IN MEMORY OF ROB STIRLING (1926-2021)

It is with great sadness that we announce the death of one of our oldest and longest-serving members of the Wolfville Curling Club. Rob Stirling passed away on March 17 at the age of 94. 

More commonly known as Rob or to some of his closest friends Robbie and in the curling world known as the apple guy. Rob started curling at the Wolfville Curling Club sometime in the late ’40s or early ’50s. He and his Father A.R. Stirling, brothers JD, and David formed a competitive curling team in the early '50s and competed in provincial play. Rob had a passion for the game and the club, he would travel throughout the Province to play in competition whether it was a 1 day or a full weekend spiel and wherever he went he took a basket of fresh apples for all to enjoy. He loved to compete against the very best players. One time a potential Provincial Champion asked him why he always came to these competitions if he could not win. His answer was simple, there is only one winner and the rest of us are all losers, either you lose the first game or the last game. Without the losers, there would not be any competition. Rob was President of the club from 1980-81 and was made Honorary Lifetime Member in 2009

In Memorium, Rob Stirling

Rob was always looking for ways to improve ice conditions and was instrumental in the ice-making at both the old building (3 sheets) and the new rink built back in 1965 (4 sheets). He was one of the first to use insulation in the floor to stop frost heaves. In the old rink at the far end of sheet 3 every spring there would be a frost heave just in front of the rings, one summer he dug down to find out why and he came upon a huge rock, big enough he could not get it out, so he covered it with a piece of insulation, recovered it with dirt and sand. It never moved again. He was very involved in the removal of the old rink and helping out with the layout of the new rink. Next time you are coming into Wolfville and as you drive past Hennigar's market look (keeping one eye on the road) towards the Stirling farm on the left and where they park the transport trucks for loading the building attached to the main warehouse with the peaked roof. That peaked roof was part of the old Wolfville Curling Club. They cut out sections of the roof and moved it and reassembled it at the farm. After they built the new ice shed and added the 4th sheet Rob took the old compressor and changed the size of the pulleys to speed it up to ensure there was enough power to make 4 sheets of ice. Saved the club from purchasing a new compressor at the time. That compressor was installed somewhere between 1958-9 and lasted until 2001

Rob was always looking for ways to improve the ice conditions. Back in the day, there were no scrapers or knowledge of things like water quality, dehumidifiers and of course no heat. He was one of the first to use a pressure system to pebble, he came up with a nozzle and Jack Herbin drilled out the holes to get the proper spray pattern. He also came up with a special spray nozzle for putting a heavy spray on the ice to get ready for weekend competitions. This nozzle is still used today while doing ice installation.

As the years passed Rob found it more and more difficult to throw from the hack and after a shoulder injury he started throwing with the Stick and never looked back. Not sure when that was but somewhere around 1990. He and Hubert Sullivan started playing regularly with the stick and competed regularly in Provincial Playdowns. As Rob’s sight failed one time Hubert installed a light on the bottom of his broom so Rob could see where the broom was. At a Playdown, another competitor went to the official (the late Ted Lohnes) and asked if that was legal and his response was these guys are well into their 80s and still curling and I am not going to stop them legal or not!

In Rob’s later years he always wanted to play lead and he played it well. Placing those so important first stones in the perfect place every time. Maybe he could not see the other end very well or hear what was going on but he loved the game and never wanted to miss a game. He played his last game early in the season of 2019-2020 in his 93rd year and up to his final days thought he might get back one more time. He will be missed.

