July 25, 2024 · 0 Comments
Forty-five student-athletes and their families were recognized in a summer holiday ceremony conducted by Sport Aurora at Town Park on Thursday night.
On a pleasant July evening, President of Sport Aurora Ron Weese welcomed over 150 guests to the celebration of school sports and the Town’s Athletes of the Year.
Weese recognized the dynamic that exists between student-athletes and their parents.
“It’s inspiring to see the kids doing well at school sports and it’s important that their efforts be recognized,” he said. “It’s so evident that the parents are very proud of their kids’ achievements, but I noticed tonight that the sons and daughters were reciprocating that pride.”
The long-time advocate of Aurora-based sports organizations spoke about the importance of recognizing the Town’s elementary and high school athletes.
“School sports bring people together and it’s highly likely that these athletes have faced one another in competition over the years. The socializing that goes with sports is so important and it was nice to see the athletes and their parents mingling tonight at Town Park. This is a great celebration and recognition of each other.”
The Chair of Sport Aurora’s Recognition and Celebration Committee, Allan Dean, welcomed each of the winners to the celebration.
Prior to inviting the Athletes of the Year to the stage, the Aurora Sports Hall of Famer brought greetings on behalf of the 43 sports organizations that comprise Sports Aurora.
“On behalf of Sport Aurora and all our sports organizations, it’s a pleasure to honor these athletes with us tonight,” said Dean.
As he warmly invited each of the winners to receive their certificates, Member of Parliament Leah Taylor Roy (Aurora-Oak Ridges-Richmond Hill) and Member of Provincial Parliament Dawn Gallagher Murphy (Newmarket-Aurora) graced the stage and congratulated each of the student-athletes, and presented the winners with their customized diploma folders.
The following School Athletes of the Year were honored for their sporting prowess during 2023-24:
St. Joseph Catholic Elementary School – