Mayor Bob Wells.
Neither mayor played in the game, which featured Thomas Gradin and other members of the Vancouver Canucks Alumni.
“We sat behind the respective benches, me for Comox and Bob for the Courtenay/Canucks Alumni team,” said Arnott, noting former Canuck/Oiler BJ (Blair) MacDonald “skated like he was on a cloud.”
The ninth annual event raised more than $16,000 for the Comox Valley branch of KidSport, a national non-profit organization that provides financial assistance for registration fees and equipment to children and youth 18 years and under.
“Every single dollar that we raised stays here in the Comox Valley,” said Jana Letain, co-ordinator of the local KidSport chapter.
The organization provides grants for registration fees for children and youth who have financial barriers that may prevent them from participating in sports. Last year, CV KidSport distributed $25,400 in grants to 110 recipients.
“We pay $300 per child per calendar year in grants to local sport organizations,” Letain said. “So this $16,773 will go a long way in our community to help children be able to get off the sidelines and into the game.”
Fellow KidSport volunteer Ryan Williams was the “man on the mike” during the game.
“The two things for us is raising money, but also awareness,” he said. “We haven’t had a problem with the money, it’s getting to the right people. And then some of the challenges, the right people might not be able to get kids to the events.”
Former Comox mayor Paul Ives — who has played in every Mayor’s Cup game since its inception — credits the KidSport team of volunteers for making the event a success. He also credits the sponsors and the 25 Monday morning hockey players who each paid $100 for the “privilege of playing in this game against the Canucks Alumni.”
KidSport Comox Valley is always looking for volunteers.
FMI: kidsport.ca/comoxvalley