News

 

Message from the President:

 

 

February 4, 2026

Greeting fellas….forget what the ground hog said,  spring IS coming and it’s time to begin the registration process for the eleventh season of the Ottawa Competitive Senior Slo Pitch League.
*We expect to field seven teams this season, with 13-player rosters and 11 ball players on the field at once. We will NOT stretch the league to eight, 12-player teams. We will only go to eight teams in the event of 104 registrants. Registration must be sent with payment no later than Wednesday, March 11.
*A seven-team league means each team will have two bye weeks during the regular season. The season will begin Thursday May 7 and end Thursday September 10. Games will be played at Brewer 1 and 2, and Carllington 2, first pitch ten a.m.
*Playoff format will be shared once the number of teams is confirmed. We will not have two-game total run playoffs this year.
*Fees this year have been REDUCED to $160.00. Fees are payable by etransfer ONLY.
*Returning players need only complete the attached registration form. The form should be emailed to ottawaseniorslopitch@gmail.com
*Payment by etransfer ONLY should be sent to ottawaseniorslopitch@gmail.com
*New players should complete both the registration form and the self evaluation form and return them with payment to the above email address.
*If you are unable to open the attachments, please visit our website at ottawaseniorslopitch@gmail.com and click on the registration tab. Both forms can be downloaded from the website.  They are 2025 versions, identical to the 2026 versions except for FEE ($170.000 vs $160.00) and closing date which is March 11 this year.
*If you cannot scan and return the documents, take photos of them  and email them to the above address (not preferred)….
A couple of other key dates to mark in your calendars.  April 29 will be our season opening breakfast at Hometown Grill, 930 a.m. (same five dollar charge will apply), and Monday May 4 9.30 a.m. for an umpiring clinic and 10.30 a.m, for defibrillator training with Alex Davey, both at Brewer.  More on those dates later.
Finally, I encourage you to get your registration in ASAP as we can only place 91 players in a seven-team league. Latecomers may need to be added to a replacement  list in the event of injuries.
A big thanks to the exec,  Ken Kroeker,  Bob Williams, Warren Fishwick and Dave Tripp for their help in getting us started.
Cheers,
Gerry

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December 30,2025

Guys, I wanted to share some sad news as we wrap up 2025 and head into 2026.  Bob Tripp, a teammate and friend of many of us in the OCSSPL where he played for several years, has passed on.  He is the brother of Dave Tripp.  Bob’s supportive, friendly and positive demeanor made him a great teammate who could always be counted on for encouragement and a laugh.  His personality helped create the culture of our league.  He was a true sportsman.

