When Everett Bestland found out he was named the Winkler Flyers MJHL | RBC Community Ambassador award winner, he was shocked.
The veteran of over 140 MJHL games was even more shocked when he heard the news that he would be named the top ambassador overall in the MJHL for his commitment to volunteering in a number of different areas in Winkler & Morden.
“There was for sure a whole bunch of guys that could’ve received it, I was pretty surprised to get it just for the team and then for the league, but it’s an honor,” Bestland shared in an interview. “It just kind of started with the team doing different things around the community.”
“My billet brother started playing hockey and my billet mom had asked me if I wanted to come help coach. Little things like that I didn’t see as volunteering, it was just having fun and getting to do stuff that normally you can’t do.”
During the course of Bestland’s three seasons in Winkler, he became involved in minor hockey and CanSkate programs, the Christmas Cheer Board, the Morden Fire Department and served as a role model for youth speaking in local schools.
“Probably the best part is when you get to go see some kids and talk to them, hang out with the for a bit, they’re always interested in the hockey. Maybe the next game or a week later or a month later you see them at the game, you recognize them and they know who you are, you just get a smile out of that and know that you did something to affect that kid,” Bestland concluded.
As part of the program, the Garden Valley School Division received two generous donation’s from RBC in Everett’s name.
The initial donation was made after being named Winkler’s award winner while an additional donation was made when he was named as the MJHL’s top ambassador.
Read more about the MJHL | RBC Community Ambassador program.
