Hockey tournament counted on to save Vita arena

The stomp of winter boots echoes through the hallway, outside the locker rooms. The scrape of skate blades on ice has been the sound of winter for generations in Vita, but it’s becoming more difficult to see that tradition continue.

Upstairs, away from the cold rink where glimpses of daylight can be seen through the arena’s shell, is a well-used but warm environment.

Wood topped plain tables fill the space while seating which in a former life served students on school buses, gives people a chance to view the action on the ice surface below with a cup of hot coffee in their hands.

Sitting behind one of those tables is Steve Watts, the current president of the Vita Arena board.

A Steinbach native, Watts played hockey for the Steinbach Millers. After living in Saskatchewan as an adult, he returned but wanted a more rural experience for his family.

“We moved to Vita and fell in love with it,” he said.

A lifelong hockey fan, Watts didn’t go to the arena looking to help out when he first arrived.

“I came here actually to play hockey,” he told The Carillon. “I didn’t come to volunteer. I just came to play hockey and then found there wasn’t a team, there wasn’t anybody around the arena, there wasn’t anybody to make ice, so I just kind of stepped in and did it.”

Watts is used to that. Even during the interview, which took place after he cooked the hamburger patties for the canteen, a child was waiting just a few feet away, hoping to have Watts come to tie his skates.

While it’s his first year as president, Watts has been on the arena board for nine years and said funds are needed now more than ever.

That’s where the Jarvis Picklyk tournament comes in.

Planned for Feb. 13 to 15, the tournament is named after Jarvis Picklyk, a local who did a lot for the arena.

“He helped around the arena fixing stuff and his family donated money to the arena and helped get it to what it is today,” he said.

The tournament began in 1993 and has always been a key fundraiser for the arena which is operated entirely by a local board and not municipally run.

That tournament had fallen by the wayside and Watts said he wants to restore it to its former glory.

“I’ve got three boys that I want to keep going, and they need to understand that community is people helping and not that they have to be paid for it,” he said.

Last year’s tournament did not go ahead, and this year’s is more important than ever.

“If it doesn’t run this year, I don’t know if we’re going to be able to keep going next year,” he said. “It’s one of our biggest moneymakers.”

“If the Picklyk tournament doesn’t run, this arena won’t stay open,” he added.

But it’s not a call for charity.

The annual Picklyk tournament is always the place to be in the Southeast.

This year, like in year’s past, the event includes great hockey action for teams made up of players 18 and over.

A bar, D.J. on Saturday night, a social, and food including a perogy and farmer sausage dinner all come together to make the event a success.

“It’s a pretty big event,” he said. “What it comes down to is it’s just everybody here to have fun, bring their families and eat food and watch hockey. That’s what it is, small town hockey.”

Watts hopes to attract 10 teams this year, saying they could potentially raise $10,000, enough to cover their start-up costs for next year.

The arena itself has seen challenges.

Built approximately 40 years ago, it started out as just a shell.

Boards were made of plywood and there was no puck board or glass.

But as the years progressed, they gained those things, including an ice plant.

Minor hockey flourished and between hockey, ringette, and figure skating some 700 kids were using the ice throughout the winter.

Those numbers have fallen by nearly 75 percent, and this year opened with new challenges, including $5,500 to get the Zamboni operational, $4,000 for the ice plant and an additional $1,200 to remove sand from all their pipes caused by issues with their well.

But it’s not just money the arena needs to keep operating.

“The arena doesn’t run without volunteering, and it seems like nowadays everybody expects to get paid,” he said. “I’m hoping more people are going to step up.

Currently a board of five runs the facility, and Watts himself handles ice cleaning and many repairs.

But he understands challenges families face as well, trying to carve time out for their regular job and personal lives.

“You can’t give more than you have,” he said.

To register for the tournament or to inquire about volunteering, Watts can be reached at vitareccentre@outlook.com or at 204-905-1416.