Gerry

President, OCSSPL

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December 3, 2025

Good afternoon fellas…..
The OCSSPL exec and team captains met last week to begin planning for next season and  I thought you’d appreciate an update on what we’ve planned on so far.
*We expect to field seven teams and will only move to eight if we have in excess of 104 registrations which would allow for 13 players per team. We intend to field 11 players, teams can play with ten if short and a catcher will only be supplied by the opposing team if a team has only nine players.
*League fees will DROP to $160.00 from $170.00 for 2026.
*The two-game total score playoff format will be eliminated. A new playoff format will be determined once we are certain of the number of teams in the league.
*Like last year, teams will be selected by an independent committee composed of Ken Kroeker, Peter Atkinson and Dave Tripp, with input from the league exec. Captains will review and agree on the rosters prior to teams being announced.
*Ken Kroeker will hold an umpiring clinic prior to the season opener. It is hoped that only those who take the one hour clinic will umpire during our games.
*Alex Davies will hold a training session for defibrillator volunteers prior to the season opener. Two players per team are expected to attend.
*To allow players who are injured, or might be injured during the course of the season to continue playing, we are introducing a Designated Runner rule.
1. A designated runner (DR) is a player who runs for the batter from home to first base when the batter is unable to run for himself because of injury.
2. The batter must be identified prior to the game by mutual consent of the captains and/or approval of the league executive.
3. Additional players who are injured during a game may be added to the list needing a DR with both captain’s mutual consent.
4. Anyone on the team roster can be used as a DR.
5. Prior to the pitch, the DR must stand behind a line which is drawn as an extension of the third base line from the first base line to the backstop and he must touch the fence with his hand.
6. The DR can run as soon as contact with the ball has been made by the batter.
7.Anticipation rules apply.
8. The DR can only run to first base and after touching and or running through first base safely MUST turn right or stay straight down the line.
9. Other runners on base are free to advance at their own risk.
10. Failure to go straight or turn right results in the DR being declared an OUT and any other runners must return to their base.
11. A player who is designated as a DR and is subsequently put out (ie, forced out at second) can serve as a courtesy runner (CR) as per CR rules (once per inning). Being a DR does NOT count as being a CR.
12. If a DR is on base and his spot in the batting order comes up,  he is TBA..
13. If the batter hits a home run, it is counted as a home run as per league rules.
14. Once a batter has been identified as needing a DR, that status remains in effect for the entire game.
*Calls for registration will go out in the first week of February and will close in the first half of March.  I encourage everyone to register as early as possible as we may be oversubscribed in 2026.
*Lastly, if you have contact information for ANYONE who would like to join our league,  please forward those names to me.  I will put a recruitment list together (It already has about 15 names), but I don’t want to miss anyone. Introducing new recruits is vital to the ongoing growth and success of the league.
Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy,  healthy New Year.  Any questions, shoot me a note.
Gerry,
President, OCSSPL
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September 29, 2025

Good day fellas.

 

 

With our season wrapped up and the injuries finally starting to mend, the executive has begun planning for season 11 of the OCSSPL in 2026.

 

 

 

The past season had many highs and some lows and our focus next season will be to minimize or eliminate the bumps in the road that inevitably surface over the course of a year.

 

 

 

We’ll meet in November to review player rankings which have been completed by your captains and debate any suggested rule changes.

 

 

 

That’s where you come in.   Please send any suggestions you have for rule changes to ottawaseniorslopitch@gmail.com by Friday, October 24.  Already up for debate are, number of teams, playoff format, and use of pitching net.  This is your opportunity to affect any changes you feel necessary BUT proposing doesn’t mean implementing is guaranteed.

 

 

 

Please use ottawaseniorslopitch@gmail.com
to respond to this email.

Have a great off season and we’ll see you in 32 weeks.

 

 

Gerry

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September 21, 2025

Congratulations to the Green Team on winning the Shawn Argue trophy as playoff champions.

 

Congratulations to the Red Team for finishing first in the  regular season.

 

 

Congratulations to the Teal team for wining the B division championship.

 

Wishing everyone a great off season and i hope to see you all back in 2026.

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September 12, 2025

Championship games are set  in A Division and B Division – with Green hosting Red at Brewer and Purple home to Teal – at Carlington  next Thursday.
Green defeated a pesky Lime team 23 – 19 over two games while Purple managed a 24 – 14 win over Gold. Black and Red played a dandy pair with the score tied after the first game.  Red stormed out in game two ending up with a 42-26 two game total.
Teal found its way to the B final with a 19 – 11 two game score over Blue in their semi.
Black takes on Lime at Brewer and Blue and Gold will battle it out at Carlington.
Former OCSSPL player and carded umpire, Bob Cotie will ump the Green – Red tilt.
Following the games, the season ending lunch and trophy presentations will take place at Hometown.  Please be sure to give your captain $10.00 for the meal.

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September11, 2025

september 11th semi final Results

Division A
 red 42 – Black 26, green 23 – lime 19.
division B
purple 24 – gold 14, teal 19 – blue 11.

