If there was a way to describe this past weekend’s Quality Foods Men’s and Women’s Triples Tournament weather in music, it would be something like “Here Comes the Rain Again” and “Here Comes the Sun” by Annie Lennox and George Harrison respectively. Fortunately, George’s line about “sun, sun, sun, here it comes,” was the theme for the majority of the two days of play. Also, the greens were fast and hard, something normally experienced in about mid-July. As a result, it made for some great shot making.
On the men’s side, it was the Nanaimo team of Chris Windess, Adrian Hewitt and Brian Howe taking first place. Second went to Courtenay’s Dean Penny, Vern Greenhill and Henri Saucier. The host Qualicum club team of Erik Ewen, Brian Michel and Charles MacIntyre took third, while Parksville’s Keith Terlson, Ken Bucyk and Christian Massey took home fourth place.
On the women’s side, Courtenay’s April Gilchrist, Shelley Howieson, and Lynn Chwartacki of QBLBC took home first place. Parksville’s Kate Wilson, Carol Bucyk and Mary Card earned second place, edging out Sandi Mitchell, Merry Danarti and Diane Cruickshank, also of Parksville, who took third. Rounding out the top four was the Nanaimo Team of Kathleen Sherry, Lezlie Howe and Darlene Opacic /Ann Yewer.
Once again, a big thank you goes out to Quality Foods who continue to be a great sponsor for this event. Also, thanks to the kitchen, greens crew, bar people, scoring/games committee, umpires, players and spectators who came out to watch.
May 3oth and 31st saw some of the best weather we have ever experienced for Courtenay Scotch Pairs. Sunny skies, mild winds and a great green made for some fabulous shot making throughout the two day tournament.
The big winners of the tournament was the team of Erik Ewen and Brian Michel of Qualicum Beach, with our own Sandi Mitchell and Merry Danarti coming in a close second. In third place was Parksville’s Kate Wilson and Gary Carson with Martin and Chris Fereday, also of Parksville, rounding out fourth place. Coming in fifth was Parksville’s Carol and Ken Bucyk with the last of the top six teams coming from Nanaimo in the form of Vern Hagstrom and Linda Cooper.
Gas Tank winners were Bruce McNevins and Glenda Chalmers of Nanaimo along with Charles McIntyre and Debi Sjogren of Qualicum Beach. Lucky draw recipients were the team of Dean Penny and Shelley McCollom of Courtenay and Rosemary Montreuil and Susan Toresdahl also of Courtenay.
A very big thank you goes out to the Courtenay club for their great hospitality and organization. A tip of the hat to the greens crew, kitchen, games committee, umpire and to everyone who participated in this two day event.
Next up is the Men’s and Women’s Triples to take place at the Qualicum Beach lawn Bowling Club June 6 & 7.
Carol Bucyk
Brian Michel and Erik Ewen (absent from photo) winners of the Courtenay Scotch Pairs with Glen Greenhill, presenter.Merry Danarti and Sandi Mitchell, second place finishers in the event.Gary Carson and Kate Wilson, third place in the tournament.Chris and Martin Fereday, fourth place finishers.Ken and Carol Bucyk, in fifth place.
Linda Cooper and Vern Hagstrom , rounding out sixth place.
Nanaimo Lawn Bowling Club held its Mixed Triples Tournament May 23 & 24. Under sunny skies and a quick green, some awesome shot making occurred. Coming in first was the team of Dean Penny, Shelley McCollom and Debbie Stjogren. There was a crowded spot for second place as four teams qualified for that honour. First off, it was the Parksville team of Mary Card, Kent Card and Laurel Witzer. Courtenay made it a family affair with Brian Scherr, Ethel Scherr and Dale Scherr. Another Parksville team came in second: the team of Bob Allaby, Sue Tompkins and Luise Norman. Rounding out the group was Vern Hagstrom, Zoltan Pataky and Linda Cooper from the host club of Nanaimo.
Thanks to everyone who made this even so successful from the grounds crew, players, games committee, kitchen and the sponsors once again for this year, Ramsey, Lampman Rhodes for their generous support.
Sixteen teams came out to play at the Lucie and Ed Triples Tournament held in Courtenay on May 16th and 17th, with the home town team taking home top honours. It was a winner play winner format and one flight. The team of Vern Greenhill, Leone King and Joe Randazzo came in at 4-0 and took home top prize. Four other teams came in all tied for second place with 3-1 scores. In order, they were the team of Bob Allaby, Sandi Mitchell and Merry Danarti of Parksville, then Kate Wilson, Bill Burgess and Gary Carson, also of Parksville. Linda Meers, Michael Lynch and Beth Perrier of Courtenay also tied for second as did the Nanaimo team of Bruce McNiven, Terry Cowie and Glenda Chalmers. Great sportsmanship, tasty food and good playing conditions made for a really fun event. Thanks to all who made this event so successful
Great weather and food were only two of the components making for a fun weekend of lawn bowling at the Qualicum Beach Lawn Bowling Club May 8th and 9th. There were fourteen teams in this early season event sponsored by McPherson Real Estate . Top prize with a perfect 4-0 sweep was the Ewen family of QBLBC. Second place went to our own club represented by Mary Card, Kent Card and Laurel Witzer. Nanaimo’s Vern Hagstrom, Linda Cooper and Zoltan Pataky took home third place prize money, while Vern Greenhill, April Gilchrist and Henri Saucier of Courtenay took fourth. Our own Bob Allaby, Bob Merrell and Joey Merell took fifth place. Rounding out the top six was the Parksville team of Martin Fereday, Chris Fereday and Peter Scott. A very unusual 9 ender was scored by our Merry Danarti, Kate Wilson and Bill Burgess.
