We will be building a new outdoor rink in the spring. The existing rink had deteriorated to the point where it is unsafe and major reconstruction is needed. The maintenance done to the old rink over the last few years has carried us this far but we are at the point where re-building is the best option.

Our shortage of parking space is also a factor.

Our plan is to remove the old outdoor rink and build a new one as shown in the picture below. The new rink will have a seal coat base that could be used for other sports when the winter season is over. The space occupied by the old rink will become parking space. Baseball diamond #5 has not been used recently and will not be available for baseball anymore. If all goes as expected, the new rink will be ready for this winter season.

The outdoor rink has been a very popular feature at our Community Club and we expect that will continue. This is a large project for us and we invite the area community to help. For more information, please contact any of our Board of Directors (on this website).

We will be flooding an area at the back of the Arena so that there will be an outdoor ice surface this year. It will be posted on this site when it is ready for use.

PRESIDENT’S REPORT 2007

Soon after I began my first year as president of the St. Andrews Community Club, I quickly realized that I would be continuing a trail developed by the previous Boards. A long-term plan was in place and we were making progress towards implementing that plan. This is still the case in spite of some diversions along the way. Priorities for next year will be to:

• renew our long-term plan with near-term strategies
• promote those strategies with various grant agencies and the RM
• develop effective communication tools that can reach the community
• identify special events that will attract the community, especially young adults
• attract new members to the Board

Our Community Club plays a significant role in the Community. With our summer and winter programs and special events, the Club provides opportunities for our children to grow and improve their skills and for adults to socialize and play. The Board encourages people to visit and take part in all that it has to offer. We want our Club to be a part of the Community and to help in fostering friendships amongst its members by offering facilities that can draw people together. We also want to work with other community groups like the school, fire hall, Citizens on Patrol, adult slow-pitch, and the various local activity groups.

This past year, we probably set an all-time record for spending; $95,000 for a new Zamboni, $20,000 for a reverse osmosis water system, in addition to the on going costs of running the Club. This wouldn’t have been possible without our fundraising efforts, the support of the RM, and the considerable contributions of our Bingo program and the Canteen.

A rejuvenated Special Events program was one of our goals last year to get more people involved with the Community Club. Stephanie successfully resurrected the Crafts Show in November and started a Tots and Moms program and Terry organized a concert featuring local bands. It became evident that communication to residents had to improve for our Special Events to succeed. We now have a website to provide news and to advertise our programs. Use of this tool has to expand to make it current, interactive, relevant, and accessible in every household.

Every year, it’s almost taken for granted that our mainstay programs of Hockey, Skating, and Summer Sports will continue to succeed and contribute to the well being of the Club. This doesn’t happen without the considerable dedication and enthusiasm of the committees for those groups that form the heart of our Community Club programs. You can’t speak of the heart of the Community Club without also acknowledging Darren’s contributions above the call of duty. The recent Triple A Girls Hockey Provincials is just the latest event that Darren was instrumental in bringing here.

I have to mention the rejuvenation of our Summer Sports program. Last year’s Summer Sports committee volunteers all resigned after many years of service and I want to thank those people for their efforts. Moving on, new people with new ideas were needed to keep the popular summer sports program alive. New convenors and a new Summer Sports Director stepped in to do just that with much-appreciated advisory help from last year’s convenors. From what I can see so far, the vitality that these new people brought to the program rejuvenated Summer Sports and is an example of what we need at the Board level also.

Exciting times are still ahead for us. Projects like new dressing rooms, re-building the outdoor rink, completing of the hall modifications, the new soccer fields, and drainage improvements will need prudent planning and active participation from the community. New events, like the upcoming Juried Art Show, will display our Club as the multi-use facility that it is.

Finally, I want to thank all the program and event volunteers, the business community contributors, and the Board members that continue to make St. Andrews Community Club a growing center of activity for our community.

Respectfully submitted,

Gerald Koroscil

President – St. Andrews Community Club