RBC CUP 2014 The Excitement Returns!
A publication of the Vernon RBC Cup Host Committee
December 16th, 2013 Volume 2, Issue 6
When The Vipers Met Sally
People who billet junior hockey players are special people indeed.
"We're very lucky with the billet families we have in Vernon," says Jason Williamson. We have a nice mix of enthusiastic new billet providers and experienced billet families. They're all great people to take strangers into their homes and treat them like members of their family."
Sally Cawley fits into both categories. A few years ago she billeted Viper players but decided to not continue for a while.
"Things didn't go as smoothly as I had hoped last time, but the guys I've hosted this year have been great!"
She started with a pair of Bostonians, Mike Iovanna and Mark Hamilton. When Mike was traded at the end of October, Ken Citron moved over from the home where he had been billeted.
"Ken was over here all the time anyway," says Sally, "because he got along so well with the other two guys. We all had a lot of fun together."
When asked about how a New Yorker could be such good friends with Boston-area rivals, Ken just chuckles. "Yeah, when New York and Boston would play each other in sports, it was fun trying to have bragging rights, but it's not serious."
Like the Boston players, Ken helps around the house and likes to cook a bit. He says his best dish is scrambled eggs: "I like to keep it simple, just the way the coaches tell me to play defence."
Sally appreciates the help she gets. She says "all three are real gentlemen. They think I'm an old lady and they look after me. It's really nice, especially because I live alone the rest of the year." She looks after them, as well. This past summer, she stocked up on quantities of food, "in case I got some big guys who really eat." She also has a battered car, a "dentmobile," that she keeps insured in case the players need a vehicle.
The positive vibe was dented on October 31, when Mike Iovanna received news that he'd been traded to Prince George. "It was a total shock," says Ken. "It was tough; we wanted him to be in a situation where he could play lots, but we hated to see him go. He's pretty happy in Bonnyville now, playing regularly, which is what he needs to get ready for college next year." (The Spruce Kings traded Mike to the Bonnyville Pontiacs on November 27.)
Sally says "it was an emotional experience, and it all happens so quickly when you're traded. He had to pack his truck and go. I saw him a week or so later, out by the bus after his team played the Vipers. I brought him a goodie bag for the bus, but we were pretty choked up and could hardly talk. It's amazing how closeyou can get in such a short time."
The newly minted billet "family" was further dented when Mark Hamilton was forced to return to Boston for surgery for "an upper body injury." Sally says that "both Mark and Mike are really funny guys and I have to say that Ken and I miss both of them."
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