Weeks of Fun Ahead at Maskwa

Look at our new Peewee paddlers get in the K-4

Well week one was great and week two is off to an even better start. The weather goddess has been smiling on us.

Canteen and Pre-order Meals:

A reminder that all Quiznos Sub and Pizza Pizza orders can be picked up from the Canteen – payment is required in full and all orders need to be in by Tuesday of each week.

Canteen specials include Tuesday Mac & Cheese day for $3.50 and Friday is our BBQ day.

When not our water the coaches play basketball and
games with the children

A number of parents asked me about summer babysitters.

Mollie MacLean, 14 is a Maskwa member. She’s looking to babysit this summer. Her number is 453-1964. She’s a grade 10 student at Halifax West High School and has her babysitting course. She can also be reached by email at rilla.macleod@ns.sympatico.ca.

This weekend is the Atom regatta – please check the regatta schedule under our paddling program for detailed information on more upcoming regattas.

Two Regattas at Maskwa:

We are seeking volunteers for Maskwa’s two regattas on Saturday, July 21 and Sunday, July 22. We are looking for volunteers to help with parking from 8am-12pm and 12pm-3pm, Canteen volunteers from 9am-3pm, BBQ volunteers from 11am-2pm and parents willing to make vegetable salads and cold salads or desserts to help feed our 25 judges and safety boat volunteers.

If willing to volunteer please email our Volunteer Coordinator – Mike Haley at mhaley@landmark.ca

We will also be looking for parents to donate pop, water, chips, snack food etc. Stay tuned for an email from each paddling division.

Gordon MacLeod Memorial Fund:

One of Gord’s last wishes was to see a large grassy area created which would provide more play space for the children at Maskwa. We are seeking donations for this fund which is estimated to be about $6,000. We are working on getting a mock-up of the area we are proposing to create so please stay tuned. This area will be located behind the

23 Days until Maskwa Opens

My daughter woke me up this morning by saying, "Mom  23 days until Maskwa days." Wow! My first thought was at 6am it's way too early to process that and my second was how cute it is she's so excited. I should preference my daughter is seven, turning eight this year, so she'll be a first year Atom paddler. She's very excited about paddling as an Atom as her three brothers all paddled. So, as I'm cooking up an egg bagel for my oldest who insisted he needs protein for his two tests this morning and packing up their lunches for school, my mind was still reeling with the realization that really in three weeks Maskwa opens.

I drove into the sunny parking lot. Briefly chatted with a friend of mine who was getting ready to walk her dog and who this year is joining the club with her youngest starting as an Atom paddler and I thought, one - I'm so lucky to work here and two, my children are so lucky to have this outdoor summer facility.

Summer is short in NS but when you're at Maskwa your children are out all day. When I tell people my children paddle from 9:30am-2:30pm with a 30-minute lunch break I often get asked if that's to much. For my children it's not. I can't seem to get them to leave even around 5:30pm.

Maskwa is our cottage. When not paddling my children are swimming in the private lifeguarded beach area, playing basketball, making sandcastles, or going for hikes with friends. What more could I want for a summer for them? They're active, outdoors and with friends. A perfect summer recipe.

I had to take these pictures of the calm waters this morning. I know in a few short weeks our empty docks won't be empty and I can't wait.

Mark your calendars for a FREE for all Maskwa Day - this is your chance to get your neighbour to come down to see the club and try paddling!

FREE for all - Maskwa Aquatic Club Fun Day, Saturday, June 23 3pm-7pm. No membership required and there’s something for all ages. Try paddling on Kearney Lake in a war canoe, dragon boat, kayak or kiddie kayak for young children (5-7 years). Join us for a swim & FREE BBQ courtesy of M&M Meats.  www.maskwa.ca

 

Maskwa's Mark de Jonge receives Ricoh Award

June 3, 2012 - 4:12am              By MONTY MOSHER Sports Reporter

Alta Gymnast Ellie Black and paddler Mark de Jonge, both of Halifax, took top honours Saturday at the 16th annual Ricoh Sports Awards, which recognize the best in Nova Scotia amateur athletics.

Black and de Jonge are both contenders for the 2012 Olympics in London. The 16-year-old Black will compete for her spot on Canada’s gymnastics team later this month in Gatineau, Que., while de Jonge, who is coming back strong from a broken finger in April, will get his chance at the final Canadian trials in Montreal.

Black was in against track star Jenna Martin and sailor Danielle Dube. Dube has been nominated to the Olympic team and Martin is a good bet to be in London.

“I was surprised,” Black said in an interview following the ceremony in Halifax. “It was amazing.”
Paddlers Mariah Godin of Dartmouth and Emily Riddle of Porters Lake are the team of the year.

Hockey player Alexis Crossley of Cole Harbour is the female team athlete of the year and paddler Connor Taras of Waverley the male team athlete of the year.

Waverley’s Czom Latorovski (paddling) is the top coach. Warren Nethercote of Boutiliers Point is the top official for his work in sailing and the Truro Lions athletics program won for top association.

Sport Makes a Difference Awards went to New Minas judo athlete Jessica Hale and the Millbrook Warriors lacrosse program. Middleton’s Al Peppard, who is originally from Truro, took the Sport Nova Scotia Chair Award.

Black missed the first half of the 2011 season after surgery for a dislocated and broken toe. She came back late in the year, but dislocated her elbow and fractured her thumb at a competition in France.She battled back again to finish first on vault, third on beam and ninth all around at the Elite Canada competition in February. She followed that up in March at the Gymnix International where she finished second all around, first on vault, second on beam and fourth on floor.

“If the first injury had not healed properly then I might not have been able to do gym any more,” she said. “Coming back from that and having to deal with another injury was really hard, but to push through and have people supporting me through that and to come this far, even that is just such a great accomplishment.”

