The Sackville Curling Club will have a new ice maker this season after the club’s longtime ice technician stepped down because of personal responsibilities.
Club president David Weeks has volunteered to take an ice-making course before volunteers begin putting in the ice this fall. Weeks said he already knows how to maintain the ice but has never been responsible for installing it.
“I do know how to do ice, to maintain it. I just don’t know exactly how to put it in,” Weeks said. “This year’s going to be a little bit of a challenge. Hopefully it only takes us another day or two longer to put the ice in than it did last year. But we’re not worried about it. We’re just going to deal with it.”
Weeks is in his second year as president of the club. He joined the Sackville Curling Club after moving to Sackville in 1999. Before moving to New Brunswick, he curled in Prince Edward Island for 15 years.
He said the people at the club are what have kept him involved.
“It’s the people more than anything else. They’re just a fantastic bunch of people.”
The club’s season usually begins in October, when volunteers spend two to three weeks putting in the ice. Although registration is now done online, the club still holds a registration night so members can see the ice before the season begins.
The club offers Little Rocks for elementary school-aged children, a junior program, men’s and women’s leagues, and two mixed leagues. Weeks and his wife also run the Learn to Curl program, which introduces new curlers to the sport each year.
The building hosts wedding receptions, banquets and other rentals throughout the year. A local business also uses the kitchen two days a week to prepare meals. Last summer, the club started holding Friday game nights during the off-season.
Weeks said the club has about 160 members but has room for more. The club is always looking for ways to attract more members to replace those the club loses each year through attrition.
“We could probably take 200,” Weeks said. “I’d like to see another 20 members in the building to start. I’d like to see a class of Learn to Curl people of about 10 to 15 people.”
The club has also continued investing in its facilities. Weeks said about $120,000 worth of equipment was installed last year, and another project worth about $50,000 is planned this year. Grants and donations have helped pay for some of the work while allowing the club to plan for future repairs.
Weeks said there was a time when some members questioned whether the club would survive because of its aging membership. He said that has changed over the past few years as younger curlers have joined. The club now has curlers as young as six years old, while some members in their 80s still play two or three times a week. Weeks said members who can no longer throw a rock because of age or injuries can continue curling through the club’s stick league.
Looking ahead, Weeks said he hopes the work being done now will keep the club strong for years to come.
“I’d just like to set this place up 10 years down the line, 15 years down the line, that it’s as good or better,” he said.
