Ruby is definitely a Jets fan for life

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 14/05/2018 (3010 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Many people are now familiar with the story of the 105-year-old Jets fan who resides at Oakview Place in St. James. Rubina (Ruby) Fraser was a goalie for the Eaton’s ladies hockey team in the 1930s, and her passion for the game hasn’t dampened with time.

I joined Ruby and 25 of her neighbours to watch a Jets vs. Predators game at Oakview recently, and I can tell you they know how to enjoy a hockey game over there. There are refreshments, a hockey Plinko game, Jets player placards so that everyone can cheer for their favourite hockey star, and opportunities to guess the score for prizes.

On game nights, this faithful crowd joins together in the common room to enjoy the game they’ve been watching for a lifetime, but on late-start game nights Ruby has been known to close the place down on her own. Of course, she has to prepare with a pre-game nap, as should we all.

Ruby is a consummate story-teller and hockey isn’t her only love. She delighted in telling me about her experience as a golfer for the Eaton’s ladies golf team. There were 15 women on the team, and they had to travel out of town for competition, as there were no other ladies’ teams in Winnipeg at the time. She became animated as she recalled the ladies traveling down the highway in the Eaton’s furniture delivery van, with seats of hay bales covered with horse blankets.

I’ve been to Oakview Place several times with my sorority to sing Christmas carols, and I get the same feeling of caring each time.

The atmosphere is one of socializing and belonging, which are important factors for a healthy life at any age. Everyone needs a reason to cheer.

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The Shoestring Players will present a revival of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town in St. John’s Cathedral (135 Anderson Ave.) from June 8 to 14, and at the A-Spire Theatre in Gimli July 13 to 15. For tickets and show times, please call 204-475-6821. As with their previous production, The Shoestring Players will be donating proceeds to the Hospitality House Refugee Mission.
 
Wanda Prychitko is a community correspondent for St. James-Assiniboia. Contact wprychitko@yahoo.ca