John & Marilyn Bate

Marilyn Bate

John & Marilyn Bate

John Bate

John & Marilyn Bate

Marilyn Bate

John & Marilyn Bate

John Bate

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How did an accomplished young figure skater from Saskatoon come to meet and marry a scrappy Vancouver ice hockey player? Little did John Bate know that a dare from his work colleagues to join the Ice Capades in 1958 would have a profound impact on his life. Marilyn had been with the Ice Capades for a year and they toured North America and Russia together for five years before retiring to get married.

After their marriage, Marilyn worked as a Dental Assistant while John was Building Supervisor at the Pacific National Exhibition in the new Agrodome. They moved to Victoria in 1965 and John’s career really took off. His work accomplishments include: Assistant Manager of the Victoria Memorial Arena and later Royal Athletic Park, McPherson Playhouse and Royal Theatre and Manager at Crystal Pool. In 1970, John became Deputy Director of Recreation for the City of Victoria and in 1997, he retired as the Director of Parks and Recreation.

Marilyn’s and John’s accomplishments and community work are impressive. Separately and together, they have been involved in international, national and local sport competitions in figure skating, speed skating, fast pitch, basketball, lacrosse, ice hockey, curling, golf, darts, tennis, and soccer. They have been recognized many times by the Recreation Facilities Association of BC (R.F.A.B.C.). A few of their outstanding achievements include:

John
• 1967 – R.F.A.B.C. Manager of the Year Award
• 1968 – Award of Merit, R.F.A.B.C. for Meritorious Service
• 1982 - Facilities & Awards Chairman Air Canada Cup, National Hockey Championships.
• 1984 – Media Relations Vice-Chairman, Labatts’ Brier Men’s Canadian Curling Championships
• 1985 - Honorary President, R.F.A.B.C. Honour Roll
• 1988 - Certificate of Merit, Service to the Community, Government of Canada
• 1988 – Chairman, Celebration ’88 Olympic Torch Ceremony, Greater Victoria
• 1991& 93 – Chairman, Membership Committee, IAAM International Association Arena & Auditorium Managers
• 1991 – Charter Member and past President of the Greater Victoria Sports Hall of Fame (GVSHOF)
• 1993 – Life Membership Award, Recreation Facilities Association of BC
• 1994 - Co-Chair, Memorial Arena & Royal Athletic Park, 1994 Commonwealth Games
• 1994 to 2016 – Chairman, GVSHOF “Dobber Classic” Golf Tournament
• 1995 – Greater Victoria Sports Council Award in Recognition of Outstanding Contribution to the Sporting Community.
• 1995/96 – Board of Directors, Tourism Victoria
• 1999/2000 – Director of Sport, Victoria BC Summer Games
• 2016 - Honorary Life Member of the GVSHOF

Marilyn
• Treasurer, Hillside Park National Little League Baseball
• Secretary and Chairman, Vancouver Island Little League Baseball Association
• Public Relations Officer, Skate Canada and the Canadian Figure Skating Championships
• School District 61 parent representative and District Chair of the Adhoc Committee
• 1994 – R.F.A.B.C. Harry Atkinson Award
• Registrar, 22 years for the GVSHOF “Dobber Classic” Golf tournament
• 2016 - Honorary Life Member of the GVSHOF

For some people, Marilyn and John may best be known for their decorated home and yard at Christmas time. The Bates led the way in Victoria’s Annual Christmas spirit for over 30 years on “Candy Cane Lane.” Marilyn and John have a son, David and daughter, Lisa and 6 lovely grandchildren.

SPONSORED BY THE RECREATION FACILITIES ASSOCIATION OF BC

Ed Ashmore

Ed Ashmore

Ed Ashmore

Ed Ashmore

Ed Ashmore

Ed Ashmore

Ed Ashmore

Ed Ashmore

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Ed was coaching gymnastics at the Victoria YMCA IN 1964 when Art Burgess asked him if he could help by coaching wrestling as well. That conversation turned into a 52-plus year involvement with the sport of wrestling. Ed’s dedication to wrestling led Victoria to become a powerhouse in the late 1960s and into the '70s. Some of Canada’s best wrestlers at that time had their start in the wrestling room at the Y.

In 1969, Ed coached Canadian Wrestlers at the first Junior World Championship held in Boulder, Colorado. Taras Hryb won the bronze medal at that event and become the first Canadian to win a medal at a Wrestling World Championship since the Berlin Olympics in 1936. After that event, wrestlers who have had their start with Ed have won a number of World Championship, Commonwealth and Pan American Games medals, including Clark Davies, 1981 World Senior Silver Medalist.

The quality of wrestlers that were coached by Ed in those days was amazing. Ironically, there was no wrestling program at the University of Victoria and so many outstanding athletes went to UBC where they excelled. In one year, five wrestlers from Ed’s program all won gold at the CIAU championships and secured the team title for UBC.

In those early years, Ed also became involved as a wrestling official. Nationally he officiated at many Canadian Championships in the early '70s, and he represented Canada as an international FILA official in Mexico City and in Santa Domingo.

Ed continued to coach junior and senior high wrestlers in the '80s and his involvement with the sport continues to this day. Ed chaired the Organizing Committee for the BC High School Championships in 1969 and 1994, the 1997 North American Indigenous Games, and two BC Summer Games in Victoria and in Nanaimo. In addition he was the Assistant Technical Director for wrestling at the 1993 Commonwealth Championships and the 1994 Commonwealth Games.

More than five decades later and now over 80 years old, Ed is still coaching. After his retirement from teaching, he continued to coach at the club he started, the Victoria Commonwealth Bulldogs. Recently Ed was honoured as one of the original coaches at the first BC High School Wrestling Championship in 1965, but the real news was that he was still actively coaching at the 2015 event.

When Ed goes to coach at a school, he not only coaches wrestling -- he also instils a holistic approach to sport with an emphasis on proper mental preparation, nutrition, character development and sportsmanship.

SPONSORED BY BRIAN ZELLEY ACCOUNTING