Minor Hockey Week Should Be A Time To Focus On What The Game Is All About

Minor Hockey Week in Canada begins on Saturday, January 19 and runs through until January 26. This is a special week which is set aside during the season to allow players, coaches and parents to focus on what the game is all about and to then make an effort to remember why and how the sport has become one of the favourite pass times in all of Canada.

The 2001-2002 hockey season has already been dedicated to restoring good sportsmanship in amateur hockey by the Hockey Development Centre of Ontario through its GoodSport Program. This is a program that was initiated by hockey enthusiasts to bring the fun back into the game. At the core of this program is an attempt to remove the high level of aggressiveness which has crept onto the ice in recent years. The GoodSport goal is to encourage people to change their attitudes and behaviour in order to restore sportsmanship.

In support of this goal is the Milk Energy Penalty Free Sweepstakes which has been run for the past fourteen years. Since December 8, minor hockey teams have been encouraged to play a penalty free game. When they complete such a game, they may send a copy of the game sheet to the Hockey Development Centre for Ontario in order to have each player receive a memento acknowledging their penalty free game as well as enter in to a contest to win an exciting sweepstakes prize. Over 69,900 teams have entered during the fourteen years. Another amazing statistic is that of the teams entering, 62% of the entries either won or tied the game they were playing when they played penalty free. There is definitely a message here! The Milk Energy Penalty Free Sweepstakes ends on January 31, 2002. You can get more info on the Milk Energy Penalty Free Sweepstakes by going to their web site at www.hdco.on.ca or calling 1-888-THE-HDCO. You will find a link to their web page our web page.

A number of rule changes over the past several years have helped restore some semblance of sanity back into the game, but we still have a long way to go. Most of the rule changes are designed to remove players who insist on jeopardizing the safety of their opponents. Checking from behind, stick contact to the head area, head checking and fighting all carry with them game misconduct’s and potential for suspension. League officials are continuing to crack down on abuse of referees and linesmen by players and coaches, and some jurisdictions even go as far as to remove parents from the stands for inappropriate behaviour. All of the measures seem to be having a positive effect on the game.

Nevertheless, we all encounter those elements - be they parents, coaches or players - who give the sport a black eye. It is apparent that only peer pressure and a strictly enforced zero-tolerance policy will weed out the bad apples in order that they can be replaced by people who want to keep the “True Spirit of the Game”. We must also accept the fact that there will always be those who will lose sight of the big picture with respect to competitive sports of any kind - not just hockey. It must not deter the rest of us from persevering in our quest to elevate this wonderful sport to the level of prestige it once had in society. Hockey, when it is played properly in a spirit of sportsmanship, can be the most exciting sport in the world.

This year, let’s all celebrate Minor Hockey Week by demonstrating to everyone around us that we really do enjoy the sport and that we can have fun without losing control of our dignity and integrity.

For hockey fans in Valley East and Capreol, you can finish off Minor Hockey Week in style by taking in some of the action during the Valley East Progressive Hockey Associations annual Novice-Atom-PeeWee tournament which begins January 25 and runs through until January 27.

Secondary School Recruitment In Full Swing During January

If you are a young student currently in Grade 8, this is one time during your life when you will certainly feel important. Everyone wants you! At least by everyone who offers a secondary school program in your community. Confederation Secondary School, Ecole Secondaire Hanmer, Ecole Secondaire Catholique L'Horizon, St. Charles College and Marymount Academy are all holding information sessions during the month of January in order to provide prospective students with every opportunity to make an informed decision with respect to the high school they will attend for the next four years. In Marymount's case, girls in Grade 6 are also paying attention since they can enter that facility in Grade 7.

Valley East students with the Sudbury Catholic District School Board face another quandary in light of the decision by the Board to establish a secondary school in this community. At the present time, the location of the school has not been determined and discussions with the Rainbow District School Board to share space at Confederation Secondary School are ongoing. If those discussions fail, it appears as if St. Anne School in Hanmer will be the preferred site for the Catholic Board.

Even though it is still almost a year and a half away, the graduating classes of 2003 are having an impact on the aggressive marketing campaign being undertaken by the Boards at this time. In June of 2003, secondary schools will graduate students from OAC (the former Grade 13) and from the first group of students who are enrolled in the four year program of studies in Grade 12. This will effectively create a dramatic reduction in enrolment for each secondary school and will free up a great deal of space. It is likely that trustees may have to consider closing one or two schools as a result of the loss of students, unless they are successful in attracting new enrolments which were not anticipated. A school which is overcrowded during the 2002-2003 school year will be quite acceptable, knowing that the crowd will be thinned out upon graduation in June 2003. A school which is low in enrolment during the year, however, will create a great deal of concern for Board officials knowing that the enrolment will drop even lower the following year.

