It was the perfect tonic for an area desperately in need of a smile.
By any measure, the spring and summer of 2011 was a tough one for Estevan and surrounding communities. The floods that devastated the area and left many in the area homeless had, understandably, cast a dark cloud over the region and caused catastrophic damage to a number of different areas.
One of the areas that felt the flood's impact full blast was Dana Quewezance Field in the Woodlawn Regional Park. Home to Estevan's adult soccer teams and Estevan Minor Football, the field was reduced to a layer of thick river silt that was left behind by the floodwaters. A number of the buildings constructed by minor football also suffered significant damage in the flood.
Not wanting to see their work washed away, a group of EMF volunteers, led by Wanda Harron and Valerie Paulson, began developing ideas to raise money to repair the field and buildings. One of the ideas they struck upon was the Kraft TSN Celebration Tour. In what has become a summer tradition, TSN anchors tour across the country making a stop in various communities where they do a live edition of SportsCentre. The communities that are selected for the tour also receive $25,000 towards an area of their choosing.
With a significant sum of money at stake, the local group entered Estevan and the football program for the tour. After getting through the initial stage, Estevan was short-listed for the head-to-head voting portion. Vying against the Energy City for the visit was Swan River, Man., which was raising funds for its recreation centre.
In what turned out to be a close vote, Estevan defeated Swan River for the tour stop and it was announced that Jay Onrait and Dan O'Toole would be anchoring an edition of SportsCentre in the city Aug. 25.
As it would turn out, the massively successful tour stop was one of the most electrifying events to hit the Estevan area in years.
Onrait and O'Toole proved to be incredible hosts. The duo, which handles TSN's late night editions of SportsCentre, arrived in the city two days prior to the show and took Estevan by storm, making appearances throughout the city which only served to build the anticipation for the show which was held on Fourth Street in front of city hall and the courthouse.
The actual event was more rock show than TV show. With the sun beating down on them, Onrait and O'Toole warmed up the crowd for an hour, dancing and singing along with the roughly 2,500 people in attendance.
The Estevan edition of SportsCentre was also a hit with fans as they were encouraged to participate in the show by shouting a number phrases when prompted by the bombastic Onrait. The show included a touching piece on the impact of the floods on the community and the fight to return to normal.
Estevan proved to be fantastic hosts as the large crowd was engaged in the live broadcast and showed the entire TSN team a fantastic time while they were here. As well, shortly after the tour stop, a TSN official called minor football to inform them the Estevan visit was their most successful tour stop since they began the program.
Most importantly, minor football was presented with $25,000 which will be used to repair the field.
Although the memories and damage of the flood remain for many who are still trying to get their lives back on track, the tour stop provided many with a reason to smile again and that was worth much more than $25,000.
