We began 2024 with a renewed optimism about community sport as participation regained momentum following the difficult years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the Ottawa Sport Council’s efforts to connect, champion, and educate – we also recognized the continued challenges faced by community sport.
The Ottawa Sport Council would be remiss to not start by thanking our founding Executive Director, Marcia Morris, for more than 11 years of commitment to community sport in Ottawa and for leading the creation of the Council. At the end of December, Marci will be passing the torch to Frances Mercer, the new Executive Director of the Ottawa Sport Council. The Ottawa Sport Council, and the community at large, extend endless gratitude to Marci for her commitment to creating positive sport experiences for all.
This gratitude extends to the OSC Board of Directors. Volunteers are central to community sport in Ottawa and to the success of the Ottawa Sport Council. We would especially like to thank Alison Korn and Aaron Lee, long-time members of the Ottawa Sport Council Board of Directors for their leadership and expertise who completed their Board terms this year. We are grateful for their dedication and contributions to enhancing community sport through their leadership on the Board of Directors.
Ottawa Sport Council Foundation – 2024 Community Opportunity Grant
In May, the Ottawa Sport Council Foundation was pleased to continue our partnership with Their Opportunity, as well as the Ottawa Community Foundation, to launch the 2024 Community Opportunity Grant. This grant looks to provide community sport organizations which support accessibility and inclusivity of those who face socio-economic barriers to participation in sport for underrepresented and marginalized populations.
In July, we were excited to share that Mesh Up Ottawa and Ottawa Blizzard Floorball Club were selected to receive $2,000 each in grant funding to support their programming!
- Mesh Up Ottawa is a community-based organization run entirely by volunteers committed to improving local courts and supporting community organizations through sports and teamwork. Mesh Up travels to basketball courts, particularly in equity deserving neighbourhoods in Ottawa, to install meshes in the basketball hoops, donate basketballs and water bottles, and clean the parks together as a team.
- The Ottawa Blizzard Floorball Club strives to create a diverse, inclusive and active environment for the youth of our community. With no experience required, all sport- specific equipment provided, and low registration fees, floorball removes financial barriers. It provides a low-cost opportunity to engage in sport.
If you haven’t already, you can learn more about these community programs here.
Enabling Inclusion and Belonging in Community Sport
Since 2021, the Ottawa Sport Council has been on a continued journey to enable inclusion and belonging in community sport, starting with a panel discussion in October 2021. This journey continued throughout 2022 and 2023 to develop The Belonging Playbook. We are grateful for the continued support and collaboration of partners throughout community sport to make the playbook impactful and relevant.
Following significant input at the 2022 Ottawa Sport Summit – Creating Diverse and Inclusive Sport Environments, we partnered with INclusion INcorporated and Canadian Tire Jumpstart to bring the playbook to life.
This toolkit was designed to help community sport organizations in their efforts to remove barriers to participation and create a more welcoming and inclusive sport environment. The playbook comprises ten distinct tools that are crafted to establish a more welcoming and inclusive environment for individuals to authentically express themselves and experience sport in a more positive way.
There is also a library of equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging resources from the Canadian sport sector which complement the tools which were custom designed for Ottawa community sport organizations.
We invite you to explore The Belonging Playbook today, starting with this video.
Empowering Volunteerism in Community Sport
We havelong heard from our members that volunteer recruitment and retention is a challenge across the community sport landscape. Without the dedication and commitment of volunteers, many participation opportunities would not exist in community sport.
After over a year of planning, consultation, and development, the Ottawa Sport Council was proud to introduce the Volunteer Toolbox in July. The Toolbox is one piece of a three part program to support volunteerism in community sport – along with a Sport Volunteer Recruitment Portal and a Sport Volunteer Recruitment Fair.
- The Volunteer Toolbox is a series of videos, templates, checklists, and infographics that provide guidance at key points in the volunteer lifecycle. The Toolbox shares best practices in volunteer recruitment, onboarding, management, appreciation, and retirement.
- The Sport Volunteer Recruitment Portal is a partnership with Volunteer Ottawa, where OSC members can post their volunteer opportunities related to coaching, the board of directors, event management, on-field support staff, and more. This provides a central place for potential volunteers to seek new opportunities.
- The Sport Volunteer Recruitment Fair was a one-day event held on September 28th at the St. Laurent Shopping Centre, which provided community sport organizations with a free opportunity to promote their volunteer opportunities.
Enhancing Operations and Elevating Participants’ Experiences with Data Analytics
To cap off the year, the Ottawa Sport Council hosted the 2024 Ottawa Sport Summit on November 30th, where we welcomed more than 50 participants from nearly 40 sport organizations. Data analytics is transforming community sport organizations in Canada by enhancing operational efficiency and providing insights that can significantly improve participant experiences.
To lead the discussion on how community sport can leverage data, we brought in Jim Provost and Jenn Bruce, who both offered a wealth of knowledge and experience in the use of data to optimize community based organizations. Throughout the Summit, we focused on two key ways of using data:
- Program Evaluation and Improvement: By collecting data on participant feedback, attendance rates, and performance outcomes, organizations can evaluate the effectiveness of their programs.
- Resource Allocation and Scheduling Optimization: Data analytics can help organizations optimize the use of facilities and resources. By analyzing participation trends over time, organizations can identify peak usage periods and underutilized times.
Our participants had several takeaways from the event, like the importance of defining “good” and “better” from Jim Provost’s keynote and the use of The Logic Model with Jenn Bruce’s workshop activity. We would also like to thank Bailey, Denis, and Leo for sharing their own experiencing using data in their community sport organizations in our fireside chats.
Welcoming New Community Sport Heroes
In 2024, the Ottawa Sport Council had the pleasure of showcasing five new community sport heroes. Community sport relies heavily on the contributions of staff and volunteers and the continued involvement of many different sport organizations. We have celebrated many significant contributions to our community sport sector over the last year, including:
- Cathy Briggs, of the West Ottawa Soccer Club, who is a coach and mentor for youth playing soccer in Ottawa. Cathy’s work creates a positive and healthy environment for young children to thrive on and off the field of play.
- Peter Nor is the Founding President of the Rideau Winter Trail of Ottawa, and has been dedicated to maintaining and improving the free-to-use trails in and around the Rideau River in central Ottawa. He is the head groomer, and over the past few years has recruited and trained a handful of other volunteer snow groomers.
- Emily Glossop is not only the Executive Director of Abilities Ottawa, but also a long-time partner and supporter of the Ottawa Sport Council. She is a tireless advocate for accessibility in sport who is always looking for opportunities to increase accessibility and inclusion in the community.
- Paul Villeneuve is the President of the Ottawa Patriots Baseball Club, and has been involved in the Ottawa baseball community in various roles for over 30 years. One of Paul’s most notable achievements in sport was his organization of indoor baseball opportunities at the Royal Canadian Legion branch in Greely, which was struggling to cover expenses to stay open.
- Rob McLaurin, President, National Capital Amateur Football Association (NCAFA), is a cornerstone with unwavering support for youth football in the Ottawa region. His passion for the sport and commitment to the community have made a profound impact on countless young athletes, their families, and the broader sports community.
As we look back on 2024, the Ottawa Sport Council is fortunate to have made meaningful connections with leaders in community sport who share our vision to create positive sport experiences for all. We look forward to continue to work with the Ottawa community sport sector in 2025.