Congratulations to everyone who took part in the event and a big thank you goes out to everyone at the Qualicum club who made this tournament happen and to the very generous support of their sponsor, McPherson Real Estate.
Saturday, April 4th was a day filled with excitement and the feeling of new beginnings for our club. At our Spring Annual General Meeting, it was also a day to recognize the outstanding achievements in volunteerism demonstrated by our own Markey Pellow. Markey joined in the early days of our club, and has over the past 30 plus years, volunteered in a number of positions and always with a smile on her face. Whether it was cooking up beautiful meals in the kitchen, coaching, helping out on Fun Days, selling 50/50 tickets and anything in between, she has volunteered with a smile and positive attitude. Betty Nordick read the requirements to receive this prestigious honour of a Lifetime Membership to the PLBC and Markey hit the mark (pun intended) on every point. Congratulations to Markey on this momentous occasion, and thank you for a job well done.
Photo courtesy of Cub Reporter Chuck Benson
Carol Bucyk
Mrkey Pellow receiving her Lifetime Membership to the Parksville Lawn Bowling Club.
Our lawn bowling outdoor season ended on Sunday, September 28 with pleasant conditions and a very full green. It was wonderful to see so many people eager to squeeze in one more game before the greens would be put to bed the next day. The activities then moved indoors. The silent auction items were both creative and beautiful, and many people walked away with some really great items. The appetizer tables were laden with all sorts of goodies from veggies through to some really outstanding baking. It was also time for recognition of the bag tag winners and club champions in specific club tournaments this year. Congratulations to you all.
This is the time of year for thanksgiving, so this thank you goes out to EVERYONE who made a point of coming out for any of the draws, tournaments or events at the club, even if it was to stop by for a beer on a Friday afternoon. Thanks to our kitchen crew, Lynn and Marg who worked so hard this year to keep us fed, the bar tending staff who kept us thirsty people hydrated, our fundraisers who were so diligent in their efforts, our umpires, games committee, Joey and Sandi who always seemed to have the right answer, our grounds crew who kept our flowers beautiful and our green looking like the fields in Ireland, our novices who braved this new sport and found out that they really liked it, our novices and tenderfoot members who grew so much this year, the coaches who were always there for help, our communications people who kept you informed and, of course, Chuck Benson, our Cub Reporter who took so many pics of so many of you this year. If I missed anyone, my apologies.
Have a wonderful winter everyone. Don’t forget that the club runs indoor activities starting soon. Check you calendars for details.
Our club held its annual Gloria Wilcox Tournament this past week (September 17 & 18th) , under mostly sunny skies and fairly fast greens. Both the men’s and women’s teams were drawn randomly by the skips before the first morning’s draw. This was a great way to “mix things up,” and have different people playing together, some for the first time this year.
Over the course of the two days, there was some incredible shot making on the green, by both the men’s and women’s teams. In the end, It was the Rick Dolley, Kent Card and Allan Watson team which took home the hardware for the tournament for this year. Coming in a very close second was the team of Bob Ashton, Terry Nicholls and George Wallis.
Over on the women’s side, it was the team lead by Karen Perrin with Gerda Veld as vice and Linda Burgess as lead, narrowly beating out skip Carol Bucyk , Betty Nordick and Charlotte Squires for the honours and first place for the Gloria Wilcox for 2025.
The top three teams from the men’s and women’s sides then met on the green to play for the coveted Salmon Can Trophy. It was Team Perrin up against Team Dolley on Green #1, Team Holland against Team Scott on #2 and Team Ashton against Team Bucyk on #3. The scoring was done over 5 ends with the total score determining the winner. In the end, the men reigned victorious with a margin of 17-6 for the final score.
Thanks to the kitchen and bar crew who kept us fed and hydrated. A gracious thanks goes out to the grounds crew, set up people, games committee, Joey Merrell, Chuck Benson who took over 200 photos for this year’s event, people who came out to watch the games and who cheered us all on from the gallery during the Battle of the Sexes. In all this, we can’t forget to say thanks to the players who came out and were a part of this yearly event. If I have missed anyone, my apologies.
Carol Bucyk
Winners of the 2025 Gloria Wilcox Club Triples Tournament: Kent Card (Third), Rick Dolley (Skip) ad Allan Watson (Lead).
Winners of the Gloria Wicox Women’s Tournament 2025: Linda Burgess (Lead), Gerda Veld (Third) and Karen Perrin (Skip).
Second place in the Gloria Wilcox: George Wallis (lead), Terry Nicholls (Third) and Bob Ashton (Skip).
Second Place in the Gloria Wilcox: Charlotte Squires (Lead), Carol Bucyk (Skip) and Betty Nordick (Vice).
Linda Burgess: Cleared and ready for take off on runway # 3.
The District Pairs Competition was held at our club this past weekend. The district clubs had sent their winners to Parksville to see who would reign supreme for 2025. This year the winners were Vern Greenhill and Leone King from Courtenay who took gold for their efforts. Silver was earned by our own Merry Danarti and Bob Allaby.
Thanks to everyone who came out to support the teams this year. Also we want to thank the Parksville kitchen crew, bartenders, greens keepers, set up crew, games committee, umpires , photographer (Chuck) and everyone else who was involved in this year’s competition.
Carol Bucyk
Vern Greenhill and Leone King from Courtenay, 2025 winners of the District Pairs Tournament (Gold).
District Chair Dean Penny with the Parksville Silver Winners, Bob Allaby and Merry Danarti.
Congratulations to April Sloan and Debbie Taylor who earned a silver for the Women’s Pairs this past week in Nanaimo during the B.C. Seniors Games. On the men’s side, it was our own Bob Ashton and Christian Massey who also earned a silver for their efforts.
