Prior to her passing in November after a battle with cancer, Prince Albert’s Deanna Rindal was slated to be one of the umpires at the 2020 Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Moose Jaw.
The long-time chief umpire for CURLSASK was honoured during Monday night’s draw at Mosaic Place as she was named as this year’s recipient of the Joan Mead Builder Award.
“I really want to thank Curling Canada, just for even thinking of my wife for this,” Rindal’s husband Bryan said to the crowd after accepting the award.
“Deanna did this for the love of the game, a love of the sport. She was a volunteer for everything, so we (our family) are accepting this award on behalf of all volunteers across Saskatchewan and across Canada that make this game great.”
The Joan Mead Builder Award, which is named after the longtime CBC TV producer who passed away in 2000, is presented annually to a person in the curling community that significantly contributes to the growth and development of women’s curling in Canada.
“We try to pick someone in the province or territory that the event is being hosted in and it could be someone in media, icemaking, coaching or another behind the scenes,” Curling Canada’s director of curling club development and championship services Danny Lamoureux said.
“Kruger (who sponsors the Tournament of Hearts and presents the award) contacted us for a list of names and Deanna’s came up right away.”
In addition to officiating events like the 2013 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials in Winnipeg and the 2015 World Women’s Curling Championship in Japan, Rindal also did a lot of work behind the scenes at curling events in Prince Albert and Saskatchewan.
“We certainly saw that first hand when we were in Prince Albert for the Canadian Juniors last year,” Lamoureux said. “Even though she was on the umpiring crew for it, she played a big role in helping to get things set up ahead of the tournament.
“When we were talking to Bryan and Ashley Howard with CURLSASK, we found out all of the things that she did not just at the Prince Albert Golf & Curling Centre, but in helping to train more umpires in Saskatchewan. She wanted a field of play that’s fair to everyone.”
