Consider volunteering to help maintain your neighbourhood outdoor rink
This photo of three of the rink team who have volunteered to maintain the Kiwanis Park rink for the last five years was taken last winter. From left: Dave Ryan, Robert Krech and Mike Tomlinson.
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Kitchener East - 519-578-8228
Kitchener West - 519-741-5892
By Carrie DebroneKitchener Citizen
If the weather allows and with help from many dedicated volunteers, the city’s 40 outdoor rinks will be operating from January through March.
The rinks, which are mainly located at parks and schools throughout the city, need volunteers to flood, clear and maintain throughout the winter. Rink volunteers work hard to maintain the ice.
In 2010 through its Winter Scene Program, the Kitchener Rangers donated $45,000 to be used until the end of this year towards upgrading existing rinks and tools to take care of the rinks. The money also goes towards opening future neighborhood rinks, as well as recognizing the volunteers who maintain and run them.
Robert Krech helped start the Kiwanis Park rink, which has served the River Ridge Community/Bridgeport East com-munity for five years.
“Each year I have sent out emails to volunteers and
neighbours calling for a family skate or a hockey game.
We did this a few times and people came and skated
or played hockey from about 2 to 5pm. It’s a great rink,” Krech said.
The city has provided the Kiwanis rink with a heated concrete shed housing water and a hose and space to store shovels. It also has a light for night skating and hockey.
Krech said the rink offers the opportunity for a lot of community fun, but he added that dedicated volunteers are needed to maintain all the outdoor rinks in Kitchener.
“Right now our rink could use some people with snow blowers to help if we get hit hard with lots of snow,” he said.
Because outdoor rinks are dependent on weather they may or may not be open and ready for skating.
If the rink is closed please respect it by not skating on it until it is open.
Outdoor rinks in Kitchener are located at:
Admiral Park, 93 Roxborough Ave
Belmont Park, 285 Belmont Ave West
Breithaupt Centre, 350 Margaret Ave
Bridgeport Community Centre, 20 Tyson Drive
Centreville Chicopee Commun-ity Centre, 141 Morgan Ave
Chandler Mowat Community Centre, 222 Chandler Dr
Conway Park, Conway Dr and Wayne Dr
Country Clair Park, Country Clair at Pebble Creek
Country Hills Community Centre, 100 Rittenhouse Rd
Doon Pioneer Park Community Centre, 150 Pioneer Dr
Elmsdale Park, 83 Elmsdale Dr
Filsinger Park, Victoria Street South and Daytona St.
Forest Heights Community Centre, 1700 Queens Blvd
George Lippert Park, Weber St and Louisa St
Glendale Park, Rex Dr and Glen Rd
Guelph Park, Guelph St and Clifton Rd
John Darling Public School, 200 Rolling Meadows Dr
King Edward Public School, 709 King St West(on Walter St near Agnes)
Kiwanis Park, 600 Kiwanis Dr
Lakeside Park, Lakeside and Gatewood
MacKenzie King Public School, 51 Natchez Rd
Max Becker Commons, Max Becker and Commonwealth
Mill-Courtland Community Centre, 216 Mill St
Morrison Park, Morrison Rd
Pioneer Park West, 40 Green Valley Dr
Prueter Public School, 40 Prueter Ave
Salvation Army Church, 75 Tillsley Drive
Sheppard Public School, 278 Weber St. E. at Stirling
Smithson Public School, 150 Belleview Ave
Southridge Public School, 1425 Queens Blvd
Stanley Park Community Centre, 505 Franklin St North
Stanley Park Public School, 191 Hickson Dr
Suddaby Public School, 171 Frederick St and Lancaster St
Timberlane Park, Timberlane Cres
Vanier Park, 319 Vanier Dr
Victoria Hills Community Centre, 10 Chopin Dr
Victoria Park (2), Jubilee and David St
W.T. Townshend Public School, 245 Activa Ave.
Weber Park, Frederick St and Edna St
Westmount Public School, 329 Glasgow St and Dunbar Rd
To volunteer at the Kiwanis Park outdoor rink call 519-741-2389 or for more information about Kitchener’s outdoor rinks visit www.kitchener.ca/en/living inkitchener/OutdoorRinks.asp