Just For The Fun Of It

We join the rest of the Kingston Community in mourning the passing of Dan Wannemacher last week. Dan was a great supporter of our programme, and he believed in what we are doing in the league. He and Ruth were very generous with both their time, and their donations to help us be successful for the children in the community. Here are the details of the visitation and funeral arrangements.

Daniel Jacob Wannemacher
WANNEMACHER, Daniel Jacob – Owner of Kingston Family Fun World & Putt n’ Blast Passed away on Friday, July 22nd, 2016. Beloved husband of Ruth. Proud and loving Dad of Patricia, Evelyn and Hilary. Dear son of Shirley Wannemacher (the late Hilary) of Ohio, USA. Brother of Meg Garnett (Rod), Lisa Myers, Jeff Wannemacher and Sarah Tiefenthaler (Dave). Brother-in-law of Tim Kirkby (Susan), Julie Kirkby (Don), Ted Kirkby (Dawn) and Bob Kirkby. Son-in-law of Donald Spence. Dan will be fondly remembered by his nieces, nephews, extended family, many friends and truly amazing team, past and present, at Kingston Family Fun World and Putt n’ Blast. Relatives and friends are invited to visit at ROBERT J. REID & SONS – THE CHAPEL ON THE CORNER , 309 Johnson Street (at Barrie St.) on Wednesday, July 27th from 1 – 4 p.m. and 6 – 9 p.m. Funeral Mass will be held on Thursday, July 28th in ST. MARY’S CATHEDRAL , 279 Johnson Street, at 10 o’clock in the morning. Reception to follow. As expressions of sympathy, donations in memory of Dan to Special Olympics – Kingston Community would be greatly appreciated by the family. Online guestbook available at www.reidfuneralhome.com

Wow! It is hard to believe that a mere eight weeks from today is registration day for the 2016 -17 season of the Pete Petersen Basketball League! Mark Saturday September 10 in your calendars, on your refrigerators, on your phone, ipad and any other device that reminds you of places that you need to be.

Date: Saturday September 10, 2016
Place: St. Patrick School, 158 Patrick Street
Time: 9-10:30am (don’t forget that space is limited)
Cost: $10 for the season
All ages are the age that the player will be on April 1, 2017
Little Guys – Boys 8-10 (Tuesday nights)
Biddy – Boys 11-12 (Monday nights)
Graduate – Boys 13-15 (Monday nights at Ecole Cathedrale)
Little Gals – girls 8-10 (Thursday nights)
Girls – girls 11-14 (Wednesday nights)
All games at St. Pat’s with the exception of the Graduate Division.

Proof of age for the player required to register.

THERE IS NO ONLINE OR PRE REGISTRATION. FIRST COME FIRST SERVED. If you cannot be there, someone else can register your child for you, and you will then need to sign the permission form prior to the player participating in any activities.

SEE YOU THEN!

I just got back from the St. Lawrence Basketball camp after watching the Week Two participants, many of whom, are from our program.They were going through three on three rotations and finished the morning with a spirited game of bump with campers and instructors sharing in the fun.
I was glad to see a good mix of instruction, and also an activity before lunch that was a great reminder of how much fun the game we love can be. I was also reminded that we are so very fortunate in this area to have the opportunity that we do, to allow children to get to camps. The commitment of the coaches, administrators and instructors at St. Lawrence College, Queen’s University, Holy Cross Secondary School and Regiopolis Notre Dame is to be commended. They are not only providing an opportunity to learn, they are putting their instructors in positions of leadership in the sports community. Each camp offers something for players to work on, and as a wise man who founded a basketball league in town once told me, there is no substitute for what you learn about the game and yourself every time you step on the court! Thank you to all of you who make this happen every summer! RB

On July 7, we had the Annual “Pete” Petersen Golf Tournament at the Colonnade Golf and Country Club with 50 golfers taking part in a day of sometimes good golf, friendship, fun and great food, to raise money for the basketball league. Our thanks to Rick Hollywood, Heather Hollywood and Lindsey Hawkins for their organization of the day, to our hole sponsors Money Mart and VanHeddegem Plumbing, and to the staff at the Colonnade for their hospitality, flexibility and support in hosting us. In total $1642 was raised for the league operation this season.

