Many reunions Leading to Olympia's 50th reunion

The Tour Of Olympia took Joy and I to the Frog and Firkin at Yonge and Sheppard on Sunday afternoon and it became not a  reunion, but rather reunions. Many thanks to Olympia associate director Greg Rogers for putting the event together and connecting with so many Olympia and Brebeuf HS staff alumni. Greg's constant support for my project means so much to me. Heading into the Olympia 50th Anniversary Reunion weekend of May 19-22, this event was an awesome example of the number of people we impact, the breadth of our experiences, and the different ways in which we are all connected. I'm proud and glad that the book is a vehicle for these awesome moments to happen.


Reunion number 1. Greg Rogers explained that this group, and including many others, have been having a reunion for over 25 years, and all connected to Olympia Sports Camp or Brebeuf High school in Toronto. They get together for a dinner and a few drinks, but the main attraction is a bocce tournament; for 25 years! It was great to listen to the stories of these great friends. The banter about the Irish beating the Italians at bocce and discussing the Argonauts and the Tiger Cats was priceless to be part of. Greg does have a unique ability of bringing people together but it's much more than that. This group showed me what lifelong friends look like. It reminded me of so many Olympians who get together to share of their lives because of their connection to Olympia. For these great friends, the bocce is just a  vehicle. It meant a lot to me that they enjoyed the message of A Hero's Journey: Beyond Little Norway and Olympia Sports Camp. 


Reunion number 2. My cabin mate for a lot of years of week 5, including the infamous bear story, was Eric Tiessen. We go back to regional and provincial team stuff. Our friendship means a lot. Eric coached basketball  at various levels throughout his career, including many years as the lead assistant to Bill Pangos at York. He also gave a lot of years to Olympia as a week 9 and then week 5 coach. Eric has just announced his retirement in June from a career that impacted hundreds along the way. A Hero. 


Reunion number 3. When I was a student at Ottawa U my nickname was Scoop and we lived in a stately university house that was known to all as 113. Two of the many friends who came across our paths were Joe Myke and Richard Dean. Joe is a fabulous musician who entertained the masses back in the day, and he loved the connection of the book to the teachings of philosopher Joseph Campbell.  Richard went on to coach basketball at Ryerson ( Now TMU)  in both the Men's and Women's programs, working for years with the legendary Sandy Pothier. Richard is one of about five people on earth who still call me Scoop. Just two of the fascinating people we get to meet along our journey. It was so great that they were able to make it out and special thanks to my brother in law Rick Traer who helped me with the invitations.


Reunion Number 4. This one blew me away. Rick also sent out an invitation to John Lynch, a high school teammate of mine who went on to fame at Queens University and spent his career working in the administration of a few schools in the Toronto area. One of the best high school athletes I've known, John is the epitome of the idea that its the person we become on our journey that is the important part. 


Reunion number 5. Veterans of week 5 at Olympia will always remember the games nights. I was reminded of this by Nicole Bazzocchi, ( far right) a big part in the development of the playlist of songs that light the Olympia flame every week. Nicole remembers us wanting to play a game called " Think like Roman" and how hilarious a man Roman Turlo   (far left) was and is. When Roman walked in (late of course) it felt like the years just disappeared and the laughs came out. Roman's journey is somewhat like Dave Grace as he too felt he had a bigger vision for where his life could head rather that teaching and his journey led him to OFSAA photography and many other things. He still plays hockey with Greg Rogers!


Reunion number 6? We hope to see a bunch of people at Olympia's 50th Anniversary Reunion weekend. I envision a picture on the steps to the dining hall reminiscent of the staff pictures from the days of yore.   The book will be a part of the weekend festivities and there will be a book launch at 4pm on the Saturday. This is a book about Olympia, but it also is a memento of our lives at Interlaken. 

Its great that there are options for attending the weekend. You can come for a day or come for the weekend. Here is the link for more information:

 https://olympiasportscamp.com/alumni-reunion-2023/

If anyone would like us to come to your town for a book event email me at coachdools71@gmail.com. 

If anyone would like to order a copy of the book and can't make it to the reunion weekend check out our website aherosjourney.ca. There is a ,link to this blog as well as testimonials and other info. 


Comments

  1. Greg RogersApril 18, 2023 at 10:36 AM

    Chris, the reunion at the Frog and Firken was awesome. Thank you for publishing this enjoyable narration of many of Olympia's reunions and friendships. Looking forward to the May long weekend!

    ReplyDelete

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