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September 4, 2025

Congratulations to Kevin and Team Green for finishing first in ‘A’ Division playoff.  Green and Red both finished 2-1 in the round robin, but Green won the day with an aggregate score of 23 – 19 over Red on  Thursday and each ended the first playoff round with four points.  Points are awarded for the winner of day – not individual games played that day.  Black hammered Purple and Purple is relegated to top seed in Division ‘B’.  In ‘B’ Division, Lime beat Teal 20-16 on the day and will move into ‘A’ Division, as the fourth place team.  Blue and Gold played a couple of tight games with Blue winning by a run in game one.  Game two was equally close, but ended by rain with the sixth inning incomplete.  Reverting back to the last complete inning – the fifth – it too was a tied score at 11-11.  Therefore, Blue won the aggregate on the day by one run. Purple gets Gold in ‘B’, Teal gets Blue.  In ‘A’, Green gets Lime and Red gets Black.  Green and Red are home teams as are Purple and Teal.  And remember two game aggregate winner, wins the day.
Note:  our automated standing will show Red ahead of Green because it doesn’t recognize head to head – only plus minus.
Gerry

 

september 4th playoff Results

Division A
 black 41 – purple 22, green 23 – red 19.
division B
blue 30 – gold 29, lime 20 – teal 16 .

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August 28, 2025

due to the rainouts today it was felt that the best alternative to get the remaining three weeks of games in was to add one week to the season.
Rather than end on September 11th we will now wrap up the season on september 18th.  We realize that this may present a problem to some players.  however, this was thought to be the best course of action to follow. Thanks for your understanding.
note:    division 1 players.  you will be playing at brewer on the 18th.  our parking permits are only good until september 11th. the city suggests that you add a sticky note on them before displaying saying –  ”season extended one week”.
also Hometown sports is able to accommodate us on the 18th.  Please remember to give your captain $10.00 if you plan on attending.  the league covers the bulk of the cost.

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August 28, 2025

 august 28th games have been rescheduled to september 4th.

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August 28, 2025

games scheduled for today (august 28th) have been postponed.  rescheduled dates to be posted soon.

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August 21, 2025

august 21st playoff Results

Division I
red 43 – black 24, purple 25 – green  21..
division ii
lime 36 – blue 19, teal 45 – gold 17.

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August 14, 2025

august 14th playoff Results

Division I
red 38 – purple 28, green  29 – black 21.
division ii
lime 36 – gold 21, teal 33 – blue 24.

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August 11, 2025

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August 9th, 2025

august 7th Results

purple 14 – gold 2, gold 25 – purple 18, lime 12  – green 8, lime 14 – green 14,
red 7 – black 6, black 5 – red 2, blue  14 –  teal 9, teal 19 – blue 6.

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July 31, 2025

july 31th Results

teal 13 – gold 10, teal 20 – gold 8, purple 11 – lime 9, purple 22 – lime 18,
red 9 – blue 6, red 23 – blue 11, green 16 – black 15, black 16 – green 9.

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July 24, 2025

july 24th Results

red 30 – gold 22, red 24 – gold 18,  green 10  – purple 7, green 14 – purple 11,
lime 15 – teal 8, teal 11 – lime 6, blue 29 – black 2o, black 22 – blue 20.

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July 17, 2025

july 17th Results

gold 21 – blue 7, blue 19 – gold 16,  purple 13  – black 12, purple 8 – black 7,
red 20 – lime 12, red 20 – lime 8, green 14 – teal 2, green 16 – teal 5.

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July 13, 2025

july 10th Results

black 14 – gold 8, gold 19 – black 11,  teal 22  – purple 12, purple 16 – teal 15,
blue 16 – lime 12,  lime 19 – blue 8, green 18 – red 11, red 13 – green 9.

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July 13, 2025

july 9th Results

blue 17 – gold 16, gold  15 – blue 14,  lime 11 – red 6, red 6  – lime 4,
teal 14 – green 7,  teal 23 – green 12, black 22 – purple 9, black 19 – purple 11.

