Plaster Rock places second, Woodstock captures third

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Excited cheers echoed throughout the Tobique-Plex as the results of the Western Valley Regional Games were revealed during closing ceremonies last Friday. Plaster Rock hosted the 26th annual games from July 16-18 and more than 300 children and youth from throughout the valley participated.

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When the points were tallied, it was the Hartland team in the bright yellow t-shirts that claimed victory. They won first place with 64 points while Plaster Rock came in second with 58 points. Third place went to Woodstock with 46 points, fourth to Perth-Andover with 44 points, fifth to Nackawic with 40 points, sixth to Forenceville-Bristol with 36 points and seventh to Bath with 35 points.

"We've had a great time and I'd like to thank all the participants for coming," Kelsey Kuhn of New Brunswick wellness, culture and sport commented at the closing ceremonies. "I want to say thank you to John (Sharkey, Plaster Rock director of parks and leisure services) and to all the organizers."

Plaster Rock Mayor Judy St. Peter took part in the opening and closing ceremonies with Deputy Mayor Suzanne Mullin helping to hand out the awards. A letter of congratulations and encouragement was read from Dr. Larry Kennedy, MLA for Victoria-Tobique, who was unable to attend the event. Mike Allen, MP for Tobique-Mactaquac, attended the opening ceremonies and encouraged participants to have lots of fun.

"This is a great few days to get fit and be active," he noted. "I'm sure it's going to be a very close competition."

Mayor St. Peter noted that while the games are competitive, the camaraderie is just as important.

"In Plaster Rock, we say the winner is the one who has the most fun," the mayor noted.

The first day of the games was set aside for the five to eight-year-olds while children up to 13 participated on days two and three. An overnight camp-out and karaoke dance were also part of the excitement.

Feeding several hundred children can be a daunting task but it was handled by a variety of groups and organizations from the community. The seniors' club cooked up lunch on the final day of the competition and Chuck Gray noted it was a hungry crowd.

"We went through 27 pounds of hamburger and 30 dozen hot dogs and then went out for 12 more pounds!" he exclaimed.

Sharkey thanked all the groups that helped to take care of the participants and make sure they were in the right places at the right times. He also praised those who helped prepare the grounds and kept the facilities cleaned up.

"We had a great time and we're looking forward to hosting the games again in 2014!" he smiled.

In individual sport results, first place in volleyball went to Plaster Rock with Nackawic taking second and Perth-Andover third. In softball, first place went to Florenceville-Bristol, second to Plaster Rock and third to Hartland. In soccer, first place went to Hartland, second to Perth-Andover and third to Nackawic. In badminton, Woodstock claimed first place while second was a tie between Nackawic, Bath and Plaster Rock. In bocce ball, first was Hartland, second was Woodstock and third was Florenceville-Bristol. In tennis, first was Woodstock, second was Bath and third was Hartland.