Hockey moms revive Lorette arena canteen

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/11/2019 (1986 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Never doubt the tenacity of a group of “hockey moms.”

In July, when RM of Tache council voted to close the Lorette arena canteen due to high costs and a shortage of volunteers, Cassie Hardman Carriere was one of many people in the community who were shocked.

Carriere, who has been taking her children to the arena for more than six years and has plenty of treasured memories, was determined to save the canteen.

“There was no way I was going to let the canteen close without me trying to do something about it first,” she said. “The canteen means community to me. It means a place for kids to buy their celebration treat after a game, parents to wake up with a hot cup of coffee, and most importantly, a place for families to come together and share meals.”

Carriere is one of six committee members who donate many volunteer hours organizing the canteen, from scheduling, to bookkeeping, to purchasing, to inventory, to food preparation.

That’s in addition to taking shifts staffing the canteen itself. There are currently 40 trained volunteers, however with busy schedules there’s a need for many more to join the roster.

“Our committee has worked tirelessly to keep this going, that’s on top of our daily work, sports mom activities and family duties,” she said. “But it’s done for the betterment of our community, and the future new recreational complex.”

On Tuesday, the committee organized their first fundraising dinner: a perogy and kielbasa special with all the fixings. The team sold out over 700 perogies in just over two hours, and raised $855 for the new Lorette recreation complex. They plan to host similar dinner specials with different themes every month.

Being new to the game, Carriere said they had a hard time determining what kind of profits to expect this year, but added they are “profiting beyond our expectations” and plan to display a fundraising thermometer beside the canteen to show the public their progress.

Not only did this group ensure the canteen would remain open during the 2019-2020 hockey and ringette season, they wanted to provide families with healthier food options. They still offer fan favourites (there’s a constant stream of poutine orders flowing out of the kitchen on any given day), but they’ve expanded the menu from the usual canteen fare of fries and chicken strips to include homemade chili, soups and baked goods.

The response so far has been overwhelming.

“In all aspects we’ve had a tremendous amount of support,” said Carriere. “Many people have expressed their gratitude and offer to help in any capacity they can.”

Tache mayor Justin Bohemier commended the committee on their dedication and support of this community resource.

“People are absolutely blown away. I’ve heard so many positive things about what they’re doing. It’s a happy atmosphere. People are pitching in and having fun. They’re taking advantage of social media and using technology to their advantage,” he said.

“To me, it’s the heartbeat of the community. It’s bringing in people from all walks of life and showcasing our community,” he added.

“Who knows, when people come to Lorette and see all the positive things here, they might consider moving here. I think what they’re doing really helps. I think it’s going to be a pretty awesome success.”

Those interested in volunteering can visit volunteersignup.org/37XRB or visit the Lorette arena canteen Facebook page.