By Susan Bondar
The curling season wrapped up with the Jam Can Bonspiel on March 22 and 23. There were 56 youth participating and they all seemed to have had a great time.
The number of youth was down this year because the event was held at the end of Spring Break, and many families were away.
Apparently in the ‘old days’ of the Jam Can, there was up to 200 youth involved. That would have been extremely busy for all that helped out.
This year, the level of activity by the youth increased throughout the event, and the sales of candy at the concession were brisk.
Some of the youth are getting to be quite good curlers, as they have participated in the Jam Can for numerous years, and also attended the youth curling program throughout the season.
Thank you to Louise Dunstan and Darin Underhill for heading up the after school youth curling program.
Other people that helped out each week were Audrey Rilcoe, Val Aylward, Chris Shook, Grant Craig and Gisela Maendlen. They assisted with coaching and handing out snacks for the young people.
The Jam Can curlers had a spaghetti dinner banquet on the Friday night, and ended the curling event with hot dogs and ice cream.
It seems these traditions are what the youth look forward to each year.
Thank you to the people that ran the concession and made the dinner, Laura Mairs, Marnie Pfeifer, Val Aylward, Susan Bondar and Evelyn Pilatzke.
The entry fee for the Jam Can is kept very reasonable so all families can afford to have their children participate. This is only possible because of the generous donations from businesses and individuals in the community. The donors included: A&W, Barriere Elementary PAC, Bondar Forest Planning, Fennell Ranch, Georgina Salle, Lions Club of Barriere, and Stamer Logging. Thank you to all that gave time and money to make the Jam Can Bonspiel a success.