Tribute to Kevin Wiebe

Join our fight to beat heart disease and stroke at heartandstroke.ca

February 13, 2021  20th Anniversary, Ironman Outdoor Curling

Our hearts go out to Krista and all the family, friends and colleagues of Kevin Wiebe, who we are honouring today. We have been so fortunate to have a man like Kevin, who dedicated so much time and energy for his community! His legacy will live on through all of us and the amazing contributions he’s made here in our city!

It’s my privilege to be here today to deliver our heartfelt thanks in person. Ironman Outdoor Curling, and all the people who are part of it, have shown remarkable dedication and support for Heart & Stroke. And again, that is a testament to Kevin’s leadership and vision, as the founder of this one-of-a-kind event. Over all these years, this event has raised close to $160,000 dollars for Heart & Stroke – there are no words to express our gratitude.

I’d like to especially thank Michael, the Ironman Outdoor Curling Committee, and Cambrian Excavators for sponsoring this event. In so many ways, this is not how we had envisioned the 20th anniversary, but here we are… on the big ice of the Red River… in the freezing cold… celebrating a remarkable man, and a beloved event that has become a tradition in our city. Winnipeggers are the best!

We’re all sorry that we didn’t get to complete the tournament this year. And yet, this dedicated group of friends, colleagues and curling enthusiasts carried on with fundraising – what an extraordinary group of people. I’d like to give a huge shout-out to Michael and the organizers for opening up this space this weekend, so that families could get out and throw their milk jug rocks, being active and having fun. It’s exactly what Heart & Stroke encourages people to do for their heart health, and it’s such a fitting way to salute Kevin, Ironman Outdoor Curling, and everyone who has taken part to make a difference for our community.
We look forward to next year – thank you so much! Stay safe and healthy, and let’s continue to take care of one another and our hearts.

With great appreciation,
Amanda Nash, RD
Health Promotion & Nutrition Manager, Manitoba | Heart & Stroke

Good day everyone,

I am grateful for this opportunity to be here today to commemorate Kevin Wiebe at a sporting event he put so much heart, time and energy into for so many years. Ironman Outdoor Curling represents so much of Kevin’s passions…curling, building community and charity.

For as long as I’ve known Kevin, he has been passionate about curling and has wanted to share his love of the sport with anyone and everyone. It’s a big part of why he and Eric Dawson dreamt of creating of such an incredible tournament. And to have the Ironman Outdoor Curling Organizing Committee decide to hold this year’s event in his honour and raise funds for a charity he was also passionate about really is the most fitting tribute.

Outside of Ironman Outdoor Curling, Kevin also put a lot of time into helping those in need and he put countless hours into volunteering with our charity, HOPE worldwide Canada. Kevin was one of our most passionate and hardworking volunteers. With his family, he travelled to Thailand to serve with one of our HOPE Volunteer Corps. He was always volunteering for all the behind-the-scenes work needed for our programs serving others and was the driving force behind our website and many of our promotional materials. In fact, in our Max Out Summer! day camp for youth in foster care, Kevin volunteered weeks out of his own schedule to ensure the camp was well run and the food was well made. He was one of our key organizers who ensured that the camp was such a success over the years.

I would like to thank Michael Thompson and the rest of the Organizing Committee for selecting our Max Out Summer! Day camp to be a charity program to support this year. We run the camp for children who are wards of Child & Family Services agencies, enlisting passionate volunteers to mentor and care for these kids. Almost all of our funding goes into providing these children with as many activities and opportunities as we can, providing fun, friendship and growth amidst the unique struggles they experience.

Thank you as well to all the donors and especially the teams who fundraised on behalf of the day camp and for honouring Kevin with their fundraising. As the representative of HOPE worldwide Canada, I am so touched by your generosity, your thoughtfulness, your passion for curling and most especially, for honouring such a dear friend and volunteer Kevin Wiebe today.

Thank you.

Kimberlee Potter
HOPE worldwide Canada Co-Country Director

Thank you for this opportunity to share a bit about Kevin. Anyone who knew Kevin will vouch that he was a generous man – with his time, his money and his possessions. In fact when he was young – Kevin’s  mom would get mad at him for giving away his toys… that was essentially who he was – he lived to give of himself to others. He was also passionate about learning new things – like cooking, photography, and fixing everything under the sun… and again the first thing he would want to do would be to share it with others – cook perfect burgers, frame a beautiful photograph for a friend’s wedding, and help to fix whatever might be broken. I think Ironman Outdoor Curling was the perfect marriage of these things – sharing his love for curling with others and using his expertise and connections to create something new.

I think Kevin started curling when he was about 9 or 10 years old – it was a passion for him. He might have missed one MCA bonspiel in the 25 years we were together… and that was a disaster year – they just forgot to register. It was a love he shared with both of his parents as well and many friends who were like family. In true Kevin fashion he used his expertise to brighten other people’s lives – putting on a learn to curl clinic for our friends, volunteering his time in countless ways, sparing for other teams. His dream was to make it to the provincials which he did – 3 times with Mark Lukowich – that was such a proud moment. I’m not exactly sure how the idea for Ironman Outdoor Curling came to be – Kevin and Eric would always come up with creative ideas – but I think it is a long and involved story that only Eric would know. It was probably the challenge of seeing if they could make it happen… and that they did! The first one was planned and executed in less than 6 weeks. I can’t say I was surprised.

Over the years it just grew – real hacks, the trophy (the base was a donation of marble from someone he knew that made headstones), the prize machine, how to store and transport curling rocks for an ever growing event – somebody always know someone who would help – and who could say no to Kevin when he asked? There was always google and gumption in a pinch. It is really astounding how you have made this event grow so much over the years – I know he was very proud and pleased.

This past year was a challenging one. Kevin lost his mom in 2018, his dad in 2019 and he had to leave us just a few months ago. When we found out about the cancer we hoped he would have a few months and maybe even do a bit of ice fishing or come to this great event. But that was not meant to be. I do know he would have been touched to see the way you have honoured him – he was not much for fanfare but he loved his curling family and would have been touched to see how you are helping us fundraise for HOPE as well. Many of you were like family to him – so I want to thank you for your friendship to him and to our family over the years and for this special tribute to Kevin.

Krista Wiebe