The Citadel High student has continued her burst toward London with four gold medals in April in international competitions in Brazil and Croatia.

“So far this year has been amazing,” said Black. “Every opportunity has just been the best thing that has happened so far.”

The 28-year-old Mark de Jonge, a civil engineer, came back to sprint kayaking in 2011 after a short absence and was racing toward London when a training accident left him sidelined for a series of recent World Cup events.

He was sixth at the world championships in Hungary in the K-1 200 last year, qualifying Canada for the Olympics in the event. He followed up with a bronze medal last summer at the Olympic test event in London. At a World Cup regatta in Duisburg, Germany, he finished third in the K-1 200 and second in the K-1 4x200m relay.

Godin and Riddle combined to win the C-2 500 at the inaugural world junior women’s canoe championships in Germany. Crossley was the lone Nova Scotian on Canada’s gold-medal team at the IIHF under-18 world women’s championships in the Czech Republic and also won national gold at Shattuck-St. Mary’s prep school in Minnesota.

Taras earned a silver medal at the Pan American Games as a member of Canada's K-4 1,000 team.
Latorovski has been coaching for 34 years and has helped numerous paddlers to the top of the sport.

Nethercote is a 30-year sailing official who also won the award in 2004-05. The highlight of his year was being selected as a member of the international jury for the 2011 Etchells world championships in San Diego.

The Truro Lions, led by coach Paul Millman, broke provincial records last summer. In July, the Lions became the only Athletics Nova Scotia club to have two athletes on a national team when Kayla Gallagher and Peter Millman earned spots on Canada’s World Youth Games team.

Also congratulations to Maskwa's congratulations Alexa Irvin who was nominated in the top women's
category.

13 Paddlers from Maskwa Competing Atlantic Team Trials

You know it's paddling season when the coaches start to load the boat trailers with the kayaks! This weekend Maskwa Aquatic Club has 13 paddlers competing in the Atlantic Team Trials on Lake Banook. Let's cheer them on: Nathan Haley, Nathan MacKinnon, Jacob Steele, Nelson Field, Matthew Beaver, Matt Clahane, David Webster, Matt Coutts, Keelan Earle, Leah Jessop, Nicole Jessop, Katie Jerrett, and Ciara Jerrett. Look for the Maskwa boats on the lake in Darmouth this weekend.

Maskwa's Athlete Jillian Steele Receives Prestigious Award

Last night one of Maskwa Aquatic Club’s long-time members, Jillian Steele received a prestigious award by the Zonta Club of Halifax. Every year the Zonta Club of Halifax awards a student in grade 12 a scholarship to recognize women’s leadership in public policy, government, schools and community volunteer organizations. I had the distinct pleasure of attending this event and was thrilled to see Jillian Steele receive this $1,000 award at the local level.  Jillian’s application has been forwarded to the district level where she’ll have the chance to receive a further $1,000 and if successful at the district level she will be considered for the international award of $3,000.

Jillian, a Sacred Heart School of Halifax grade 12 student has a long list of volunteer work in her resume. I would like to highlight a few. She is a dancer and singer and performs with Maritime Dance Performance Group, as a community volunteer she works in the warehouse of her local food bank each week, a cantor at her church and sings mass weekly. In 2009 she was recognized by HRM with a Citizenship Award. As an international development worker, Jillian traveled to rural Kenya with Free the Children where she helped build a school for young children. Jillian described this trip as a “life-changing experience.” She now describes her ultimate goal as becoming a doctor and ``opening a medical clinic in a rural community in Kenya where there is limited access to health care.” In her school Jillian was the Secretary of the Student Council in Grade 11, and this year she is both the Grade 12 Representative on the Student Council and the Head of the Prom Committee. As an athlete, Jillian is a member of the school’s soccer team and a competitive kayaker at Maskwa Aquatic Club. Last year in the National Paddling Competition in Ontario, Jillian received a medal for the K4 (kayaking) event. She attended the 2008 and the 2009 International Children’s Games in San Francisco, and in Athens, Greece. The goal of these games is to promote peace and friendship through sports to the world’s youth.

To quote from one of the judges, “She is a future leader and a young woman who will truly make a difference.”  Congratulations Jillian, we at Maskwa are very proud of you!

HRM Meeting - Future of Blue Mountain Birch Cove Lakes

We have just learned that HRM Staff and Chebucto Community Council will be hosting a Public Meeting on the future of Blue Mountain Birch Cove Lakes Regional Park at St Peters Church Hall, Dakin Drive and Kearney Lake Rd at the Bedford Highway. Come early (6:30 PM) to look at some new maps.

Halifax North West Trails has been involved since the early discussions about the proposed Regional Park and is excited to share that progress is being made.  HRM Staff and the Protected Areas Branch of NS Environment have been discussing a Grand Vision for the Regional Park and will be making a presentation at 7:00 PM followed by Q&A.  Next steps will be crafted over the next few months. Please come out and support this event.  We need strong (overwhelming) public support to convince HRM Regional Council that we are ready to move ahead to make the Regional Park a reality!!

See you on May 31st and bring your friends and neighbours so they can learn about this future park, destined to be the largest near-urban Wilderness Park in Canada!

This link with 3 Draft maps and more details was posted on May 22 by HRM. http://www.halifax.ca/RealPropertyPlanning/bluemountainbirchcovelakes.html
The scope of the proposed park and process to achieve its creation will be the focus of the meeting. We hope that the meeting will be informative and hope to see you there.
Please feel free to forward this information on to others.

Bob McDonald, Chair
Halifax North West Trails
www.HalifaxNorthWestTrails.ca