According to tournament organizer Jean Dignard, there seem to be different winners each year. This year, the “A” champions were (from left) JP Vincelette, Joyce Vincelette, Alain Perras, and Jean Francois Boulanger. Tinkess Photo

RUSSELL – Twenty-five years is a long time for something to continue, but that is how many years the Michel Malboeuf Bonspiel has taken place. There are two main reasons for this level of longevity: first, is that it meant a great deal to the founder, Michel Malboeuf, and by continuing to hold the event his friends and family honour his memory.

The second reason? Well, it is a whole lot of fun and the people who are involved enjoy getting together. If you needed more reasons than that, you could add in that the event, since its inception, has raised a large amount of money for local charities.

The Tournament began in November 1998 and has continued annually except for a period during the pandemic. The event attracts 50-64 players and has raised over $38,000 for charitable causes, with this year’s proceeds of $3,000 going to the Good Neighbours Food Bank, which serves Embrun, Limoges, Marionville and Russell.

This year, being the 25th anniversary celebration included champagne and group photos. More than anything, the tournament fosters a sense of community, with participants from various locations and age groups, this year having one curler come from as far as Boston, and the came close to even having someone from Seattle attend. It holds that level of importance for many.

Jean Dignard, one of the long-time organizers spoke fondly of how the event started and how it has grown.

“Michel Malboeuf, he was the person who decided to get together friends and family, to get together to play curling,” said Dignard. “We started in November 1998 and Michel was a happy looking person, always let’s come and play. You never play? No problem. Let’s just have fun. And then, just for fun, let’s have a tournament.”

Michel Malboeuf died unexpectedly of a heart attack in 2002, but the organizers chose to honour him by continuing the tournament which bears his name.  “Now, we’re between 50 to 64 players playing for fun and friends and families, no competition, just for a good time,” added Dignard. “A lot of people play only once a year. Some people never played. Some are curlers. They play three, four times a week, but we all mix and mingle and have fun together. And while we’re doing that, we raise the money, so the profit goes to a charitable organization. This year, we decided to give it to the food bank, the Embrun-Russell food bank. This year, we’ll have $3,000 to give to them.”

As the event drew to a close, several people took a moment to share their thoughts, but it was Michel Malboeuf’s daughter Marie-Claude who really captured the emotion of the day.

“It means a lot to us,” she said. “It’s a reason for us to not just get together, but we get to celebrate the family. We get to celebrate our dad with his friends. It’s something too that as we’ve grown up, we’ve seen that friendships are important. But we see it this year, and we see it every year when we get together. And all I can say is I truly appreciate, we all truly appreciate everything that gets done every year. We love being here.”

The last order of business was the presentation of a cheque to Ginette Rivette and Denise Lafrance of the Good Neighbours Food Bank. Rivette expressed the gratitude of the organization for the donation and everything that made it possible.

“I would like to thank you all for participating and helping us to help people in need,” said Rivette. “It’s all because of you that we can, all together, change a life.”

Who knew that making a difference could be so much fun?