Three years ago three friends who played field hockey together at the University of Alberta agreed to get a field hockey program started in Red Deer and in Didsbury.
That first year, the Red Deer Storm field hockey program had 12 people committed to playing. Now they have 54 committed players spread among five teams.
Three years later, Red Deer hosted its first field hockey festival featuring 23 teams with more than 200 athletes from Calgary, Lethbridge, Edmonton, Didsbury and Red Deer. Teams ranged in age from U12 to U18.
Sue McRorie and Heidi Olstad, of Red Deer, and Jenny Johnson, of Didsbury, played together while in university. McRorie and Johnson went on to play for Team Canada in field hockey.
Together the three agreed to launch field hockey programs in their communities with the help of Field Hockey Alberta.
“I’m hoping it will keep growing,” said McRorie. “This is our first tournament and I’m hoping the surrounding communities will see this and want to come out and play.
“It was so much fun for the players and us to get it going again. The girls, and guys, love it.”
Due to the smaller number of participants the teams are co-ed.
Wendy Stewart, Field Hockey Alberta grassroots development staff member, said the program in Red Deer has gradually grown and they’ve been supporting the work of McRorie and Olstad in Red Deer and Johnson in Didsbury.
“Sue and Heidi contacted the Field Hockey Alberta office and Red Deer was one of the zone areas we wanted to put some development into,” said Stewart. “Before we didn’t have the volunteers or coaches. When Sue and Heidi came along and offered, we wanted to help them.”
Born in Lloydminster, McRorie didn’t play the sport until she was 18. She played a little in her hometown at the suggestion of a friend and after the first practice she and a few friends heard Team Saskatchewan was in need of a few players. They road tripped and flew to tournaments with the team. It was at a tournament in Ottawa that she spoke with a University of Alberta coach and found out that the school she attended had a field hockey team.
She joined the team and after her first year she played for the junior national squad, she then graduated to the senior national team and traveled the world playing field hockey.