SSHF – Annual Report – 2016

Each year, the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame strives to preserve and promote the history of sport in Saskatchewan, and 2016 was no exception. Our 50th Anniversary was an incredibly exciting and successful year for the SSHF.

We started this year of celebration with an enthusiasm that kept gaining momentum with each new success.  To finish the year by being named Tourism Saskatchewan’s Business of the Year Award (Under 20 Full-time Employees) was amazing recognition. We could never have imagined a more perfect end to our 50th Anniversary year.

Special thank you to all members of the Hall of Fame, your support over the past year has been overwhelming. We look forward to another 50 years!

You can download a copy of the 2016 Annual Report, right here:

Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame Annual Report 2016

 

SSHF a WINNER!

SASKATCHEWAN SPORTS HALL OF FAME NAMED
SASKATCHEWAN TOURISM AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE WINNER

Regina – Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame (SSHF) was named Business of the Year (Under 20 Full-time Employees) during the 28th annual Saskatchewan Tourism Awards of Excellence Gala, which was celebrated on April 5 at the Sheraton Cavalier Saskatoon Hotel. Other finalists in our category included Harvest Eatery and Fresh Market, Shaunavon, and Last Mountain Distillery, Lumsden.

The SSHF nomination was derived on the basis of our 50th Anniversary year and the “big three” activities including Diamond Girls, 50th Anniversary Traveling Exhibit and 50th Anniversary Gala.  We would like to recognize and thank a number of key people and organizations who were instrumental in making our 50th Anniversary events, and thus this award selection, successful. Maureen Ulrich for her engaging & entertaining Diamond Girls script,  Malia Becker for bringing history alive through her stellar performance of 21 characters!, director Kenn McLeod, technical director William Hales, and stage manager Shelby-Lyn Lowe. All of our inductees, some of whom traveled great distances, and chose to participate in one or more of our anniversary events including our 50th Gala reunion celebrations.  And last, but not least, to our key sponsors who shared the vision and passion  in taking Saskatchewan’s sport history to the entire province including Saskatchewan Lotteries, Community Initiatives Fund, Saskatchewan Blue Cross, Creative Display, Sterling Truck & Trailer Sales, Hornoi Leasing, SaskTel and SGI.

We also wish to extend a heartfelt thank you to Tourism Saskatchewan for this award, as well as to our award sponsor, the Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority. We could never have imagined a more perfect end to our 50th Anniversary year.

For more information, contact:

Sheila Kelly, Executive Director: 306-780-9233, [email protected]
Autumn McDowell, Communications Coordinator: 306-780-9203, [email protected]

MEDIA RELEASE

For immediate release: March 6, 2017

SASKATCHEWAN SPORTS HALL OF FAME AMONG
SASKATCHEWAN TOURISM AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE FINALISTS

Regina – Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame (SSHF) has been named among the finalists for the Saskatchewan Tourism Awards of Excellence for 2016. Tourism Saskatchewan announced the list of finalists today (visit IndustryMatters.com for the full details).

The SSHF was nominated in the category of Business of the Year Award (Under 20 Full-time Employees). Other finalists in our category include Harvest Eatery and Fresh Market, Shaunavon, and Last Mountain Distillery, Lumsden.

The SSHF nomination was derived on the basis of our 50th Anniversary year and the “big three” activities including Diamond Girls, 50th Anniversary Traveling Exhibit and 50th Anniversary Gala.  We would like to recognize and thank a number of key people and organizations who were instrumental in making our 50th Anniversary events, and thus this nomination, successful. Maureen Ulrich for her engaging & entertaining Diamond Girls script,  Malia Becker for bringing history alive through her stellar performance of 21 characters!, director Kenn McLeod, technical director William Hales, and stage manager Shelby-Lyn Lowe. All of our inductees, some of whom traveled great distances, who chose to participate in one or more of our anniversary events including our 50th Gala reunion celebrations.  And last, but not least, to our key sponsors who shared the vision and passion  in taking Saskatchewan’s sport history to the entire province including Saskatchewan Lotteries, Community Initiatives Fund, Saskatchewan Blue Cross, Creative Display, Sterling Truck & Trailer Sales, Hornoi Leasing, SaskTel and SGI.

