The Town of St. Marys will soon be unveiling something special to honour local sports heroes.
The Sports Wall of Fame will be revealed to the public at the Pyramid Recreation Centre on Saturday, October 19 at 2 p.m.
Recreation Manager Joannah Campbell says the project was an initiative of the town's Recreation and Leisure Advisory Committee, a group of volunteers in St. Marys.
"This was something that they believed that the representatives of the sport community in this town deserve. So they worked really hard to pull together this process and did a lot of work on the back end to review what was done in other municipalities, some pros and cons, lessons learned, and worked to implement the project for this year," Campbell stated.
Campbell says the initial budgeted cost for the project was $20,000. The first six names going up on the wall include former NHL player Mark Bell, Riley Hern, Dale Levy, Ferris Stewart, Patrick Payton, and the St. Marys Creamery Juniors of 1988.
The nominations for the inaugural inductee class were accepted earlier this spring.
"So in April of 2024, nominations opened to the public and they were open for the entire month of April. So anyone who was a winner of a sporting achievement, a sporting representative, an athlete or coach, a builder, a team in or representing St. Marys," Campbell explained.
Going forward, the town will keep yearly nomination periods in April. Even though that is a while away, Campbell says if you have someone or a team in mind, start putting the package together for submission now.
"Start collecting that information now. It does take a bit of time and some effort to pull together all of the various lists of teams these people played on, or who they coached, or the awards or tournaments or championships that they won," Campbell pointed out.
Everyone is welcome to attend the grand unveiling. Free refreshments will be available in the EndZone upstairs at the Pyramid Recreation Centre following the event, courtesy of the Town.
"We are excited to showcase the outstanding sports achievements in St. Marys," added Campbell. "The strong support and involvement from our community is why it’s important to recognize the dedicated individuals, teams and builders who play a role the success and development of sports in our town."
