Stratford, ON - ALLIANCE Hockey is pleased to announce that
Bob & Pat Caron (London, ON) have been named recipients of the 2022 ALLIANCE Hockey Award of Merit.
AWARD OF MERIT –
PATRICIA CARON, OAKRIDGE AEROS MINOR HOCKEY
ROBERT CARON, OAKRIDGE AEROS MINOR HOCKEYWatch the full video HERE!
The ALLIANCE Hockey Award of Merit Award honours those individuals who have provided outstanding contributions, involvement and service to ALLIANCE Hockey. ALLIANCE Hockey Award of Merit recipients have displayed commitment to the ideals of ALLIANCE Hockey, have worked tirelessly for the improvement of the game at their local Association level and have had a notable impact on both the game and the players involved. Awards of Merit are awarded by the ALLIANCE Hockey Executive Committee.
By definition, 'partners' is a pair of people engaged together in the same activity. For Bob and Pat Caron, their partnership is for life and carries with it a dedication and commitment to all those around them. The Carons are steadfast fixtures when it comes to volunteerism in the City of London, with years of effort focused on both minor hockey and minor baseball.
Bob and Pat have worked as a team throughout their numerous years of volunteering and have tackled a variety of jobs such as Coach, Board Member, Trainer, Manager, Convenor, Tournament Director and the list goes on.
With a specific appreciation for the younger age levels, Bob and Pat recognized that some of their involvement was as a result of their friendship with Bob Stark. Coach Stark was a committed volunteer in his own right and would be more than proud of how Bob and Pat have carried the volunteering torch.
“We didn’t do it for accolades, we had as much fun as they (the kids) did, maybe more!”, noted Bob.
“It makes me feel pretty good but I already felt good doing this for all these years!", expressed Pat after being presented with her ALLIANCE Hockey Award of Merit.
With their own kids having long graduated from minor sport, the Carons have continued to be leaders amongst their peers and are always some of the first people to help out whenever needed. Dedicating long days and sometimes even longer nights to games and events (which has included scheduling, maintenance, problem-solving, coordinating teams and volunteers, etc.) they always do it with a smile.
Bob and Pat receive nothing but appreciation from their fellow volunteers. The Oakridge Aeros Minor Hockey Association hosts an annual house league tournament that typically sees over a 100 teams in attendance. "It happened every so often to fall on Family Day weekend so it was always great, we could count on a consistent product, great feedback, (and it was) well attended.Our community hockey teams had fun and they knew what they were getting here in London…Pat did a fantastic job getting us organized, getting our schedules, getting volunteers round up", recalled current Oakridge Aeros Minor Hockey President, Darcy Goettling. "Bob also was our coach mentor for hockey development. He would be in charge of checking clinics…ensuring all of our players were safely moving up to that next level."
"It was always about making them (the kids) better for me. Making them better hockey players, let them have some fun…those were the 2 keys points for me," said Bob.
Congratulations on your 2022 ALLIANCE Hockey Award of Merit and thank you Pat and Bob!
The impact of your contributions to minor sport is immeasurable.
L to R - Justin Hoffer, ALLIANCE Rep Council Chair, Bob & Pat Caron, Darcy Goettling, President Oakridge Aeros Minor Hockey
With support from Darren Stevenson,519 Sports Online.