George “The Trainer” Montgomery was a pint sized man with the heart of a lion and the courage of a wounded wolverine.
Suffering from chronic asthma from the day of his birth, George tried his best but his
physical handicap prevented him from making an organized team.
However, “The Trainer”, as he was affectionately called by his host of friends, made a scientific study of every sporting event. He was an absolute authority on the statistics of hockey, baseball and football.
But his specialty was organization. George was the moving force behind the founding
of the Collingwood Minor Hockey Association back in 1946. He pounded on doors,
pestered the life out of pockets and peddled fund raising raffle tickets.
But he made Collingwood fans minor hockey conscious and laid the foundation for an
organization that now boasts the control of 400 young hockey players in five leagues, plus the sponsorship of Tyke, Novice, Pee Wee, Bantam, Midget and Juvenile teams representing Collingwood in the vast Ontario Minor Hockey Association. George Montgomery needs no stone commemorate his tireless efforts. The Collingwood Minor Hockey Association is his monument.
His proudest hour came in 1949 when his Collingwood Clubs won the O.M.H.A. Juvenile title. That was the greatest kid team to ever wear Collingwood colours and
every player came step by step up through the hockey organization he founded and help develop.
During his comparatively short lifetime, he served as President of the Collingwood
Minor Hockey Association, the Collingwood Hockey League, Collingwood Softball
League and served as director on several baseball clubs and the short lived Collingwood Lacrosse Club, back in the hungry thirties. This great little man died too soon-far too soon.