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1930 - 1949, 1950 - 1969, 1980 - 1989, All, Hockey

ALBERT KIRBY

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If there ever was a Lady Byng Trophy for amateur hockey players, Ab Kirby would have won it ten years in a row.

Through a career of twenty years in O.H.A. competition, Kirby’s penalty record could be written on the head of a pin. Here was a player who exploded the Leo Durocher theory that “Nice guys finish last”.

Collingwood born Albert Kirby played on championship teams in the junior, intermediate and senior O.H.A. series with Barrie, Collingwood and Owen Sound
and he was always up there with the scoring leaders.

One of the high points in his great career came in 1939 when the helped the
Collingwood Shipbuilders win the O.H.A. Intermediate “A” title. In sixteen games he scored sixteen goals and assisted on sixteen others. He went through the entire series without drawing a single penalty.

This shifty little centre man never weighed any more than 135 pounds (soaking wet)
but he held his own with the hard bumping giants of that era. One of the best
stick handlers of his time. Ab never had to resort to rough play. He was a
gentleman on and off the ice. Like his long-time team mate, Eddie Bush, Ab learned his hockey basics on the East End mill ponds.

He made the Collingwood junior club at age fifteen in 1934 and the following
season went to the Barrie Colts. Barrie won the O.H.A. Junior “B” title and Kirby scored 30 goals in the regular season. He picked up seven goals in the five-game final series against St. Michael’s College.

He was back in Collingwood in 1938 but had to sit out most of the season after
MIDLAND PROTESTED HIS ELIGIBILITY UNDER THE RESIDENCE RULE.

Re-instated in ,1939, he played for the Collingwood Shipbuilders under the coaching of former N.H.L. star, Bern Brophy, and the Shipbuilders won the championship. Kirby played on a line with Alvie Wilson and Greg Coulson.

Ab scored six goals and had three assists in the five-game final against the Port
Colborne Incos. In 1940 he moved up to senior company with St. Catherine’s with
Collingwood team mates Don Jeffery and Dick Tracey. That team went to the
O.H.A. Senior “A” final against the Toronto Goodyears.

Kirby added a senior championship medal to his collection when he helped the Owen
Sound Trappers win the Ontario Senior title in 1947.

But he came back to his home town in 1951 when Jack Portland came back from a
ten-year N.H.L. career, coached the Shipbuilders and took them to the O.H.A.
Intermediate “A” semi-final round.

He finished his career with Eddie Bush and the Shipbuilders in 1952 and 1953 when
the Collingwood club won back to back provincial Intermediate “A” championships.

Ab did not confine his athletic endeavours to hockey. He was a better than average
baseball and softball player and had a hand in coaching midget hockey and baseball teams. He was Brit Burns’ assistant coach when the Collingwood Juveniles won the O.M.H.A. championship in 1956.

Along-time director in the Collingwood Minor Hockey Association, he served two years as president.

1950 - 1969, 1980 - 1989, All, Builder, Male

JOHN PALMER

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John Palmer’s racing boats were built for speed – at times exceeding 100 miles per
hour! Introduced to speed boat racing at that age of 14, John was Canada’s
highest profile, hardest working race boat builder, designer and racer.

John created the infamous Slokum II race boat in 1947 and captured Canada’s
Hydroplane championship for the next 7 consecutive years.

He reached the pinnacle of his career in 1969 when he rebuilt a 280 cc class
inboard hydroplane, including the engine to take the Canadian championships on
Couchiching Bay by 20 seconds in front of 10,000 spectators.

In later years, he transferred his mechanical engineering knowledge into an “ice
racing” boat.

John and his wife Phyllis are the proud parents of Sue Palmer-Komar, a world class
cyclist.

1950 - 1969, 1970 - 1989, 1980 - 1989, All, Hockey, Male

PAUL SHAKES

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Born in Collingwood, Paul Shakes scored one hundred goals in the novice division of Collingwood Minor Hockey, and that record still stands. Paul hockey skills caught the attention of our local junior team where he played at the midget age of 15.

Shakes was chosen 38th overall by the California Golden Seals (NHL) after accumulating 170 points in three seasons with the St. Catharines Black Hawks of the OHA. After scoring 20 goals in 1971-72 the young rearguard was voted on to the OHA  first all-star team.

A recognized fine playmaker, Paul played defense for Salt Lake City in 1972-73 where he registered a decent 42 points as a rookie pro with the WHL’s Salt Lake Golden Eagles. The next year he played 21 games for the California Golden Seals but was relegated to the minors for the last two years of his career before he retired in 1976 after surgery for a herniated disk.

He now has an interest in Harness Racing where he and son Brad have co-owned and trained many champions including 2002 Ontario Sires Stakes champion Meadowview Sunny.  In the same year, Meadowview Sunny was a recipient of the O’Brien Awards as the premiere 2 year old cold trotter in harness racing over a given year.

Paul was inducted into the Collingwood Sports Hall of Fame in 1984.



1950 - 1969, 1980 - 1989, All, Bowling, Male

JOHN COOPER

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The late John Cooper was tragically killed in a car accident in 1985.  But through his induction to the Hall of Fame, people will remember him for his involvement in the sport of five-pin bowling.

