Soper, Button honoured for volunteerism

For the second consecutive year Recreation Newfoundland and Labrador has honoured a number of volunteers on the island for their dedication to grass root recreation programs - and two of those volunteers are from the local area.

Nick Soper, president of the Airport Nordic Ski Club, and Roland Button, chair of the Centreville-Wareham-Trinity recreation committee, were two of the 24 volunteers honoured throughout the province.

Wanda Wight, president of Recreation Newfoundland and Labrador, said the 24 volunteers are doing their part to give people of this province an opportunity to get out and get active.

"There are a multitude of beneficial reasons to participate in any form of recreation," Wight said. "Using recreation as a step towards a healthy lifestyle is one of the most important. An active life is certainly a life that has a good chance of being a healthy life."

Besides being a key figure in the development of the ski club and its facility, Soper was a member of a group of people who spearheaded the start of minor soccer in Gander back in the 1990s. He's also a former president of the association.

Like many volunteers, Soper got involved because his children were interested. After his two daughters were finished with minor soccer, Soper moved on to skiing. Although he's the one who was recognized by Recreation Newfoundland and Labrador, Soper believes the entire volunteer group with the local ski club unofficially won the award.

"There's a pretty big group of volunteers, so although I'm the one getting recognized, it's important to remember there's a group of people responsible for the work being done with the club," said Soper. "I can't name just any one person because there are so many different people involved with things like lighting, organizing races, grooming, and whatnot. Our board is between 10 and 15 members, and there are a lot of people outside the board, so it's a huge group effort."

Button's efforts in Centreville-Wareham-Trinity have been concentrated on hockey rinks. For more than 40 years, Button has been part of a team that's given the people in that area a sheet of ice to skate on. Before the people of Centreville-Wareham-Trinity could enjoy a roofed rink, Button and his team helped lay the foundation for an outdoor rink.

"I've been involved for more than 40 years. Before we had what's there now, we had an outdoor rink," said Button. "From there, we started working with government funds, as well as our own funds, and we finally got into putting a roof over it. For the past three or four years, a couple of us have been operating the arena at our own cost (free labour), and that's what helps keep it going."

Basically, Button and his team are doing what others usually get paid to do. However, he's not worried about paychecks, just as long as the youth of the area continue to use and enjoy what was once an outdoor facility.

"You get so involved in it, and you don't want to see anything damaged or broken, you just want to keep it going," he said. "You work so hard to get these things, we got a new Zamboni five years ago, you want to see it kept up."

Both men agree that being honoured for their countless hours of volunteerism is a great feeling. For Button, he said it's a matter of wanting to keep the years and years of work alive, and for Soper, he said it's thrilling watching their hard work progress throughout the years. "It's nice to be recognized...it's been a long time coming. I know we've been recognized before, but not to this extent," said Button. "We go to the AGM meetings and we never got any recognition, but this year the Town nominated me. When you're involved so long, and you're from a place where everybody knows you, it's an honour."

"We look back at the facility and remember when there was nothing there. It was just about 10 years ago when we moved out there, and we either cut every alder or arranged for them to be cut," added Soper. "All of the hands on work is either done by us, or we pay contractors to come do it for us. We mapped out all the trails, and spent hundreds of hours in the woods determining where the trails should go. It's a facility we badly needed, and now that it's there, a lot of us love using it."

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