Community Ice Rink – Call for Volunteers
The AHOA Board is looking for resident volunteers to help erect the community ice rink in the coming weeks as well as volunteer over the winter months to build, maintain and clean the ice surface. The Board has tried two different locations in the past and will be looking for an alternate location near the pavilion this year to install the full rink this season. The current plan is to erect and level the boards the latter half October, hopefully before the first snow flies. Flooding the rink typically starts in mid to late December but is dependent on the weather and overnight temperatures being below -10C.
Before the Board installs the rink this season, we will need a team of 9-12 committed volunteers. The commitment entails installing and dismantling the rink boards; typically taking 3-4 hours in October and again in March. Additionally, volunteers will provide ongoing ice maintenance such as, building up the ice surface at the start of season, maintaining the ice surface over the course of the winter and cleaning the ice surface after snow falls. Volunteers must be available evenings/weekends and it usually means having to dress warm as we work outside taking advantage of cold weather to flood the rink to make ice and maintain/clean the ice surface. The intent will be to create a volunteer schedule, in advance, and rotate through the volunteers over the winter season.
Please Note: In the past this responsibility has fallen on too few volunteers, and it has proven difficult to maintain the ice surface working around the weather in Southern Alberta. If the ice rink is going to be installed this year, the Board will need to have the 9-12 committed volunteers in place by October 15th.
The rink was purchased by the Board for the community with a grant from the Dunbow Recreation Board (DRB) in late 2021. This was with the commitment that annual installation/maintenance of the rink and the ice surface would be a volunteer effort by community residents, for community residents. If the community does not have sufficient volunteers this year to install and maintain the rink, the Board will speak to the DRB and look at options to re-donate the equipment to another group/community within the DRBs purview.
To volunteer please comment here, send a DM or alternately send an email to inquiry@artesiahoa.ca.
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