Dresden Sports Hall of Fame enshrines 2017 class

Brad Park Speaks at the Dresden Hall of Fame Dinner on Saturday night (Submitted photo)
Brad Park Speaks at the Dresden Hall of Fame Dinner on Saturday night (Submitted photo)

Special to the Sydenham Current

It’s unknown who was the first person to say it but the quote “There is no honour as special as one bestowed upon you by your peers” rang out with resounding brilliance on Saturday as the Dresden Sports Hall of Fame held their Dinner and Induction Ceremony.

Tupperville native Greg Dreveny was the 2017 Male Athlete Inductee. Dreveny was a goalie in the Dresden Minor Hockey system before he played for both the Dresden Kings and Wallaceburg Lakers of the Great Lakes Jr C Hockey League at the age of 14. After a stint in the Jr B ranks he was drafted by the Belleville Bulls of the OHL. Dreveny played three seasons with the Bulls including backstopping the squad to 30 wins in the 1990-91 season which was a league best. The Buffalo Sabres came calling and he attended their training camp but elected to return to the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves for his overage year rather than report to the Sabres farm team in Rochester. Dreveny then attended Dalhousie University in Halifax where he earned Rookie of the Year honours and in his sophomore year was named to the league All-Star team while in his final year he garnered playoff MVP honours.

After earning his degree as a Therapeutic Recreational Specialist he played in the East Coast Hockey League and Central Hockey League before hanging up the pads. He is now lives in Alabama and is part of the University of Alabama coaching staff.

Holly (Law) Dodd was named the Female Athlete Inductee. Dodd excelled in all sports she played and was a pioneer in women’s hockey in Dresden as she also played basketball, volleyball, badminton and participated in track and field as well as bowling. After graduating from LKCS she attended the University of Guelph where her athletic prowess continued with the Gryphons as she played six seasons with the women’s hockey team, including on three Ontario Championship squads. Dodd played competitive hockey until 2007 and then retired after 40 years of chasing the puck. She is now a practising veterinarian.

Brian Chinnick was enshrined in the Legends category as a well-deserved selection. Chinnick was a natural athlete as he played minor hockey in Dresden, high school volleyball and track and field at WDSS, as well as fastball in Dover Centre and hardball in Tupperville. The all-round athlete played for the Jr B Wallaceburg Hornets and then moved to London to play for the Nationals and later the London Knights Jr A team where he was drafted in the 8 th round to the NHL’s LA Kings. After playing for the Peterborough Petes and Western Mustangs Chinnick played Sr hockey in London and Chatham and just retired two years ago from the London Rebels Old Timers team. Chinnick is the owner of Complete Mobil Wash.

Bob North was inducted into the Dresden Hall of Fame as a builder. North started his sports career as the batboy for the Florence Chicks women’s softball team and in later years played intramural sports at the University of Western as well as being the equipment manager of the men’s hockey team. As an educator with six different schools he coached several sports throughout his career including being instrumental in volleyball and wrestling at the high school level as well as coaching minor hockey and starting a community basketball league in Dresden.

North was the analyst for the Chatham Mic Macs, Chatham Maroons and Chatham Wheels on TV Cogeco. The main claim to fame for the newest DSHF builder is lawn bowling. North has served as President of the Ontario Lawn Bowling Association, a board member for Bowls Canada, served on the Selection Committee and High Performance Committee as well as a staff member for the 2005 Asia Pacific Championships and 2006 Commonwealth Games. He was the recipient of the Bowls Canada Award of Merit for High Performance and the Syl Apps Volunteer Achievement Award from the Province of Ontario.

The 1967-68 Dresden Pee Wee Hockey team found their place in the hall’s Team Category. Led by Mike Houston the squad captured the Watford Silver Stick Title and then went on to win the North American Silver Stick in Port Huron becoming the first Dresden team to win a Silver Stick. Later that season the Dresden Pee Wees won the Essex Kent League Championship and became the first Dresden team to win both a Silver Stick and an OMHA Championship as they beat Bolton to win the Provincial crown. The team was coached by Don Kellett and Lloyd Ross.

The winner of the inaugural Lynn Martin memorial Award was Bob Everitt. Everitt who passed away in February demonstrated his passion for sports in Dresden. He was a baseball coach as well as a hockey referee at all different levels. Everitt was a fixture at the local arena and parks as he watched local sports at all levels and supported the Dresden programs. He was the main organizer of the Dresden Fishing Derby for 25 years. Bob Everitt’s support for youth sports in Dresden was second to none.

Lauren Nicholson was enshrined as the Walt McFadden Memorial Award Winner as Athlete of The Year. Nicholson shines on and off the ice with the Ryerson Rams CIAU Women’s Hockey team. She was an honour student and a star with the UCC Lancers before heading to Toronto. In her Rookie campaign she was named Ryerson’s Female Athlete of the Week in October and finished third in team scoring in her rookie campaign with 5 goals and four assists. In 2015-16 she was a driving force behind her Chatham Outlaw’s Lower Great Lakes Girls Championship.

The guest speaker was NHL Hall of fame defenseman Brad Park. Park talked about his career with the Rangers, Bruins and Red Wings as well as touching on playing for Don Cherry. Park also talked about being part of the 1972 Summit Series between Canada and Russia as well as shedding light on some comical stories about former teammates such as Rod Gilbert, Gerry Cheevers, Walt Tkchuck and Pete Stemkowski.


– Submitted photo

Previous article
Next article
- Advertisment -