My curling story starts in 1976 at the Canadian Junior Men’s Curling Championships in Kapuskasing, Ontario. My husband, let’s call him Mr. C, was the second on team Ontario. Well, the team didn’t make it to the playoffs but a good time was had by all! Apparently the ‘parties’ were very good, especially with some members of the Northern Ontario team (who I note shared the same fate). One kid from that team, let’s call him Mr. H, was from Copper Cliff, Ontario.
Fast forward 5 years when high school and university was completed. Mr. C was looking for another player for his men’s team at the Avonlea Curling Club. The Club Manager mentioned that there was a new member looking to curl competitively. His name was Mr. H and he was from Copper Cliff, Ontario. Well, you guessed it, it was the one and only!
Mr. C and Mr. H were reunited and curled competitively together at Avonlea C.C. and then at Richmond Hill C.C. Upon retirement about 10 years ago, Mr. & Mrs. H retired to Collingwood so the 40 year curling legacy of Mr. H and Mr. C ended…. well almost. In 2019, they reunited once again and captured the Grand Aggregate at the Quebec International Bonspiel!
While no longer curling, they remain the best of friends. Our families are very close, in fact, we now are enjoying retirement life with cottages on the same lake. This past summer, during one of our habitual “happy hours” on the dock, we reminisced about our long history. We discussed travelling somewhere special in 2026 to celebrate the “50” years of friendship. Ironically, one of the places proposed was St. John’s, Nfld. as Mr. H. has never been there! We also thought about how fun it would be to travel to a Brier some time soon.
The 2026 Brier in St. John’s….what a great way to celebrate 50 years of friendship….which started on the curling ice!
PS – the enclosed picture is of the 4 of us at the 1985 Richmond Hill CC Shillelagh Mixed Bonspiel.
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