The Ultimate help

Rotary clubs put on tournament

By Eric Wilkins, Staff Writer

Looking for a way to have fun while helping out a good cause? Then look no further, because under Rotary International’s umbrella, Rotaract (the 18-to-30-year-old division) and Interact (12-to-18-year-old division) are putting on an Ultimate Frisbee tournament on April 27—with all proceeds going towards KidSport.

Rotary is recognized as the first worldwide volunteer-service organization and focuses on volunteering within communities, at home, and abroad. With Rotary’s theme this year being “Peace through service,” the organizers settled on a sports tournament as the best way to benefit the community.

“We came up with it sometime in January,” says Rotaract secretary and Douglas College graduate, Corrigan Goodwin.

“In war-torn areas of the world, like Africa and the Middle-East, children from opposite sides of the war will play soccer or something…We were thinking around that idea, how amazing sports are. You can totally despise someone but still have a friendly game, put your differences aside, and have fun,” adds Amber Leverette, another event organizer.

The next step was to decide what sport to focus on. “We didn’t want people to say, ‘I don’t know how to play football,’ or, ‘I can’t do tennis.’” They ultimately settled on Ultimate Frisbee because it was the, “perfect peaceful sport…started by hippies,” says Leverette with a laugh. The self-refereed nature of Ultimate and thus, the necessity and promotion of sportsmanship also played into the decision. “It’s a good representation of what we’re trying to show,” notes Corrigan.

The five-on-five tournament will have both competitive teams and fun teams, with a suggested ratio of three males to two females per line. “And if you just want to have some fun, we’re having a skills area, which is going to be for kids or family or people who just want to throw the Frisbee.” The registration fee is $25 per team or $5 per individual and a donation of a used or new piece of sporting equipment.

Though the registration deadline is April 5, as the tournament isn’t completely full, teams can still try to register past the deadline. Drop-ins on the day of will also be accepted. “We’re not trying to turn anybody away,” says Leverette.

The pair of Rotaract members couldn’t say enough about the support the event has received. “The Record made our poster…they did all the design for free, and Thrifty’s is doing our whole concession and Tim Hortons is bringing their truck out, and G&F Financial is giving us Frisbees, and Douglas College, we just went there asking if we could advertise and everybody said yes,” beams Corrigan.“

Leverette adds: “We definitely thank Thrifty’s, Tim Hortons, G&F Financial, The Record, and the youth centre, and KidSport…honestly, everybody in the community of New Westminster has been amazing to us.”

Leverette finishes with a last pitch, “It’s going to be fun! Even if you don’t play Frisbee, you can watch the tournament…buy a hot dog and sit around, grab cotton candy, or whatever you want. Just come out and enjoy the day!”

When: April 27, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Where: Mercer Stadium, New Westminster

Cost: $25 per team / $5 per individual, with a donation of used or new sporting equipment