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July 3, 2025

july 3rd Results

lime 15 – gold 11, lime  22 – gold 16,  black 25 – teal 7, black 14 – teal 13,
purple 12 – red 9,  red 19 – purple 6, green 16 – blue 11, green 19 – blue 9.

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July 1, 2025

Guys, two important rule changes are being put in place for the remainder of the season, effective this week.

One intends to address the difficulty captains are having managing the courtesy runner rule, with a growing list of injured on their teams. Going forward, and effective this week, the rule simply says: ‘The same courtesy runner can only be used once per inning.’

Secondly, to address the risk of compounding a leg injury of one of our pitchers, he will be allowed the use of a pitching screen. The rules governing its use are as follows:

*your pitcher has the option of using the screen or not. If your pitcher chooses not to use the screen, it will be removed from the field of play.

*if a batted ball hits the screen, it’s a dead ball and neither a ball or strike. Runners cannot advance. The batter gets another pitch.

*upon delivering the pitch, the pitcher must fully retreat behind the screen. From that position, the pitcher may field the ball.

*if the umpire determines the pitcher has not fully retreated after the pitch, he will give a warning. A subsequent infraction results in a ball being called.

*if the pitcher fields the ball without having retreated and makes a play that results in an out, then all players are ruled safe.

*the screen is in play during the defensive portion of the play.

In adopting these rules, we are following the same ones used at the provincial and national levels.

Thanks for your understanding as we implement these changes.

Gerry

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June 26, 2025

june 26th Results

green 15 – gold 14,  green  19 – gold 10,  black 18 – lime 7, black 8 – lime 4,
red 23 – teal 10,  red 16 – teal 13, blue 17 – purple 6, blue 24 – purple 14.

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May 29, 2025

June 19, 2025

june 19th Results

purple 22 – gold 22,  gold  10 – purple 8,  teal 23 – blue 22, teal16 – blue 15,
lime 14 – green 7,  green 12 – lime 4,  red 9 – black 8, red 15 – black 14.

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June 18, 2025

june 18th Results

black 25 – gold 17,  black  13 – gold 10,  blue 16 – lime 15, lime 12 – blue 11,
red 20 – green 11,  green 31 – red 2o,  purple  23 – teal 12, purple 18 – teal 16.

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June 12, 2025

june 12th Results

Green 11 – black 11,  black  20 – green 16,  gold 15 – teal 14, gold 12 – teal 8,
red 24 – blue 14,  red 19 – blue 5,  purple  10 – lime 9, lime 11 – purple 10.

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June 8, 2025

june 5th Results

blue 15 – black 14,  black 12 – blue 11,  red 15 – gold 6,  red 17 – gold 7,
lime 13 – teal 12,  lime 20 – teal 17,  purple 18 – green 13, Green 11 – purple 9.

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May 29, 2025

may 29th Rainouts rescheduled to wednesday, july 9th

lime and red will be at Carlington 1.  gold and blue will be at Carlington 2.  purple and black will be at brewer 1.  green and teal will be at Brewer 2.

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May 22, 2025

may 22nd Rainouts rescheduled to wednesday, june 18th

Teal and Purple will be at Carlington 1.  Black and Gold will  be at Carlington 2. Red and Green will be at Carlington 3.  Lime and Blue will be at Brewer 2.

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May 18, 2025

may 15th Results

gold 10 – lime 9,  gold 18 – lime 6,  black 18 – teal 12,  Black 19 – teal 7
Purple 7 – red 6,  red 13 – Purple 8,  Green 19 – blue 12, Green 12 – blue 11.

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May 9, 2025

may 8th Results

Teal 17 – red 16,  Red 29 – Teal 29,  Lime 7 – Black 1,  Black 16 – Lime 9
Purple 24 – Blue 15,  Blue 18 – Purple 9,  Green 16 – Gold 11, Green 15 – Gold 14.