He was a natural, said Randy Osburn, when he was 12 years old he led his league in triple average with a score of 716.

In 1966, John won the zone finals of the senior boys’ competition, and than the Ontario finals at the Plantation Bowl in Toronto.  That qualified him for the Canadian Senior Boys’ Five Pin Bowling Championships in Vancouver, B.C.

When the competitions were over John returned to Collingwood as Canadian champion.

The next year John and Greg Huntley set a new record in Canadian bowling.  The pair bowled for 50 hours and 38 minutes consecutively.  Between them they rolled 9,877 balls.  John knocked down 43,130 pins including 690 strikes, and Greg knocked down 38,837 pins and 472 strikes during the period.

John was not only an active bowler, he donated of himself the time to become program director of the Collingwood Youth Bowling Council in 1971.  He was also an executive of the Blue Water Five Pin Bowling Association and the Georgian Bay Bowling Association.

Bowling was John’s prime sport, but he also enjoyed outdoor sports, golf, fishing and skiing.

John Cooper was inducted into the Collingwood Sports Hall of Fame in 1988.

1990 - 1999, All, Builder, Male

JACK GRIER

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Born in Winnipeg on July 10, 1920, Jack moved to Collingwood in 1965. Married to
Genevieve, they have two daughters Jackie and Brenda. Jack was schooled in the
Winnipeg and Owen Sound school systems and graduated from the Northern Business College.

Jack’s coaching career was highlighted by many championship titles won at every level of hockey ranging from Minor to the Senior ranks. A summary of his coaching
career includes; 1964-66 Collingwood Shipbuilders Senior A – Senior A Group
Champions and Eastern Canadian Allan Cup Semi-Finalists; 1967-68 Collingwood
Georgian China Senior A – Senior A Group Champions; 1968-69 Collingwood
Georgian China – Intermediate B; 1969-75 Collingwood Minor Hockey – PeeWee,
Bantam, Midget – Kinsmen PeeWee Finalist Silver Stick.

Jack became a worthy member of the Collingwood Sports Hall of Fame on June 12, 1998 in the Builders’ category.

1970 - 1989, 1990 - 1999, All, Male, Skating

MICHAEL KOSHILKA

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Michael was born in Haileybury, Ontario April 19, 1964, moving to Collingwood in 1970, and at the time of his election to the Hall he was living in Collingwood. Michael’s schooling took place in Collingwood at Connaught Public School followed by Collingwood Collegiate Institute, Oshawa and Preston.

The reasons for naming Michael to the Hall of Fame are many and show strong dedication to his sport of figure skating.

In figure skating, he skated in the free-skate and later as a member of the free skating pairs’ team.  From 1975 to 1978, he represented Collingwood within this region, from 1979 to 1982 h e was in competition at the regional, provincial and national level.  As well as being an outstanding competitor and an asset to the sports community of Collingwood, he also excelled in the Canadian Figure Skating Association’s test system.

He has obtained his gold medal in free-skate, Canadian and American gold in dance, silver in free dance, novice competition, silver pairs and seventh figure test.

To continue his skating he left Collingwood and became a pairs competitor.  He continued to train in both Oshawa and Preston.

– 1980-81 Received a gold medal in the Ontario Sectional event and qualified to go                    Ontario Divisional’s where he and his partner qualified for the Canadian        Championships in Halifax.  They finish ninth overall.

– 1981-Michael was named to the City of Oshawa’s Outstanding Achievement Award.

– 1982-Michael and partner went to the nationals again and this time finished 7th.

At the time of his induction into the Hall, he was still active in his sport as a professional coach, coaching in and around Collingwood.  He also served as the area’s senior dance coach.  Because of his dedication to the skaters in this area, they did not have to leave home to train and progress at the senior dance level.

Michael was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame on June 20, 1992, in the players’ category.

1930 - 1949, 1950 - 1969, 1990 - 1999, All, Hockey, Male

CAL PATTERSON

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Born in Collingwood on July 29, 1929, Cal is a lifelong citizen of our community. A graduate of Victoria Public School and Collingwood Collegiate, Cal and his wife Lenora have five children – Wendy, Patricia, David, William and Carole.

Cal’s hockey career spanned 5 decades as a player and coach. In 1944-45, Cal began his playing career in the Town League as a South End Dynamiter ascending to the Collingwood Juveniles (1947), Collingwood Junior B Sailors (1948 & 49), Collingwood Intermediate A (1949-54 & 1955-56). He played with the Aylmer Intermediates in 1954-55 and returned to play with the Collingwood Senior B team in 1964-65. His competitive career ended in 1966 with the Senior B – Midland Flyers.

During his playing years, Cal won the Intermediate A Championships in 1951 and
1952 and OHA Senior B Georgian Bay Group Champions in 1965.

Immediately following his playing days, Cal coached the Stayner Lions to the
OHA Intermediate D Championship. He also managed the Senior A – Collingwood
Kings from 1967-69 and Collingwood Intermediate A team from 1972-74.

