Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

1996 LETHBRIDGE ALBERTA WINTER GAMES TORCH

Date

1996

Materials

METAL, WOOD

No. Pieces

1

Length

54.5

Diameter

9

Description

METAL CYLINDRICAL TORCH TOP WITH HOLES ALONG BOTTOM AND SIDES ATTACHED TO WOODEN HANDLE. BLACK PLAQUE SCREWED TO METAL TOP, ENGRAVED WITH “PRESENTED TO THE 1996 LETHBRIDGE ALBERTA WINTER GAMES / CANADIAN WESTERN NATURAL GAS NORTHWESTERN UTILITIES.” NORTHWESTERN UTILITIES LOGO ENGRAVED IN WOODEN HANDLE. MULTIPLE GROOVES ALONG BOTTOM HALF OF HANDLE. WHITE COTTON INSIDE TORCH HAS NOT BEEN LIT.

Subjects

LIGHTING DEVICE

CEREMONIAL ARTIFACT

Historical Association

SPORTS

COMMEMORATIVE

History

ON SEPTEMBER 8, 2021, COLLECTIONS TECHNICIAN KEVIN MACLEAN, INTERVIEWED LEN OVERBEEKE, REGARDING AN ASSORTMENT OF SPORTS EVENTS AWARDS AND MEMORABILIA FROM THE ENMAX CENTRE THAT WERE DONATED TO THE MUSEUM. LEN JOINED THE ENMAX CENTRE IN 1988 AS AN OPERATOR, WORKING ON THE DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS OF THE BUILDING, SCHEDULING, AND ATTENDING TO THE FACILITIES. LEN’S POSITION PROGRESSED FROM OPERATOR TO COORDINATOR TO FOREMAN AND SHORTLY AFTER, OPERATIONS MANAGER, WHERE HE CONTINUES TO WORK AT THE TIME OF THE INTERVIEW (2021). LEN EXPLAINS HIS TIME WORKING AT THE ENMAX, SAYING, "IN ’96 I STILL WOULD HAVE BEEN BASICALLY ACTING AS AN OPERATOR SO MAKING SURE WHEN I WAS THERE FOR MY SHIFT …WAS MAKING SURE THE ACTIVITY WENT OFF AND EVERYTHING WAS SET UP – EVERYTHING WAS DONE THAT WAS ASKED FOR, WHETHER IT BE THE ROOMS, WHETHER IT BE TABLES AND CHAIRS, WHETHER IT BE ICE, WHETHER IT BE THE BASKETBALL FLOOR. WE STILL HAVE THE ORIGINAL 1974 FLOOR THAT WAS BUILT FOR THE ’75 GAMES. HARDWOOD FLOOR THAT WAS A LITTLE BIT OF WORK TO LAY DOWN ‘CAUSE IT IS QUITE OLD BUT, DOING THINGS OF THAT NATURE, INTRICATELY KNOWING HOW TO DO THAT IS A HUGE THING, AS WELL…EVERYTHING THAT TAKES PLACE AT THE ENMAX CENTRE HAS IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY AND SOUTHERN ALBERTA …IT’S ONE OF THE REASONS THE BUILDING IS THERE, IS TO PROVIDE THAT OPPORTUNITY, TO HAVE THOSE IMPACTS AND TO BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER AND PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES WHETHER IT BE FOR SPORTS OR CONCERTS OR WHATEVER THAT HAPPENS TO BE. SO, FROM A SPORTING WORLD, IT BRINGS MORE PEOPLE TOGETHER BECAUSE OF THE BUY-IN BY THE PEOPLE OF SOUTHERN ALBERTA AND LETHBRIDGE. YOU’RE TALKING HUNDREDS, IF NOT THOUSANDS, OF