The SSHF is also pleased to announce that past president, Trent Fraser, will be a recipient of the Tourism Builder Award.  This award recognizes individuals who have made tourism an important part of their life’s work resulting in a positive impact on the industry they serve.  Trent has been instrumental in the strategic stewardship of the SSHF for the past seven years which culminated in our successful 50th celebrations.  He is a most deserving recipient of this award.

The finalists and award recipients will be honoured at the 28th annual Saskatchewan Tourism Awards of Excellence Gala, which will be celebrated on April 5 at the Sheraton Cavalier Saskatoon Hotel. The Tourism Builder Award will also be presented that night.

For more information, contact:

Sheila Kelly, Executive Director: 306-780-9233, [email protected]

Autumn McDowell, Communications Coordinator, 306-780-9203, [email protected]

For the Record: August/September 2016

For The Record

MESSAGE FROM PRESIDENT LINDA BURNHAM

 

I am honored to be President of the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame (SSHF). I acknowledge I have big shoes to fill, and I thank our immediate Past President Scott Waters for his dedication and service. We have a long line of Past Presidents who have contributed to advancements and successes the SSHF has experienced over the past years.

2016 has been a milestone for the SSHF as we celebrate our 50th anniversary. We have made that celebration last the entire year and have showcased three major events as highlights.

Diamond Girls is a play about the Saskatchewan women who played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.   The one-act, one-woman show has toured several provinces over the last few months and it has received rave reviews everywhere it has played.   We are so proud to be associated with Diamond Girls and proud to have some of those players as inductees in the SSHF.

Our next major event has been a traveling exhibit that is presently touring throughout communities in Saskatchewan.  Our 505 inductees represent over 140 Saskatchewan communities and the traveling exhibit has been our way of taking the Hall to the people.  Another major success, the traveling exhibit has provided us with great exposure throughout the province.

The final major event will be our Gala on September 30. We have chosen to forgo the induction of a new class this year in favor of celebrating the 505 current inductees.  The successes of these inductees is cause for celebration and we wish to recognize them once again in this evening planned to be a one of a kind event.  We will showcase several inductees in Hotstove panels representing Hockey, Football and Olympians. We also have some short videos prepared to showcase many of our inductees while it tells a story about the SSHF. We hope you will join us for this exciting evening.

While we celebrate our past, we also have challenges to accomplish ahead of us.  Our Board of Directors is a group of individuals who are dedicated to making things happen, and have proven qualified to do so.  Our plan is to still secure a new location for the SSHF which will allow us to better showcase the inductees and be more appropriate for the many wonderful artifacts we possess. We continue to search for sustainable fundraising to support the Hall.  We have big dreams and those come at big costs!

I do want to recognize the amazing staff we have at the SSHF.  They have all shown dedication to this year of celebration and have most willingly given of their time to ensure the success of every event.   Thank you to Sheila, Vickie, Brock, Autumn  and the summer staff, Amber, Danelle and Jenna, who have given the SSHF such dedication and commitment in this special year.

On behalf of the Board of Directors I thank you for your support.  Please drop by the Hall, or the traveling exhibit and experience what the Hall is all about. Saskatchewan is a great sporting province. We recognize excellence. We celebrate sport.

Best wishes,

Linda Burnham, President

To find out more on our latest happenings at the SSHF, download the full version of the newest For The Record, right here:

For the Record August/September 2016

For the Record: May/June 2016

For The Record

MESSAGE FROM PRESIDENT SCOTT WATERS

We are officially more than one quarter through the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame’s (SSHF) 50th year. While we have already started celebrating this historic anniversary, some of our biggest events are still to come.

I would first like to remind everyone that we will not be having a formal induction this year. However, we have many exciting events on the horizon that will give everyone in the province a chance to celebrate our anniversary with us. These events will include a traveling exhibit, a one-woman play and a gala, which will all be explained in detail throughout this newsletter.

It is our hope that, in doing so, we will be successful in celebrating the phenomenal sports history of all 505 inductees, including: 223 athletes, 158 builders and 124 championship teams, whose stories have been housed inside of our walls for all these years.

The staff has also been hard at work planning and executing the first four events in our “12 months, 12 Events” series. The two most recent of these events were prepared in conjunction with major sporting events happening in the province. Our February event saw the staff, along with 15 curling inductees, travel to Swift Current – the host site of the 2016 Ford World Women’s Curling Championships.