Today, July 3rd, is a significant day for our league. Today marks the second anniversary of the passing of the league founder Don “Pete” Petersen, and it was one year ago today that we announced that the name of his league was being changed to the “Pete” Petersen Basketball League.
For the last few weeks I have been wondering what to say in this post to help those that both knew Don well, and those that may never have met him undrestand his impact on the community, and on the lives of those he touched. When Muhammed Ali died I read a quote from Kareem Abdul Jabbar about the champ. I would like to “borrow” his sentiment about the Ali and apply it to Pete. Here is my Don Petersen version: Today we bow our heads at the loss of a man that did so much for his community. Tomorrow we will raise out heads again remembering his smile, his laugh, his kindness and all that he did for the sake of the children and others around him. What he did lives on in the best part of each of us who knew him.
If you are lucky you meet two or three people like Don Petersen in yoiur life. Cherish them and share their life lessons. Thanks for all you did for all of us Pete.

On Wednesday June 22 the Ontario Government held an event at the Ambassador Hotel to recognize volunteers from the Kingston area from many organizations. Amoung those recognized were seven volunteers from our league. They were Lindsey Hawkins (15 years), Ryan Wood (15 years), Sarah McDonnell (10 years), Sherrilynn Platt (5 years), Zoe McAuley, Amber Allport, Miles Brackenbury and Colin Bowman (all recognized as youth volunteers). In total, the province recognized volunteers at the event that have contributed 2275 YEARS of volunteer time to organizations in this area. Congratulations to all of the volunteers that were recognized, and a heartfelt THANK YOU to our seven volunteers, and to the MANY others that so selflessly give their time to make our league possible each year. Well done!!

This week St. Lawrence College will be awarding three Honourary Diplomas at their convocation ceremonies. The SLC Press Release is below.

St. Lawrence College Confers Three Honorary Diplomas in Kingston
13/06/2016
12:00 AM –
Each of our Honorary Diploma recipients share a common drive; while they all maintain busy working lives, they all are driven to also give back to their community. St. Lawrence College (SLC) is very proud to recognize these outstanding individuals who continue to inspire our students and graduates. SLC is pleased to announce its Honorary Diploma recipients in Kingston for 2016: Rolland Billings; Don Head; and Peng-Sang Cau.

Rolland Billings (presented at the June 16 ceremony, 6 pm)

Rolland Billings has had an impressive career at Novelis Kingston (formerly Alcan) in production which led to a position as Plant Manager, and then a global executive role in health and safety in the manufacturing setting. Outside of work, Rollie wanted to make a difference in the lives of those on the margins of our community through fundraising and sport. He became involved with the United Way of Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington, working in various positions, including roles within the Campaign Cabinet and as Board Chair. In June of 2013, Rollie was recognized by the United Way for 30 years of volunteer service. Rollie has been President of the Knights of Columbus Basketball League (now the ‘Pete’ Petersen Basketball League) at St. Pat’s School for more than 20 years, but has spent 35 years as a coach, referee, website administrator and unofficial photographer. The league provides an opportunity for more than 500 children from across the city every year to have a safe, affordable and fun place to play in a basketball league at a cost of only $10 per child.

Don Head (presented at the June 17 ceremony, 10 am) As a long-time Kingston resident, Don Head has been a supporter of St. Lawrence College for more than 30 years. His career in the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) has spanned close to four decades and, under his leadership as Commissioner, has developed several key partnerships between CSC and SLC. Don has received numerous commendations and awards throughout his career including the Governor General’s Corrections Exemplary Service Medal and Bar, the Public Service Award of Excellence for Diversity and Employment Equity, the Aboriginal HR Council’s CEO Leadership Award for Diversity and Inclusiveness, and the Federal Council of Visible Minorities Leadership Award for Diversity‎. Don is a proud supporter of the United Way and leads the organizational attainment of goals and its promotion within the Correctional Service of Canada and is clear in his support of the local campaign, even freeing up resources here to assist with the campaign. Another passion of Don’s is the Canadian Cancer Societies’ Daffodil Appeal.