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May 2, 2025

time change – Defib Training May 5th

Please note for those taking part in defib training Monday May 5th at Brewer Park.
Start time is 10:30.
Sorry for any inconvenience.
Gerry

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April 21, 2025

Morning fellas…
A reminder that our season opening breakfast is this Wednesday,  April 23rd, at 9.30 a.m. at our sponsor – Hometown Sports Grill, 1525 Bank Street.
There is a five dollar charge for the breakfast, please square up with your captain at Hometown.
Finally,  there is a considerable amount of construction in the area,  give yourself an extra five or ten minutes to navigate it.
Looking forward to meeting new players and reconnecting with teammates.
Cheers,
Gerry

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March 26, 2025

Good afternoon ball players….
It’s the end of March and we’re about six weeks away from opening day of May 8, 2025, the TENTH anniversary of the Ottawa Competitive Senior Slo Pitch season. Here is what you need to know:
*The league exec and team selection committee met today to build the teams, focussed on balance and offering a competitive season for all. You should hear from your captain in the next several days.
*We are a 100-player league this year and will field eight teams.  We will play TEN on the field at once,  a change from last year’s 11.
*While we have had some notable departures of long-time teammates, we are welcoming 20 new players this year.  Thanks to Warren Fishwick for managing the recruitment process.
*Our games will be played at diamonds 1 and 2 at Brewer Park and diamonds 1 and 2 at Carlington Park, Thursday mornings, first pitch at ten a.m. sharp. Carlington games May 22 will be played at Hampton. Diamond set up is a home team responsibility, and captains don’t do the bases. They have enough to do. Please pitch in.
*We will play a 28-game regular season schedule (up from 22 last year) and a 10-game playoff with championship and consolation finals played September 11, 2025. There are no bye weeks this year. Thanks to Past President Ken Kroeker for amazing work on the schedule, which includes two divisions in the playoffs and cross overs, giving all a chance to win while rewarding successful regular season play.
*We have purchased three defibrillators for our league to ensure the safety and well being of our players. Two will be in the equipment boxes at Brewer 1 and 2, and one will be at Carlington, in the box between diamonds 1 and 2.
*We are looking for TWO volunteers per team to take part in a 90 minute defibrillator training session Monday May 5 at Brewer 1 at ten a.m. Your captain will be reaching out. Previous CPR training is an asset but not necessary. Retired firefighter and teammate Alex Davey will run the training and he assures us it is very very simple.  This is vitally important.  Please step up when your captain asks. A special thanks to Alex for helping with this initiative.
 
*We will be hosting a season opening breakfast at our longtime sponsor – Hometown Sports and Grill Wednesday April 23, 2025 at 9.30 a.m. This is an excellent opportunity to meet  your captain and teammates as well as receiving your team jersey, which will commemorate our tenth season.  There is a $5.00 charge for the breakfast, the cost of which is largely being borne by the league.  Your captain will ask if you plan to attend so we can provide exact numbers to Hometown.  I strongly encourage you to attend if possible and captains will collect the five bucks then.
*Please bookmark, and make regular visits to ottawaseniorslopitch.com   New players are asked to review the rules and code of conduct closely, as well as making sure your bats comply with league rules. The site will be where our schedule sits and standings are updated weekly.  It will also be a platform for news and updates from the exec committee.  Thanks to Dave Tripp for maintaining and managing the site.
Lastly, a huge shout out to Bob Williams for the work he puts in as treasurer and registration management.  It’s a ton of work, I’ve promised him relief from the workload and we couldn’t get the season going without him.
For now, mark April 23 and May 5 in your calendars.  Hope to see you all at Hometown in April and the defib volunteers May 5 at Brewer.

.

Gerry Nott
OCSSPL President

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Message from the president:

December10, 2024

As the calendar rolls over into 2025, I thought it a good time to bring everyone up to speed on some things in the works for Ottawa Competitive Senior Slo Pitch League’s upcoming season.

The exec and captains met late last month and what follows is a result of those discussions:

*Courtesy runners:  We will adopt for next season the same rule used in our 2024 playoffs.  Teams can use unlimited runners, but no player can be used as a courtesy runner more than twice in any game.

