Good ice is vital at curling clubs.
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To help make good, predictable ice, you need a good ice scraper, and the Tillsonburg Curling Club was able to purchase one in October 2023 thanks to a $19,000 grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation.
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Oxford MPP Ernie Hardeman and Lori Van Opstal, an Ontario Trillium Foundation grant review board volunteer in the Thames Valley region, visited the club Friday morning to watch the senior men’s league curl and see the results of the new Ice King Monarch ice profiling machine, aka ice scraper.
“Having the ability to provide consistently good ice will allow the club to continue offering the many leagues and events that have drawn people here for decades,” said Hardeman during a break in the senior men’s games.
“I want to thank the people who wrote the great application,” Hardeman added, “because this (Government of Ontario OTF) program is wonderful. We have a good group of appointed people on the Trillium foundation who volunteer their time to review all the applications and then decide who should get the money, where we will get the greatest benefit to build strong communities in Ontario.”
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“Ontario Trillium Fund targets community non-profit organizations that could use a little stimulus, a little bit of help,” said Van Opstal. “So, by doing this, I get to see all the different organisms. It’s just been a fascinating experience.”
The curling club, which has operated in Tillsonburg since 1954, is celebrating its 70th anniversary.
“It is a milestone – a big milestone – but unfortunately it also comes with an aging building and aging equipment,” said TCC president Diane Kleer.
In 2022-23, their ice compressor broke down and the club’s capital fund salvaged the season. However, in 2023-24, they needed to replace the ice scraper.
“I know a lot of our members – practically all of our members – have been fundraising and doing various different things, but without this Trillium grant, we would be in a really terrible state,” said Kleer.
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The old ice scraper was 40-plus years old, Kleer noted.
“It was hard to use, and it was becoming unsafe for our ice maker. So, without the $19,000 that the Ontario Government and the Ontario Trillium Fund gave us, we probably would not have been able to do another season with that old machine. If we did not have that (new) machine, those doors would not have opened because we wouldn’t have been able to produce ice to allow you to continue playing.”
The Tillsonburg Curling Club, a not-for-profit organization, offers junior, senior, men’s, ladies, mixed and recreational leagues, with numerous bonspiels and competitions throughout the season.
Hardeman stressed the importance of sharing the sport of curling with the community to help the club grow.
“You can have a great time joining the club… and you don’t even have to know (curling) before you start,” said Hardeman.
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