The host committee of the 2024 Manitoba Summer Games powered by Manitoba Hydro held a pep rally for its many volunteers, last week.
The event gave the 800 volunteers a chance to get the information they will need when the games kick off next week.
Carla Wolfenden, co-chair of the host committee, is pleased with the number of people who stepped up to volunteer at this year’s edition of the games.
“When we scheduled this and at the beginning, we were worried about our volunteer numbers. But, as usual, Dauphin came through and to see so many people show up for the pep rally is just amazing,” she said.
As the games draw near, Wolfenden said they are starting to see the result of all the meetings held over the years.
“This is just the beginning. We can’t wait for the games,” she said.
Although the online registration for volunteers has closed, anyone who still wishes to lend a hand can do so.
“We do have a student that will be set up in the lobby at Credit Union Place. So you can still go and see her to sign up and volunteer,” Wolfenden said.
The excitement about the games started building about two weeks ago, Wolfenden said. That was when they started checking things off of their to-do list.
“And now it’s every day we’re checking things off our list that are complete and readyo to go,” she added.
“Just to see other people getting excited gets me excited and really happy. It makes all of the work worthwhile.”
And after so many years of planning, there is also a sense of relief building that the games are almost here.
“It will be nice to have some spare time again. And I really want that for all of our executive and sub-committee chairs, as well, because we’ve asked all these people to give us their time and it’s been a lot of time that they’ve put in. So I’m excited for all of our host society to celebrate all their hard work that they put in and enjoy this time after,” she said.
At this point it’s just a matter of getting the little things done to get ready, such as decorating the different venues and facilities, to add to the look and feel of the games.
“The pep rally is a big kickoff to that, getting all those packages out to the volunteers. We’ve got to finalize bus schedules and finalizing meals for all these athletes and a lot of printing that needs to be done. Now our sponsorship drive is over, we need to print all that signage,” Wolfenden said.
“So there’s a lot of last minute stuff, but it’s doable. There will be little fires put out along the way, but so far nothing has been unmanageable by any means.”
The evening included the announcement of a $150,000 donation made by the Haverluck family for the Myles Haverluck Athletics Facility at the Dauphin Regional Comprehensive Secondary School.
Haverluck’s daughter’s Kristen Haverluck, Sara Watson and Brenna Haverluck were on hand for the announcement.
“We are so lucky, because we were so excited to be able to provide this rubberized track to the community and the school division. And to have them come on board to sign on as the naming rights of the facility for 10 years, just gave us that means to stick with our plans and do it right and it’s really turned into an amazing facility,” Wolfenden said.
“That track is going to be well used. We hope there’s a track and field club that comes out of this. I know there’s going to be a lot of people from the community using it. And I think there’s going to be more kids interested in running.”
Watson, said the donation was made to honour the memory of their father.
“He loved making an impact in the community of Dauphin. And we thought this was a good fit, because this project encompasses a lot of what he loved. He loved sports. He loved kids. He loved healthy living. So it was just a good fit,” she said.
“I think it will be special, because all of his grandchildren, our children, are going through that school and so they get to see their grandpa’s name on the fence and we’re just keeping his name and his legacy alive.”
An official grand opening of the facility is scheduled to take place at a later date.