Peng-Sang Cau (presented at the June 17 ceremony, 3 pm)

Peng-Sang Cau and her family arrived in Canada in 1980 as refugees from Cambodia. After graduating at the top of her class in high school, Peng went on to graduate from Queen’s University in 1994 with a Bachelor of Commerce degree. She then held sales and marketing posts at Quantum Information Resources and Lever Pond prior to starting Transformix. Peng founded Transformix in 1995 with three engineers and has since guided its transition from a local provider of engineering services to an international supplier of advanced automation equipment. Peng serves as a director on Kingston General Hospital’s Board and has advised the Ontario Research Council as a member of the Research Matters Panel Advisory Board. Recently Peng was invited by the Schulich School of Business to be on the Advisory Council for the Centre for Global Enterprise. Mayor Patterson has invited Peng to be on the Workforce Development and Immigration Steering Committee. Peng is also a regular speaker at conferences across Canada. This past spring, Peng joined the Honourable John McCallum, Canadian Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, and the Honourable Michael Chan, Ontario Minister of Citizenship, Immigration, and International Trade, for a conversation on immigration reform at Ryerson University.

Convocation ceremonies will be held in Kingston at the Rogers K-Rock Centre on Thursday, June 16 at 6 pm and on Friday, June 17 at 10 am and 3 pm. For complete ceremony details please see our website. For full stories on our Honorary Diploma recipients,

Here are the details for the Cats Basketball Camp run at Regi this August.

August 8-12, 2016

Hosted by Lesley Stevenson

For Grades 2-5 and 6-9 as of September 2016. All Skill levels are welcome.

Where: Regiopolis Notre Dame High School

Phone: 613 484-5443

email – stevenso@alcdsb.on.ca

Details: Grade 3-5 boys and girls – 9 am until noon; Grade 6-8 boys and girls 1 pm – 4 pm

Cost – $80 Cash or $85 cheques payable to Cats Basketball

Skill Focus: Ball Handling, One on One Moves, Lay-ups, Shooting, Getting Open, rebounding, Defence, Basketball Fitness, conditioning, fun and games. 

The family of Don “Pete” Petersen has asked that we post the following notice about the award that has been set up in his honour. Please note the deadline date for applications for the award.

Once again its time to continue Pete’s Lifetime legacy of giving back to the community. The family has established an award of $1000.00 annually to be given to a graduating student continuing post-secondary education who has a history with the “Pete” Petersen Basketball League, formally known as the Knights of Columbus Basketball League. The successful applicant must possess accomplishments in community volunteer work, school activities, academics, and have promising career aspirations who will make a difference in the lives of others as Pete did!
Application Process:
Annual applications will be accepted until the award value is exhausted.
All applications must be completed in full and submitted by the application deadline in order to be considered by the selection committee.
Applications can be picked up at any of the area high schools or at Walker-Payne Insurance 1335 Princess St, Kingston, Ontario ,Info also at Facebook ; Don Pete Petersen Spirit Award
Your application must be emailed / mailed or dropped off to Bridget Walker-Payne C/O Walker-Payne Insurance @ 1335 Princess St., Kingston, Ontario, K7M3E3, or email bridget@bridgetwalker-Payne.com By June 23rd, 2016.
Application Deadline: Thursday June 23rd , 2016 @ 5:00pmET
Recipient Notification By email or Mail or Phone June 29th,2016.

Below is a link to the article in the Whig Standard today about the induction of Mary Jane Besselink into the Kingston and District Sports Hall of Fame. Congratulations Mary Jane!!

http://www.thewhig.com/2016/05/06/humbled-happy-and-excited?utm_source=addThis&utm_medium=addthis_button_email&utm_campaign=%27Humbled%2C+happy+and+excited%27+%7C+The+Kingston+Whig-Standard#.Vy4NgH81ROk.email