Our fourth event saw us team up with The Keystone Cup, a prestigious Junior B Hockey Championship that was being hosted in Regina for the first time. The tournament was a great excuse to bring a handful of our inductees together. 2015 SSHF inductee Cliff Koroll flew in from Chicago, while two members of the 1968 Team Canada Olympic Team, Morris Mott and Terry O’Malley, joined us as well.

Fans in attendance during both events were given the opportunity to ask questions of our inductees, get autographs and pose for pictures. I would like to specially thank the Ford World Women’s Curling Championship organizing committee, The Keystone Cup organizing committee and our event MC’s Taylor Shire and Candace Woodside for helping to make these events possible.

On behalf of the SSHF Board of Directors I would like to wish you the best for the remainder of the spring season and upcoming summer season.  Please stay in touch and stay connected with the SSHF (and encourage friends and family to do the same) through our Social Media channels.

Website: www.sasksportshalloffame.com
Facebook: SaskSportsHF
Instagram: SaskSportsHF
Twitter: @SaskSportsHF
Review us on TripAdvisor

Best wishes,

Scott Waters, President

To find out more on our latest happenings at the SSHF, download the full version of the newest For The Record, right here:

For the Record May/June 2016

March Blog: Inductees “Hurry Hard” in Swift Current

Throughout 2016, the SSHF will be selecting one special event each month to feature in our “12 Months, 12 Events” 50th anniversary project – dedicated to all 505 of our inductees and Saskatchewan’s rich sport history.

Our third event of the year served to celebrate the World Women’s Curling Championship in Swift Current.

A fan forum and autograph session celebrating the 2016 Ford World Women’s Curling Championship was hosted on March 21, 2016 in Swift Current. From March 19-27, Swift Current was home to the Championship for a second time. Speedy Creek also hosted the tournament in 2010, and efforts were made shortly after to bring the tournament back because of its success.

DSC_9232

In attendance to help celebrate the Championship and our 50th anniversary were the following inductees:

1980 Marj Mitchell Curling Team
(Canadian and World Champions, Wendy Leach attending)

1970 Dorenda Schoenhals Bailey Curling Team
(Canadian Ladies Champions, Linda Burnham & Dorenda Bailey attending)

1951 and 52 Gary Thode Curling Team
(Canadian High School Boys Champions, Roy Hufsmith attending)

1993, 1994, 1997, 1998 Sandra Schmirler Curling Team
(Women’s Canadian, World, and Olympic Champions, Anita Ford attending)

1974 Emily Farnham Curling Team
(Canadian Ladies Champions, Emily Farnham, Linda Saunders, & Pat McBeath attending)

1983 Rick Folk Curling Team
(Canadian Mixed Champions, Dorenda Bailey attending)

2003 Nancy Kerr Curling Team
(Canadian and World Senior Women’s Champions, Linda Burnham & Kendra Richards attending)

1978 Bernie Yuzdepski Curling Team
(Canadian Mixed Champions, Bernie Yuzdepski attending)

1980 Rick Folk Curling Team
(Canadian and World Men’s Curling Champions, Jim Wilson attending)

2009 Eugene Hritzuk Curling Team
(Canadian and World Senior Men’s Curling Champions, Eugene Hritzuk, Verne Anderson and Dave Folk attending)

The SSHF would like to sincerely thank the World Women’s Curling Championship organizing committee, the Saskatchewan Hockey Hall of Fame and our Master of Ceremonies, Candace Woodside, for helping to make this event possible.

DSC_9240

Don’t miss your chance to help celebrate our 50th! Our April event will focus on the 2016 Keystone Cup!

Since the Cup’s inception, 2016 represents the first time this prestigious championship has been decided in Regina. The Extreme Hockey Regina Capitals will be hosting the 2016 Keystone Cup at the Co-operators Centre from April 14-17. Since 1983 the Keystone Cup has been awarded to the top junior B team from Western Canada and Northwestern Ontario.  In total, 14 of our inductees have a connection to what is now the Prairie Junior Hockey League. The SSHF would like to celebrate these inductees through a number of initiatives to be hosted at the Co-operators Centre during April 14-17, 2016. Stay tuned for more details.

