Blind River Curling Club
Grantee
Seed Grant
Award amount
$17,700
Award timeline
Award timeline: 2024–2025 (6 months)
Age group
Age group: All age groups
Catchment
Catchment: Algoma, Cochrane, Manitoulin & Sudbury
Community size
Community size: Rural
Population served
Population served: General population
Opportunity
The Blind River Curling Club (BRCC), a volunteer run club situated on the north shore of Georgian Bay, needed a sustainable way to grow participation and improve the delivery of curling programs for all age groups. With an aging membership and a growing need to attract youth and new members, BRCC saw an opportunity to build its capacity and enhance its long-term impact in the community.
Approach
Selected Project Objective: Create or adapt organizational strategy to build resilience and capacity to deliver programs and services.
BRCC used a Seed grant to hire an outreach coordinator to build relationships, gather insights, and develop outreach tools and templates. These resources are helping volunteers deliver consistent, well-promoted programming—reducing start-up strain each season and expanding reach to new audiences, including schools, businesses, and First Nations partners.
Community impact
The outreach coordinator engaged schools, curling associations, and local partners to create new leagues and events, including school bonspiels and community nights. Promotional materials and testimonials helped raise awareness and drive participation. Ten programs directly engaged 500 people, attracting new members and volunteers while ensuring the long-term vibrancy of curling in Blind River.
“This project has given us the tools and direction to bring more people into the sport and into our community.”
In Blind River, curling isn’t just a sport, it’s a community cornerstone. But with an entirely volunteer-run model and an aging membership, the Blind River Curling Club (BRCC) identified they needed a plan to build its future.
With the help of a $17,700 Seed grant, BRCC hired an outreach coordinator to help chart that path forward. Over six months, they connected with other regional curling clubs, school boards, First Nations organizations, and local businesses to build stronger partnerships and a more inclusive plan for community engagement.
That outreach paid off. New initiatives included an elementary school bonspiel, the formation of two high school curling teams, and a new Friday night league that brought fresh energy into the rink. BRCC also launched income-generating community events like a craft fair, comedy night, and holiday open house, all of which were promoted through a renewed social media presence and in-school marketing materials.
These efforts helped the club engage over 500 community members across ten programs, recruit new volunteers, and increase youth and family participation which are key to the club’s long-term sustainability.
The project strengthened the relationship with other curling clubs, area schools, communities, and employers and created new event opportunities to experience curling,” said Lissa Timmermans, Treasurer, Blind River Curling Club.
For this rural community in Northern Ontario, this project wasn’t just about curling, it was about connection, capacity, and creating a stronger future.
Photo courtesy of Blind River Curling Club.