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This article was published 05/03/2021 (1884 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
There were twirls, scored goals, wobbly stops.
School announcements played in the background as kids skated across the homemade ice rink, squeezing in a final hockey game or figure skating practice before heading inside for lunch.
It was a balmy day for March 2, with the sun beating down on the icy surface. Oakville School phys-ed instructor Cam Scott squinted at the rink he helped create, muttering Mother Nature might make this the last day of its season.
Scott had been taking his students to the school’s rink daily. He’s taught hockey, broomball and curling with milk jugs.
Scott could’ve kept the kids inside all winter. The Grade 8 students were in the gym at the beginning of the school year, but since the Grade 6 class moved to Oakville’s hall, the Grade 8’s relocated, and the gym is void of desks.
“I just got used to wanting to be out,” Scott, 47, said. “I guess if I could take a few positives out of the pandemic and the craziness that we have, it’s gotten me outside to do some new things.”
Scott went to management and pitched the idea of flooding the school’s tennis court. They said OK, and by mid-December, kids were skating on one of two 120-foot-by-40-foot ice surfaces in the fenced-in space.
“It’s pretty awesome, actually,” said student Kirby Vince, 13. “My hockey season was getting shut down … (Now) I can go skating with my friends.”
Vince plays for the Portage Terriers. He was devoted to ensuring the school’s ice rink became a reality, Scott said, adding Vince would check on the ice at lunch, after school, and on cold weekends.
In fact, creating the school’s two ice surfaces became a community building activity.
“When (people) found out that we wanted to put this project together, they were like, ‘Let’s go for it. What do you need?’” Scott said.
One family, the Moxhams, used the truck and hoses from their farm to make the rink, and helped construct the boards that Armwood Windows & Doors and Rona donated.
Scott put out a call for milk jugs — he wanted to fill and paint them to use as curling rocks — and students came back with 50.
The phys-ed teacher has around 20 donated pairs of skates, many from prior years, that he distributes to kids who don’t have their own for class.
And Scott’s own father-in-law, Robert Benedictson, created the Zam-Bobby, a 45-gallon water barrel on skis with a hose and carpet attachment that floods the ice.
Sofia Lund, a Grade 7 student, participated in many class scrimmages this winter.
“It’s COVID, so sometimes it’s hard to get outside,” she said. “I think that it’s really awesome for people to put this together.”
Brady Moxham, an educational assistant and one of the main organizers behind the rink, said kids would be at the space every lunch.
“I’m just glad the kids are using it,” he said. “Kids love it, they get lots of time outside.”
Community members use the rink after school hours. Scott said students tell him about their weekends spent skating with family.
Manitoba Education has recognized Scott for his ingenuity during the pandemic; there’s a post about him on its website.
Alongside the rink, the province noted Scott’s creation of a golf program last spring at Scotswood Links in Elm Creek. He spent 16 days at the course, teaching kids in Grades 5 through 8 about manners, etiquette and how to play the sport.
Scott said he’s planning on bringing students back to the course this year. And next winter, the outdoor rink might make a return — it’s good for the school and the community, Scott said.
There were twirls, scored goals, wobbly stops.
School announcements played in the background as kids skated across the homemade ice rink, squeezing in a final hockey game or figure skating practice before heading inside for lunch.
From left: Students Kora Montour, Casey Moffit and Emily Holmes hold milk jug curling rocks while skating on Oakville School's ice rink during a lunch break March 2. (GABRIELLE PICHÉ/CANSTAR COMMUNITY NEWS/HEADLINER)
It was a balmy day for March 2, with the sun beating down on the icy surface. Oakville School phys-ed instructor Cam Scott squinted at the rink he helped create, muttering Mother Nature might make this the last day of its season.
Scott had been taking his students to the school’s rink daily. He’s taught hockey, broomball and curling with milk jugs.
Scott could’ve kept the kids inside all winter. The Grade 8 students were in the gym at the beginning of the school year, but since the Grade 6 class moved to Oakville’s hall, the Grade 8’s relocated, and the gym is void of desks.
“I just got used to wanting to be out,” Scott, 47, said. “I guess if I could take a few positives out of the pandemic and the craziness that we have, it’s gotten me outside to do some new things.”
Scott went to management and pitched the idea of flooding the school’s tennis court. They said OK, and by mid-December, kids were skating on one of two 120-foot-by-40-foot ice surfaces in the fenced-in space.
“It’s pretty awesome, actually,” said student Kirby Vince, 13. “My hockey season was getting shut down … (Now) I can go skating with my friends.”
Vince plays for the Portage Terriers. He was devoted to ensuring the school’s ice rink became a reality, Scott said, adding Vince would check on the ice at lunch, after school, and on cold weekends.
In fact, creating the school’s two ice surfaces became a community building activity.
Students at Oakville School play hockey on a homemade rink during a lunch break on March 2. (GABRIELLE PICHÉ/CANSTAR COMMUNITY NEWS/HEADLINER)
“When (people) found out that we wanted to put this project together, they were like, ‘Let’s go for it. What do you need?’” Scott said.
One family, the Moxhams, used the truck and hoses from their farm to make the rink, and helped construct the boards that Armwood Windows & Doors and Rona donated.
Scott put out a call for milk jugs — he wanted to fill and paint them to use as curling rocks — and students came back with 50.
The phys-ed teacher has around 20 donated pairs of skates, many from prior years, that he distributes to kids who don’t have their own for class.
And Scott’s own father-in-law, Robert Benedictson, created the Zam-Bobby, a 45-gallon water barrel on skis with a hose and carpet attachment that floods the ice.
Sofia Lund, a Grade 7 student, participated in many class scrimmages this winter.
“It’s COVID, so sometimes it’s hard to get outside,” she said. “I think that it’s really awesome for people to put this together.”
Brady Moxham, an educational assistant and one of the main organizers behind the rink, said kids would be at the space every lunch.
Cam Scott, left, and Brady Moxham stand beside the Zam-Bobby, a creation by Scott's father-in-law to flood the school's ice rinks. (GABRIELLE PICHÉ/CANSTAR COMMUNITY NEWS/HEADLINER)
“I’m just glad the kids are using it,” he said. “Kids love it, they get lots of time outside.”
Community members use the rink after school hours. Scott said students tell him about their weekends spent skating with family.
Manitoba Education has recognized Scott for his ingenuity during the pandemic; there’s a post about him on its website.
Alongside the rink, the province noted Scott’s creation of a golf program last spring at Scotswood Links in Elm Creek. He spent 16 days at the course, teaching kids in Grades 5 through 8 about manners, etiquette and how to play the sport.
Scott said he’s planning on bringing students back to the course this year. And next winter, the outdoor rink might make a return — it’s good for the school and the community, Scott said.