Parents and their children have a big decision to make during the next several weeks. Which secondary school will receive your registration? How do you make sense out of the marketing that is being presented by the schools?

Besides attending the open houses being organized by each of the schools, you can also do a number of other things to help you make a decision. 

Visit the school during a regular day. If possible, visit the school in the morning before classes begin. This will allow you to see the current students in a normal setting. Watch them. Listen to their comments. See if they seem happy and excited about being there. You can tell a lot about a school by how it begins. If possible, try to be around at the end of the day as well and perhaps even during a lunch hour. Talk to some of the students and ask them how they like their school. Before you do any of this, don't forget that you "must" go to the office when you arrive and let them know that you would like to visit and observe the students. It is a requirement that all school visitors check in at the office.

If you do your homework now, you and your child will be much happier during the next four years. A few hours invested wisely today will be well worth it in the end.                

Local Residents Achieving National and International Recognition

Living in Valley East and Capreol has its advantages. Many of us enjoy the small-town atmosphere, which implies that we are isolated and perhaps even insulated from the rest of the world. However, there are a number of local residents who have ventured outside of our borders and are making a significant impact on the Provincial, National and even International scene. People like Colette Mann, who had a recording included on a CD which was distributed around the world; Andrew Brunette, a star player with the NHL; Caren Cowling, an international marathon runner who is one of the top females in the country; Angela Frawley, who has emerged as one of the province’s top beach volleyball players; Emilie Obonsawin sings in front of the Prime Minister in Ottawa; Joey Niceforo is recognized as one of the nation’s promising young opera talents; Katie Goggins wins a Canadian baseball competition championship; many of our local sports teams continue to win provincial championships in their respective fields; and the list goes on and on.

The Vision Paper has brought you the story about some of the people named above, and we intend, over time, to bring you the rest of the stories. What these young men and women have accomplished is remarkable, and they deserve local recognition and appreciation. If you know of someone who stands out in their field and who has achieved provincial, national or international fame, please contact us so that we can show our gratitude for what they have done to improve the image of Valley East and Capreol.

“Volunteers Are The True Meaning Of Human Spirit” Claims Local International Recording Artist Colette Mann

Colette Mann who was born and raised in Coniston and now lives in Skead, the border community of Valley East and Garson, is one of only three Canadian recording artists included on a special CD which was put together by the United Nations to celebrate International Year of the Volunteer. The double CD contains the works of 27 international artists. Colette will be performing her song, “You Are United”, during a special Volunteer Appreciation Night at the Caruso Club in Sudbury on January 17.

The album features Jamaican reggae star Tony Rebel, who donated the song, “Not All About Money”, and Portugal’s well-known, Paula Carvalho. The world-beat album showcases style as diverse as Uzbek dance, Japanese techno, French rock, spicy Latino salsa and Arabic traditional. It includes songs voicing diverse perspectives on a wide range of volunteer issues. Some songs praise the virtues of volunteers while others provoke political debate and question social issues about volunteers. Over 50,000 copies of the CD were distributed around the world.

olette Mann’s featured song, “You Are United” is a special tribute to the hard work and dedication of United Way volunteers and volunteers in general.

hile growing up in Coniston, Colette began writing and performing from a very young age. She found strength and freedom of expression through the beauty of music, singing in church choirs, weddings and at the local Francophone Centre. She has written many songs in honour of special people in her life.

“In my eyes, volunteers are the heartbeat of communities - the true meaning of human spirit. They are the true gems of the earth. In celebrating the International Year of the Volunteer, it is my pleasure to acknowledge the sincere dedication and compassion of volunteers,” stated Mann. “In light of the recent tragedy in the United States we need to focus our energy on the true human spirit that out weighs the likes of terrorists. We can’t lose sight of the millions of men and women who will risk their lives to help in whatever fashion they can to make this world a better place to be.”

Colette works for the “Canadian Mental Health Association” in Sudbury. For the past three years she has raised the highest individual total in the Great Billboard Rescue Fund-Raiser. In that time her contribution has been close to $9,000, so Colette certainly knows how to volunteer as well as how to sing about it. When friends heard her song, they urged Colette to record it. She then asked her friend, Kevin White for assistance and they used Dave Petryna’s recording studio to create the recording. It was then sent to Bonn Germany where it was selected as one of the 27 songs to be included on the special CD. The rest is history.