*There will be no change to the count for batters, three strikes, four balls.

*There will be no change in the distance between bases, it will remain at 65 feet.

*There will be no change in how our games are umpired.

*Spares will be managed as they were in the ’24 season, provided we have an odd number of teams.  If we end up with an even number of teams we will create a spares list. Use of spares in the playoffs must be approved on an individual basis by the league president.

*We have agreed to work with the Monday over 50 league, and the Tuesday over 60 league in marketing our leagues, in purchasing equipment and new player evaluation/assessment to steer new recruits to the league that best suits their skill set.

*Warren Fishwick has generously agreed to manage recruitment for our league. IF YOU KNOW ANYONE INTERESTED IN JOINING OUR LEAGUE PLEASE DIRECT THEM TO WARREN.  His email is Warrenkfishwick@gmail.com  He intends to send out a note to recruits before Christmas so move quickly on this.

*Our website – ottawaseniorslopitch.com is being refreshed by Dave Tripp.  While we will continue to correspond through email, it’s my hope our website becomes the go-to destination for news, schedules, and registration.  All of our forms are being updated, and we will encourage registration through the website this spring.  You will still continue to receive league emails, but the web is a much easier method to communicate, given changing email addresses and players dropping in and out of the league.Our landing page now carries a definition of the league and the news tab, once active, will be the place to go for up to date information.

*To register this year, payment MUST be made by e-Transfer.  Proper addresses to register and send payment will be included when the registration email goes out.

*Season length and playoff format will be determined once registration is complete.  There is no change to the league fees ($170).  Brewer and Carlington remain our fields of choice.

*Finally, we are looking into the purchase of defibrillators for each of the boxes on the diamonds we play.  Purchase of such life-saving equipment is growing in senior leagues in all sports and health and safety of our players should be the first priority.  We have a number of ex-firefighters in the league who have familiarity with these devices.  Alex Davey has agreed to run a training program prior to the season.  More on that to come.

Any questions or comments, feel free to call or email me.  Look for registration call out in early February.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all, wishing you and yours the best of health in 2025!

Gerry

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Some of you may recall playing ball or hockey with Norm Saulnier over the last several years.

March 5, 2025

Master Warrant Officer (retired) Normand Joseph Saulnier, MMM, CD

RCAFIt is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Norm. He leaves behind his children, Daniel, David (Debra, Chelsea, Teagan, Hunter and Lilith), and Liane (Barry). He was predeceased by his parents, Adele (Thimot) and Armand (Joseph), his wife Pearl, and his siblings Edmond (Jeanne), Willard (Anna), and Anna (Ken). He is survived by Herbert (Claudette), Andrew (Nora) and Loretta (Jean-Louis).

Norm was a proud 27-year veteran of the Royal Canadian Air Force and was awarded the Member of the Order of Military Merit for his distinguished service. He was a man of determination, taking on challenges such as playing hockey for the first time at 65, enjoying a 20-year amateur career.

Above all, Norm was a loyal husband and a devoted family man, finding his greatest joy in spending time with family and friends.

Family and friends are invited to a reception in honour of Norm on Saturday March 22, 2025 in the Hall of Colours of the Beechwood National Memorial Centre (280 Beechwood Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario) after 12:00 p.m., followed by a memorial service in the Sacred Space at 2:00 p.m. and interment at 3:00 p.m. at the National Military Cemetery of the Canadian Forces. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada.

 

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November 22, 2024

Some of you may recall playing ball with Mike Nihmey over the last several years.  He was a great teammate, always positive and willing to help in any way he could.  His passing October 9th was noted in a Citizen obituary November 22nd.  RIP to a great sportsman and friend.

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September 5, 2024

Congratulations to the gold team in winning the 2024 playoffs and the shawn argue trophy.

also congratulations to the black team for finishing first in the 2024 regular season and winning the regular season trophy.

 

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