Cal is recognized for his hockey career, becoming a worthy member of the Collingwood Sports Hall of Fame on June 12, 1998 in the Players’ category.

2000 - 2009, All, Builder, Male, Skiing

JIM SINCLAIR

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Having never been much of a cross-country skier as a youth, Duntroon’s Jim Sinclair still can’t explain why he became so involved with the sport that has earned his induction as a builder into the Collingwood Sports Hall of Fame.

After being exposed to Nordic skiing while on a three-year teaching stint in Sault Ste. Marie in the early ’60s, the 74-year-old Sinclair stepped into the coaching role of the Collingwood Collegiate’s cross-country squad for almost 20 years while also serving as an automotive instructor at the school. “I don’t know why we were drawn to
it, but we were. We used to ski as a family at Blue Mountain all the time – and I know it seems like a pittance now – but $5 for a lift ticket was too much,” Sinclair said. “So we tried something different. I took some technique lessons and it just grew from there. It was a pretty young sport at that time. Another teacher, Greg Titus, tried to get a Nordic team going, but he was involved with so many other sports, so I put my name in.”

Sinclair literally wrote the book on organizing cross-country skiing races for the
Southern Ontario Division for the provincial sports association and he helped
establish the successful Highlands Nordic facility in Duntroon, which is now owned and operated by his oldest son, Larry. With approximately 500 members and over 21 kilometres of trails, Highlands Nordic has become a world-class facility that has hosted several major competitions, including national championships, the 1993 world high school meet and the 1997 Special Olympics World Winter Games.

Sinclair played a key organizing role in those events, along with many others, including the 1991 Ontario Winter Games and the OFSAA championships in 1974 at Kolapore.

He downplays his role as a catalyst behind the development of Highlands Nordic and cross-country skiing at CCI and in southern Ontario in general, but his dedication continues to this day. He planned and worked on trails in Loree Forest, what is now Central Park in Collingwood and Huron Highlands and began hosting Georgian Bay and Ontario high school meets.

“I always said I was never going to do another trail after those and then I got into it big time at Highlands Nordic,” the Ottawa native added. “(Duntroon Highlands Golf Club founder) Dalt Sampson started the skiing and he cleared a lot of the trails himself. I don’t think that man ever skied, but he knew enough to make a nice, wide trail and didn’t make turns at the bottom of hills. Everything was done right the first
time around.”

This evening, October 23, 2004, the Collingwood Sports Hall of Fame welcomes Jim
Sinclair as an enshrined member for his role as a Builder of our athletic community.

1930 - 1949, 1950 - 1969, 1970 - 1989, 1990 - 1999, 1990 - 1999, All, Golf, Male

CHARLES REEVES CONNOLLY

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Charles successful golf career spanned 5 decades from the 1930’s through the 1980’s.

As a champion track, football, rugby, basketball, curling and hockey player while attending Collingwood Collegiate, he was awarded the Senior Athlete Award in 1940. On the course, he won seven club championships + 20 tournament victories throughout his 50 year golf career. He finished 2nd in the Ontario Senior Championships in 4 consecutive years between 1964-67. In 1973, he won the International Senior’s Golf Society event at Gleneagles, Scotland.

In 1984 and 1985, Charles won the Canadian Senior Golf Tournament for golfers 70-74 years.

Connolly joined the Canadian Air Force before working with Ontario Hydro and the Credit Union bank.

Throughout his golfing travels, Charles recorded 3 holes in one!

1900 - 1929, 1970 - 1979, All, Hockey, Male

WHIT HAMMOND

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Whit Hammond makes Collingwood’s Hall of Fame as a lacrosse player, speed skater and hockey player.
Eighty years ago he was one of the brightest stars in Canadian lacrosse but at that time he was raising no cheers from Collingwood fans. Wearing the colors of the Owen Sound Crescents he sank many a ball a Collingwood net and we were happy to see him move to Collingwood in 1908.
A fierce competitor at all times, he was a driving force behind Collingwood hockey teams for many years.
He played goal for the Shipbuilders in 1908, the first Collingwood team to reach the O.H.A. Intermediate finals.
His speed skating feats are legendary and as a speed skater he was indirectly responsible for starting a Canadian fighter on the road to the World Heavyweight Boxing title. That may sound like a kooky kind of a statement but it is true. Back in 1900, Whit Hammond and Noah Brusso of Hanover, Ontario, were considered to
be the best speed skaters in the country but they had never met in a race.
Brusso was charged with “ducking a match race with Hammond” and Brusso replied by accepting a match race with this remark. “If Whit Hammond beats me I will hang up my skates forever.” Hammond beat him in three straight heats for a trophy filled with silver dollars at Hepworth. Noah Brusso was true to his word.
He did hang up his skates and put on a pair of boxing gloves and changes his name to Tommy Burns.
It was a wise and profitable choice for the Hanover speed skater. A few years later on Feb. 23rd, 1906, he defeated Marvin Hart for the World heavyweight crown-the only Canadian ever to reach the pugilistic pinnacle.
Whit Hammond was one of the great athletes of his time. He died in Collingwood in 1959.