Ryan Willman
Arrow Lakes News
Putting on a softball tournament is a lot of work; not only does it take a dedicated group of coordinators that form the core of the event but it also requires the altruistic volunteerism of community members. One cannot function without the other, and both groups of unsung heroes unselfishly donated their time to take care of everything behind the scenes of the August Long tournament. A smoothly run event, with hardly a hiccup to speak of, can only be achieved by sacrificing countless hours of personal time and the success of this year’s tournament is a testament to the efforts of many.
Most times the success of an event is reward in and of itself, but other times the unexpected fringe benefits sweeten the prospect of volunteerism and what goes around can, and does, occasionally come back around.
The Nakusp Slow Pitch Society was more than pleased this year to donate some remuneration to recognize the efforts of the Nakusp and Area Bike Society, who courageously stepped up to shoulder the responsibilities in the tournament’s beer gardens with serving and security.
“All in all it was a huge help,” Slow-pitch society member Ryan Struck commented after he presented a check for $750 in addition to $400 worth of recyclables to the local bike group.
Nakusp and Area Bike Society Treasurer, Christa Rebman, is enthusiastic about the donation saying, “this money is a huge help for us because we are just getting started as a society and we are working on building up a strong membership. Having money in our account helps when we apply for funding or land tenures to show that we are serious and committed.”
Rebman added the society is having a meeting this fall with the Ministry of Forests to get approval for tenure for trails in an area surrounding Nakusp. “Once we have tenure,” Reman explained, “then we can get busy applying for money and start building trails and making Naksup into a destination for all kinds of bike riding.”