Calgary Kookaburras AFC President’s Report - 2020
2020 was certainly an interesting year for footy in Calgary. The Covid-19 pandemic resulted in restrictions that limited team sport until July. Despite this, we were able to reshape our calendar into a successful season, both on and off the field.
The club welcomed 17 paid-up members. Despite the challenges surrounding the pandemic, we maintained the support of our loyal members.
We were still able to play full-contact games of footy, as well as regular training sessions. Along with the Calgary Kangaroos, we were able to formulate and publish the AFL Alberta return to play guidelines within days of the announcement of a return to team sport. This is a testament to the hard work of the boards, which ensured we kept our members safe and comfortable during training and game days. We also played the maiden game at our new, upgraded home, AE Cross School. Feedback from members has been extremely positive with regards to our new location.
Unfortunately, with inter-provincial and international travel restricted, many of our annual tournaments had to be cancelled. We’re looking forward to clashing with our Canadian rivals next year.
Philanthropically, in partnership with the Calgary Kangaroos AFC, the club raised over $17,000 for the Australian Black Summer bushfire appeal, all of which was donated to the Red Cross. We were able to achieve this in an extremely short period of a few weeks, while still adhering to strict AGLC guidelines regarding licensed raffles. We received very positive feedback on our effort from both ticket purchasers and prize donors. We were also interviewed on live television in January 2020 to help promote the fundraiser! Check out the CTV Morning Live link here - https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=1882789
On the fundraising front, the Kookas and Roos held a successful casino event, ensuring the financial stability of our restricted account. We expect to hold our next event in the latter half of 2021, although this may be delayed given casinos were shut down for a period of time early in the pandemic. We also successfully negotiated sponsorship deals with the Richmond’s Pub and The Paddle Station!
Socially, the club held our Australia Day party, online trivia nights, summer fitness challenge, annual Paddle Station team river float and awards presentation evening at Prairie Dog Brewing. While many of our traditional events had to be cancelled due to the pandemic, the club was able to pivot to more informal gatherings to keep our members engaged.
The club grew our online footprint considerably in 2020, with an upgraded website and online shop. We also grew our social media reach and increased the frequency of our posts, and emailed monthly newsletters. There is no doubt that our members and followers were seeking more online engagement with the club given many of us were at home, and I believe we delivered in this area.
While 2020 has been challenging in many respects, I believe that, as a club, we have risen to that challenge. We have maintained engagement with our members and provided a physical and social outlet when these were often scant. I wish to thank the board for all their hard work this season. I encourage all members to maintain communication with the board, and provide us with any positive or constructive criticism you may have; this can only help to grow the sport in Calgary.
On a personal note, I wish to thank the board for their confidence and support over the past three years. I’m looking forward to seeing how far this great club can go in the coming years and I am excited to hand over the reigns to our new club president, Dani Bartkiewicz! Go Kookas!
Deanna Cook
