When a curling club in the Kootenays was struggling for its life, an act of kindness was just the ticket to keep their hopes alive.

The following story was submitted by Gordon Weiss, the president of Nelson Curling Club.

“In the south east corner of BC there are many small towns and cities that all share a similar life style, and in truly Canadian fashion there are many curling clubs large and small scattered around. In February of last year the Nelson Curling Club, in a small city of 10,000 people, had an unexpected shut down of their ammonia plant. A small ammonia leak was suspected and it resulted in a total shut down of the ice plant and the end of the 2019 curling season for Nelson.

“As the Nelson club began to scramble for funds and support to fix their ice plant, the Creston Curling Club which is approximately 2 hours south east of Nelson and on the other side of the Selkirk mountain range, were quickly making plans to help the Nelson club by holding a benefit bonspiel to raise money to help the Nelson club pay for their repairs.

“Without being asked and with very little internal debate the Creston Curling Club stepped up and announced that they would hold a benefit cash spiel in October of last year to support Nelson. So on the October Halloween weekend the Creston Club held a bonspiel which raised almost $11,000 for the Nelson club. Thirty-eight teams attended the spiel coming from all parts of the Kootenays and some from the USA as well.

“The bonspiel was a great event and a really wonderful example of how people come to the aid of others in need. It was a cash spiel with money as the prizes, and as it turned out the event winners gave their winnings back in generous support of Nelson. It’s not surprising that this overwhelming show of kindness and generosity would come from the city of Creston, which is the centre of a small farming and ranching community located on the east side of a pristine agricultural valley situated between the Selkirk and Purcell mountains. Creston has been known throughout the years for its warm-hearted country folk and their strong neighbourhood and community support. People come to the Creston Valley for the climate and the geographical beauty and stay for the people and the life style.

“The Nelson Curling Club is very grateful for this extraordinary gesture.

“The Nelson Curling Club like many other curling clubs is faced with the challenge of having to maintain old infrastructure, in a difficult economic time. The club was able to repair their ice plant and thankfully are back to curling again, due to their hard work, grant moneys and the support that they have received from local businesses, government and individuals. The club was recently successful in garnering support from city council that passed a resolution to support curling, and recreation in general.

“The people of Nelson along with the curling community are ever hopeful that the sports and recreation facilities in Nelson will be maintained for future generations.”

-Gordon Wiess, NCC President

Picture shows, Ross Gowan, Director, Creston CC, Vern Ronmark, Bonspiel Chairman, Creston CC, Gordon Wiess, President Nelson CC and Terry Webster, President Creston CC.