Red and white for the Calgary Stampeders, or red, white and yellow for the Calgary Flames – pick your favourite new donut flavour.
The owners of the Okotoks and Black Diamond Tim Hortons have teamed up with organizers of the May 26 Field of Dreams charity baseball game to create donuts inspired by the two teams. The Flames donut is adorned with red, yellow and white sprinkles, while the Stampeders treat boasts red and white sprinkles.
Jeff Woolcott, co-owner of Okotoks and Black Diamond Tim Hortons along with his brother Brad, said they couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get involved with the Field of Dreams event.
“If it’s in town and the town’s going to benefit from an event, we want to be involved,” he said.
The game will see the Okotoks Dawgs face a team comprised of Flames alumni and Stampeders at Seaman Stadium. It is a fundraiser for Life Choice Dynamics and the Canadian Centre for Male Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse (CC4MS). Life Choice Dynamics works with professional athletes transitioning to life after sport, while CC4MS works with adult male survivors of sexual abuse.
Fifty cents from each donut sold will go to the charities. The donuts will be available at all three Okotoks locations and the Black Diamond location until game day.
Woolcott said the game is a perfect fit for their four locations as they are avid supporters of Timbits sports in town, particularly for the 571 children involved in Timbits baseball. Through working with organizers of the Field of Dreams, he said several young people will be able to see the game for free.
“They’re worthwhile causes and something that we definitely want to get involved in,” said Woolcott.
Organizer Rob Laird said the donuts will help to get some buzz going about the event as game day approaches.
“It’s just wonderful that they’re throwing a lot of support behind this community event,” he said. “We really do thank them because it’s an amazing opportunity for them to step up and be a part.”
With the big day less than two weeks away, Laird said it’s shaping up to be a great event. There are still some tickets available, but he said it’s going to be a sell-out by game day.
“Most of the tickets are sold out, we’re going to be giving some berm tickets away to the local schools and charities so we can get people on the berm and watching the game who maybe wouldn’t be able to otherwise,” said Laird.
Former Calgary Flame defenceman Jamie Macoun was one of a group of former Flames, Stampeders, organizers and local dignitaries on hand to try out one of the new donuts last week.
He looks forward to stepping up to the plate at Seaman Stadium. He grew up playing baseball and hockey, played in a Toronto league and had a choice between a scholarship to play baseball or hockey in college.
“I really enjoyed baseball, always enjoyed it and I’m just happy to have another chance to play,” he said.
He said the response from Flames alumni was so great, they had to turn people away. There just wasn’t enough room for everyone who wanted to play.
“We hope to put on a pretty good show, we know the Dawgs are probably a little bit better,” he said.
Macoun will be joined by several former Flames, including some who were with him on the 1989 Stanley Cup winning squad – Lanny McDonald, Joel Otto and Colin Patterson.
It’s a great line up on the ice, but Macoun admits a little uncertainty over how they’ll perform on the ball diamond.
“I think Colin Patterson is a pretty good player, Joel Otto is American most Americans played a little ball, but to be honest with you I’m not 100 per cent sure,” he said. “I think we’re going to have to try to outhit everybody. We’re not going to be out-running anybody, I can tell you that much.”