 

SUCCESS AT THE MEMORIAL BONSPIEL After 12 months of Covid shutdowns and restrictions, the Wolfville Curling Club was finally able to stage a successful bonspiel, the 1st Annual Memorial Bonspiel. This event was to celebrate, remember, and honour members of our club who have died recently. Sixteen teams signed up and played in two divisions. At the beginning of Draw 1 and Draw 2 teams lined up by their rocks. After a minute of silence, selected WCC members threw a ceremonial rock on each sheet. The rocks had on them the names John Dorman, Mac Maidens, Cal McMillan, Mike Graves, and Rob Stirling. A new plaque of remembrance has been created and will be hung on the "Memorial Wall" in the clubhouse. Play continued Friday night and all day Saturday for the 16 teams. All games were six (6) ends. Points are awarded for ends won and games won. Results: 1st Place with 39 pts. - Fred, Geoff, Sam and Ben Crouse > 2nd Place with 37 pts - The Youden's and Silver's > 3rd Place with 32 pts - Perry Graves

The Crouse Boys Youden's / Silver's

 

Memorial Service

 

MANY THANKS

The Wolfville Curling Club is known across the NS Curling world as a wonderful place to visit and play. That is because of the members of this club who step up and do things to make events successful. But there are several very special people in this club.

For over 30 years, Audrey has been giving freely of her time and talents to support the WCC. Including this Memorial Bonspiel. For this event, she planned, created teams lists, created the Draw schedule, recorded the results, tallied the scores, cooked the shredded pork, created the sliders, served the refreshments after each end (with helpers.) And more. Every WCC member ought to look Audrey in the eye and say thank you.

Betty has been our President for the past 2 and a half years. With her background in health sciences, she was exactly the right person for WCC during the Covid crisis. She paid close attention to details, to pronouncements, to changes. She built our protocols and spent many days and nights at the club helping us stay safe and open. That was again the story for this bonspiel. We were able to have this event safely and within the guidelines.

The bar is an important part of the hospitality, service, and finances of the WCC. Greg spends hours keeping the bar supplied, equipped, and operating. He and Vern volunteer their time to run the bar and serve refreshments. During Covid this has meant delivering drink orders to the tables, downstairs and up, so that when teams come off the ice their refreshments are ready. Again, Greg and Vern have gone well beyond to support us.

We are so lucky to have Tony Stirling as our ice-maker. He is one of the best in Nova Scotia and for all of us who curl at Wolfville we know it. Thanks Tony and your volunteers.

This year at every event, members have cleaned tables and chairs, sanitized rock handles, and score boards, run 50-50's, and lego counts. We have had a successful year despite Covid because of you, the WCC members.

 

MEMORIAL BONSPIEL CHANGE

The Wolfville Curling Club had started the John Dorman Spiel to remember John. This year we would like to honour him and several others who have passed away therefore we are changing the name to the Annual Memorial Curling Tournament.

There are many individuals who have supported our club and have passed away. The purpose of this event is to remember these individuals and share our many fond memories. The winning team will be awarded the John Dorman Memorial trophy which will be known as the Memorial trophy. As well a new WCC Memorial Plaque commemorating our members who have passed will be unveiled.

 

WOLFVILLE CURLING CLUB COVID-19 GUIDELINES

The Wolfville Curling Centre expects to open for curling this winter. Your executive members have put in long hours building guidelines to make curling safe.

These guidelines have been developed for the safe reopening of the Wolfville Curling Club for curling and the use of the liquor-licensed lounge, as well as to help mitigate future COVID-19 risks. Our main goal is to have a 2020-21 curling season in the safest way possible with the hopes of having an enjoyable experience for our members/guests even though it will look different this season.

Prior to opening, members will be trained by a member of our Covid Committee or a trained designate on the new procedures. The communication plan will include sharing the guidelines and any subsequent updates via email, website, social media, and posting at the club. Orientation sessions will take place on the ice during the first week of league play for each league.

The Wolfville Curling Club has developed these guidelines to agree with the approved Nova Scotia Curling Return to Play plan and the current Nova Scotia Public Health orders. The plan was created by a committee consisting of executive members and leads of divisions. This is a living document and the guidelines will be updated, and members informed of any changes, as required.

In the spirit of curling, we are striving for all members, and guests, to be treated with respect and kindness. We‘re all in this together!