A Historical Moment – October 2023
In the seventy-one year history of the Calgary Booster Club, there have only been three Directors who have served for 40 years or more. They are:
- LeRoy Pelletier: He joined the Club in 1969 and retired in 2009. The year he started, our Sportsperson of the Year was Doug Kyle and our president was Doug Mitchell. LeRoy was our president in 1984-85. He was in charge of all athletic events for the Catholic School Board at the same time John Semkuley was in charge of all athletic events for the Public Board and they worked under one umbrella called the CSHSAA. As a Booster Club project, LeRoy revived the famous Calgary Herald Road Race in partnership with the Calgary Herald in the early 1990’s. Directors and friends provided the officials with some help from the Calgary Track & Field Club. It lasted for about four years under the Booster Club sponsorship and then was taken over by the local Track Clubs. In 2010, LeRoy successfully nominated his good friend Frank Sisson and he became our 57th Sportsperson of the Year. Thanks to LeRoy and Frank, we had several Booster Club Bowling parties at the Silver Dollar Casino facility over the years. LeRoy retired from the Club in 2010 after forty years and he and his wife Marjorie started a Tour Company called Lifetime Highs. They took people on Bus Tours all over the country golfing, sightseeing, etc. and even organized an African Safari Tour which was a huge hit.
- Doug Kowel: He joined the Club in 1975 and retired in 2015. The year he started our SOY was Arthur “Scotty” Kay and our president was Jack Wilson. Doug was our president in 1986-87. Doug was a good friend of Deak Cassidy our 1984 Sportsperson of the Year and one of the Founders of the Father Whelihan Sports Association. Through their friendship, we became partners and their members supported us by helping with many of our Silent Auctions at our SOY Dinners. Doug knew a lot of our Booster Club past history and kept the Club informed on potential Honoured Athletic Leader candidates. Doug and his wife Christine owned a Bar off of the Blackfoot Trail and by the Crossroads Market called the Ranch Kitchen. We often had our meetings there, along with several social functions. When he retired after forty years with the Club, he gave me his collection of past SOY Booklets which are now part of our historical collection.
- Don Young: He joined the Club in 1981 and is still active as a Director. The year he started, our Sportsperson of the Year was Stan Jaycock and our president was Doug Mitchell. Don was our president in 2002-2003. In 2019, he was selected by our Club as the 66th Sportsperson of the Year for his work in Hockey & Baseball. Don continues to be involved with the NHL as Supervisor of all off-ice officials. In 2021 he reached the magic number of forty years as a Director and this year of 2023-2024 will be his forty-third and he is still going strong as our longest serving member in Club history.
Next in line as active Directors in the top ten are:
- Don Beamer at 38 years
- Lawrence King at 37 years
- Leon Nellissen at 36 years
- Don Buchignani at 27 years
- Al Taylor at 22 years
- Brian Loach at 21 years
- Jon Jewell at 18 years
Research by Club Historian,
Lawrence King
October 16, 2023