VOLUNTEERS, TENS OF THOUSANDS OF HOURS FROM THOSE VOLUNTEERS AND FROM THE VARIOUS COMMITTEES ASSOCIATED WITH IT. AND THAT’S WHERE, WHEN YOU LOOKED AT THE MURAL, FOR EXAMPLE, IT WASN’T JUST THE ATHLETES THAT GOT TO SIGN, IT WAS PEOPLE INVOLVED IN THE ACTUAL RUNNING OF THE GAMES AND THAT WHICH – THEY CAN’T HAPPEN WITHOUT THOSE PEOPLE...IF YOU DON’T HAVE THE RIGHT PEOPLE TO HAVE THE FORESIGHT TO LOOK AT THE EVENT, TO KNOW WHAT THE POTENTIAL ARE, TO KNOW WHO THEY WOULD REACH OUT IN THEIR HEADS TO HELP RUN THE EVENT - THOSE EVENTS WON’T HAPPEN. THERE HAS TO BE A DRIVING FORCE; SOMEBODY’S WILLING TO STEP OUT AND TAKE THAT ON IN ADDITION TO THEIR OWN POSITIONS OF WHEREVER THEY HAPPEN TO BE WORKING. AND WE SEE THAT ALL OF THE TIME WITH THE MAJOR FIGURE SKATING COMPETITIONS THAT THE ENMAX CENTRE HOLDS, THE MAJOR CURLING COMPETITIONS. THERE’S A GROUP OF PEOPLE OUT THERE THAT TAKE THAT ON AND MAKE SURE THAT THOSE EVENTS ARE BROUGHT HERE SO THAT SOUTHERN ALBERTA AND LETHBRIDGE CAN ENJOY THEM. AND THAT’S A HUGE PART OF EVERY SPORTING EVENT THAT TAKES PLACE WITHIN THE COMMUNITY, NOT JUST AT THE ENMAX CENTRE.” THE TORCH WAS RUN ACROSS THE PROVINCE OF ALBERTA AND ENDED IN LETHBRIDGE. LEN EXPANDS ON THE TORCH THAT WAS USED IN THE 1996 LETHBRIDGE ALBERTA WINTER GAMES, RECALLING: “…THAT TORCH WOULD HAVE BEEN USED AS PART OF … A RUN-AROUND AND THEN, FOR THE OPENING CEREMONIES, THAT TORCH WOULD HAVE BEEN USED TO LIGHT OUR PORTABLE TORCH. WE HAVE A PORTABLE TORCH INSIDE THAT WE CAN ROLL AROUND INSIDE THE BUILDING AS PART OF THE OPENING CEREMONIES. WE [WOULD] LIGHT THE BIG ONE AND THEN THEY WOULD JUST DUPLICATE THAT TO LIGHT THE OUTSIDE ONE. ONCE THE CEREMONIES WERE OVER, THEY WOULD DOUSE THE ONE INSIDE AND LIGHT THE ONE OUTSIDE DURING THE COURSE OF THE GAMES AND THEN IT WOULD BE DOUSED AT THE END OF THE GAMES AS PART OF THE CLOSING CEREMONY…ATCO GAS [BROUGHT] IN A GAS LINE TO BE ABLE TO LIGHT THAT TORCH AS A PART OF THE OPENING CEREMONIES… [BOTH INSIDE AND OUTSIDE TORCHES] WOULD BE TRIGGERED REMOTELY SO THAT THEY COULD HAVE BOTH [LIT]… THAT’S WHY THERE’S TWO CANADA WINTER GAMES TORCHES; THE ONE PERMANENTLY OUTSIDE AND THE PORTABLE ONE WHICH IS STILL STORED AT THE ENMAX CENTRE.” FOR MORE INFORMATION INCLUDING THE FULL INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTION, LETHBRIDGE HERALD ARTICLES AND PHOTOS REFERENCED, PLEASE SEE THE PERMANENT FILE P20190033001-GA.

Catalogue Number

P20190033001

Acquisition Date

2019-05

Collection

Museum

Less detail