For The Record: February/March 2016

For The Record

MESSAGE FROM PRESIDENT SCOTT WATERS

2016 is sure to be an exciting and a historic year, marking the 50th anniversary of the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame (SSHF). Celebrations are currently underway, having officially begun in January with the first of our 12 Months, 12 Events initiative.  The SSHF is also planning a Traveling Exhibit, scheduled to visit dozens of communities across Saskatchewan between July and October. More details will be announced in spring, 2016!

The 50th anniversary celebration culminates September 30, 2016 with a formal gala, along with other events. Full details of the 50th anniversary celebrations will be updated regularly on the SSHF’s website at www.sasksportshalloffame.com. While the 50th anniversary celebrations are currently at the forefront, we also remain focused on regular day-to-day operations and are busy planning many other exciting events for 2017 and beyond.  As mentioned in an earlier message the SSHF has undergone great transition and improvements in recent years, and the staff and Board of Directors remain focused on providing visitor enhancements to the SSHF, and continuing to deliver a great product to our members and to the public at-large.

I would like to formally welcome a new member to the Board of Directors, and also acknowledge and thank two long-serving members of the Board who recently resigned. Joining the board is Kevin Dureau of Regina. We look forward to working with Kevin and are excited about the passion, experience and perspective he will bring to the organization.  I would also like to thank two board members who recently stepped down; Vance McNab and Hugh Vassos, who completed four and eleven years of service, respectively. During their tenure each contributed greatly to the SSHF, serving on several committees and in various roles, with Hugh Vassos recently serving as President and then as Past President of the SSHF.

The Board of Directors and staff of the SSHF held their annual retreat January 8th and 9th at Manitou Springs Resort and Mineral Spa at Manitou Beach.  Much was accomplished and a good time was had by all.  We had the added delight of being joined for lunch by SSHF inductee Leroy Coates and his wife, Marlene who currently reside in nearby Watrous.

On behalf of the SSHF Board of Directors I would like to wish you the best for the remainder of the winter season and upcoming spring season.  Please stay in touch and stay connected with the SSHF (and encourage friends and family to do the same) through our Social Media channels.

Website: www.sasksportshalloffame.com
Facebook: SaskSportsHF
Instagram: SaskSportsHF
Twitter: @SaskSportsHF
Review us on TripAdvisor

To find out more on our latest happenings at the SSHF, download the full version of the newest For The Record, right here:

For the Record February/March 2016

*UPDATE: Please note that dates have changed for Diamond Girls performances. Updated information will be released in early May!

 

January Blog: SSHF Reveals 50th Plans

We are currently in the midst of our 50th year at the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame! By now most of your have probably heard that we will not be having a formal, stand-alone induction in 2016. Instead, we will be having multiple events during the year, throughout the province of Saskatchewan, in order to celebrate all 505 of our inductees and Saskatchewan’s rich sport history.

While some of our big announcements will have to wait to be unveiled, others are already in motion:

12 Months, 12 Events: Throughout 2016, the SSHF will be selecting one special event each month to feature in our “12 Months, 12 Events” 50th Anniversary project. Our first event of the year will be held at Peak Performance Hockey, inside of The Co-operators Centre in Regina. This event will serve to celebrate Hockey Day in Saskatchewan and will take place on January 15 from 5:00pm-7:00pm. It will also act as a pre-game event for the University of Regina Cougars game happening at 7:00pm that night. We will have many of our hockey inductees attending this event, including 1974 Memorial Cup Champion, Ed Staniowski, as well as other local hockey figures.

51 Sports in 52 Weeks: A virtual celebration of our inducted sports on a week-by-week basis. This social media experience will highlight key inductees and artifacts of each sport throughout the week. It will also include a special “where are they now” update on a featured inductee every Wednesday.

#SSHF50: For our 50th year we also wanted to implement a special hashtag for use on social media. Please feel free to search the hashtag #SSHF50 on both Twitter and Instagram to see all of our posts pertaining to our 50th year. Getting involved in this is easy! If you are at one of our events throughout the year, and post something to Twitter or Instagram about it, please include our hashtag at the end to share your experience!

2015 was a great year, but 2016 will be even better! Please join us at every opportunity to celebrate our 50th!

 

Don’t forget to like and follow us on all of our Social Media accounts to stay up to date:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SaskSportsHF
Twitter: @SaskSportsHF
Instagram: @SaskSportsHF