Bid must start with grassroots

Fort Frances has a great opportunity—right from the get-go—to kick 2007 off with a bang.
That opportunity? Vying for this year’s Kraft “Hockeyville” title on CBC.
Who can forget the national prominence Atikokan gained last winter and spring as that town finished in the top 10 out of more than 450 entries in the inaugural “Hockeyville” competition?
Equally important, though, was the tremendous community spirit created as residents there rallied behind the cause.
There’s certainly no reason why Fort Frances can’t follow in Atikokan’s fine footsteps. Our community sports a rich hockey tradition, including the 1952 Allan Cup-winning Canadians and three provincial gold medals courtesy of our Muskie boys’ hockey team.
Don’t forget, too, that Fort Frances was one of the communities featured during the third-annual “Hockey Day in Canada” on CBC back in January, 2002. So that bodes well.
As for community spirit, there was the “Ice for Kids” drive back in the 1990s that resulted in a beautiful new rink and a revamped Memorial Sports Centre.
The only real question, then, is whether Fort Frances has the will—and time—to pull this feat off? Entries, including a video up to three minutes in length showcasing the community, have to be received by Jan. 22, which is less than three weeks away.
Given such a tight deadline, CAO Mark McCaig’s pledge to bring the matter before town council “in the near future” may not be soon enough. And his suggestion to strike a subcommittee under the Community Services executive community to gather input also reeks of a ponderous process when time literally is of the essence.
Rather than this bureaucratic top-down approach, what’s really needed here is a groundswell of support from the grassroots—particularly those most closely involved with the local hockey community—to take the bull by the horns and get the ball rolling. Fast.
In Atikokan’s case, it was four members of the Lady Voyageurs hockey team who spearheaded their bid and then worked to get the community on board. And it was a formula that worked to perfection.
After all, it’s precisely that community spirit that must shine through our entry if Fort Frances is to have any chance of standing out among the crowd—and claiming the crown of “Hockeyville” 2007.