Sport Aurora’s 5th annual “All-Sport—One Day” showcases seven sports at McMahon Park

June 13, 2024 · 0 Comments

Sport Aurora’s 5th annual “All-Sport—One Day” event was held in pleasant Spring conditions at McMahon Park on Saturday.

Three sports were featured in the morning session: Lawn Bowling instructed by the venerable Aurora Lawn Bowling Club; Field Lacrosse demonstrated by the St. Andrew’s College Saints Varsity Lacrosse team; and Tennis presented by Jordan Master of the Aurora Community Tennis Club and Bill Maron of Total Tennis.

The forty participants—aged 6-12—enjoyed the four-sport afternoon session as well. It featured the expertise of the Aurora Barbarians Rugby Club, the Rising Stars Soccer Academy, and K.O. Club Martial Arts. Elevation Athletics and the Aurora Seniors’ Association combined their instructional talents to share the finer points of Pickleball on the tennis courts at leafy McMahon Park.

Sport Aurora’s Executive Director Laurie Mueller said she felt the best part of seven-sport day “was seeing the kids engaged, positive, and happy.

“They were exposed to so much expertise and so many sports experiences in so little time.”

Mueller was also pleased with the setting of the Spring session: “McMahon Park is a multi-use facility with tennis courts and a great lawn bowling green on-site along with two fields. It’s compact, and it’s a safe, family environment with a shaded playground for the kids, too.”

The dynamic Executive Director also extolled the virtues of her excellent volunteer team who supervised the forty youngsters.

“We have great volunteers every year. Some are high school students in need of community service hours, and some are local residents who volunteer regularly for Sport Aurora events over the course of the year. I was really happy to see that some of this session’s volunteers are Student Athletes of the Year that we have recognized in past ceremonies. It’s great to see them putting back into their communities.”

Ron Weese, President of Sport Aurora and a multi-sport athlete, agreed with his colleague about the influence of the younger volunteers.

“The kids are given the opportunity to volunteer and teach a sport. They help with the purposes of the event: to promote a variety of sports to build confidence and competence in kids. We’re also here today to engage kids who have never had the chance to participate in a variety of sports, due to financial restrictions and limited opportunities. Lawn bowling, for example, is nice to watch just for the intergenerational interaction. People don’t participate in sports that aren’t comfortable, but this is comfortable and the kids are active.”

Mueller added that “the event was possible due to the generous sponsorship by ParticipACTION whose goals about kids’ physical fitness and activity were on display today at McMahon.”

By Jim Stewart