By Sam Cortes, Communications Coordinator
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
Pictures are a great way to tell stories and remind people of the past. Within sports, it allows us to remember amazing moments and people that have done extraordinary things.
Have you ever looked at old photos of yourself playing a sport you love and remembered the championship you won, the goal scoring record you shattered, or the amazing time you spent with friends? These are moments that can last forever through photos.
At the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Sport Manitoba, we have many amazing stories to tell through photos. So we decided to update our walls in the building with approximately 60 new ones!
The Project
Hall of Fame staff Rick and Richard were tasked with putting a list together of Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame Honoured Members that coincided with a specific sport or office in the facility.
So, they went around to each floor, strategically picking their spots and coming up with a game plan. They documented what was missing and how many photos would have to be created with new tags.
After sifting through hundreds of images, 60 new and diverse photos were chosen. Tags were then developed to provide context behind what each photo represents. With help from Carrie, the in-house graphic designer, they created the new aesthetically pleasing photos that were ready to be printed.
Next came the heavy lifting. With help from Ying Mak, Sport Manitoba – facility maintenance, they went around to each floor to hang the new photos — but it was no easy task.
Impenetrable wall studs posed as a big threat to whether they would finish this project in time. Under the beaming lights, this job was no small feat, but they were ready to prove their mettle against a harrowing foe. It was not an enviable task, but like the Blue Bombers in the 1962 Grey Cup game, known as the fog bowl, they pressed on. Coming away victors, they hung 60 photos in record time.
The Meaning of Photos
Making sure these photos went up meant a lot to many of the organizations in the facility. They provide presence and create amusing anecdotes that pop into your head when you walk past them.
Ron Edwards, Executive Director of Table Tennis Manitoba, mentioned a funny story that happened with George Damianov, a highly respected table tennis coach in one of the photos located close to his office.
“During a table tennis challenge held in the building, George beat Greg Guenther (former Sport Manitoba employee) at ping pong using a frying pan, snowboard, etc.. It was too funny”.
Sport has given so much joy to people. This is evident by our own personal tales and that of Ron Edwards. It is only fitting that we capture these moments so that we can share them again and again.
John Blacher, Executive Director of Volleyball Manitoba also shared his thoughts on what the photos mean to their sport.
“Garth (Pischke) and Wanda (Guenette) are two historic figures within our sport,” he said. “Both are Volleyball Manitoba Hall of Fame and Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame Inductees and have experienced incredible success within our sport as both athletes and builders of indoor and beach volleyball. The more we can showcase and celebrate the history of our sport and accomplishments, the stronger our volleyball community will be as we move ahead with efforts to promote and grow our game throughout Manitoba”.
