The 8th Annual Valley East Sports Hall of
Fame induction was held on
Sunday, December 4, 2005
at the Howard Armstrong Recreation Centre. The four people who were added
to the prestigious assembly of individuals bring the total number of Hall
of Fame members to thirty-seven. Barry Newell, who unfortunately passed
away a little over a year ago, was selected as an entry in the Volunteer
Category. Accepting his award was his wife, Bev Newell, second from the
right in the photo. Mr. Rick Walker, owner of Consbec Inc. was inducted in
the Sponsor Category. He was represented by his oldest son, Richard, shown
on the far left. Leo Bertuzzi, on the far right, was selected in the
Amateur Category. And, finally, Jeff Walker, 2nd from the left,
was chosen in the Professional Category.
Ron
Dupuis was the master of ceremonies for the event. He explained that,
“This year’s inductees were selected based on their outstanding
contributions to sports in
Valley East
. They were chosen because of the difference they made in our community
and the impact they had on young people’s lives. They were and still
are, excellent role models for our young.”
Dupuis,
along with Dan Yachuk and Henri Lebouthilier, form the Hall of Fame
Committee.
Barry
Newell, this year’s Volunteer inductee, will best be remembered for his
work with young hockey officials. In his role as Referee-in-Chief of the
Valley East Minor Hockey Association, he personally trained and nurtured
many excellent young boys and girls. He always made sure that when a
referee or linesman stepped onto the ice that person was absolutely
prepared to handle the job. Barry also “backed up” and showed support
for his officials in difficult situations. This writer will always
remember one incident back around the year 1995, when my youngest son,
Marty, was refereeing a house league tournament game at Centennial Arena.
Marty refused to allow an entire coaching staff from starting a game
because he had watched them drinking in the community hall upstairs during
the game before. While the decision caused much commotion and hostility
towards this young official, Barry Newell stood by the decision and showed
total support for his official. The game proceeded with replacement
coaches, and Marty continued to develop his skills, both on and off the
ice. Today Marty is a referee in the Ontario Hockey League and a police
officer with the Peel Regional Police. Barry Newell’s influence on Marty
had a lot to do with the kind of person he is today.
Anyone
who has lived in
Valley East
, or in the Greater Sudbury Area for that matter, will recognize the name,
Leo Bertuzzi, who is a very worthy selection to the Sports Hall of Fame.
Leo was involved a great deal in hockey during the early years and was a
generous sponsor through his business, The Woodland Hotel, which once
stood where the current Pizza Hut plaza is now located. While the
Woodland
will be remembered in many different ways by local residents, one cannot
forget that Shania Twain once “sang” on the stage there and also that
it was the original site of the Valley East Boxing Club, which continues
to this day at the Ray Plourde Arena. Leo’s fame in sports was in the
boxing ring, where he fought as a Middleweight all over
Ontario
. He is also a member of the Canadian Boxing Hall of Fame. During his
acceptance speech, Bertuzzi left a very important message for the young
people in the audience, “When you learn how to work hard today, you’ll
work hard for the rest of your life because it’s in your heart.”
Rick
Walker, who is known for the company he founded, Consbec Inc., is also
recognized as the person who brought ‘AAA’ Midget hockey to
Valley East
. He has always given generously to the Consbec ‘AAA’ Major Midget
Club, ensuring that the talented young boys who progressed through the
ranks of the Valley East Minor Hockey Association and the Valley East
Progressive Hockey Association would have a place to showcase their
talents and have an opportunity to move on to higher levels. Indeed, many
have gone on to play in the Ontario Hockey League and other professional
leagues around the world. While Rick and his wife, Judy, were out of the
country during the ceremony, his three sons, Richard, Jeff and Trevor,
along with his six grandchildren were all on hand for the presentations.
Jeff
Walker, a person who was a member of the first every Valley East Consbec
‘AAA’ Midgets, was induced
in the Professional Category. Jeff showed a great deal of talent on the
blue line from a very early age. He played for the Peterborough Petes of
the Ontario Hockey League, where he was a finalist in the Memorial Cup
during the 1992-93 season. While with
Peterborough
, his defense partner was none other than Chris Pronger. Jeff was also
drafted by the Detroit Red Wings and took part in several training camps.
He decided to put off a professional career in order to pursue his
education at the
University
of
New Brunswick
and upon graduation became a supervisor with his father’s company,
Consbec, where he continues to develop his career in the mining
construction business. Jeff is a person who demonstrates the same kind of
characteristics both on and off the ice. He carries himself like a
professional and gives 100% in everything he does. During his acceptance
speech, he gave credit to three individuals for having a huge impact on
his life. Those people were Steve Richardson, Dan Lafrance and Ron
Masciangelo.
Gabby
is shown at the left receiving her plaque and gifts from Shelley Martel,
MPP for Nickel Belt. In the background is Gabby's long time friend, Hilda
Kingsley, who was the first Volunteer Hall of Famer every inducted into
the Hall of Fame in 1998.
Bonnie
and Ken Davidson have been in the Tim Horton's business for over 20 years.
They were commended for the wonderful work they are doing with the Tim
Bits Programs in both hockey and soccer. Tim Horton's also sponsors
numerous special activities in the community, including the free skating
at Christmas, free family swims, and community initiatives that help clean
up the environment. On top of that, the Davidson's were shown as examples
of sponsors who work and play in their home community. Ken stated that he
considered this to be "a great honour that has been bestowed upon
Bonnie and I today. We truly appreciate this award and thank everyone for
making this possible." Before the ceremonies, Ken joked that when he
was first called, he thought that he might be getting the induction into
the Hall of Fame for his "golfing skills".
Eric
Larochelle was induced into the Valley East Sports Hall of Fame for his
amateur hockey career which started in the Valley East Minor Hockey
system.
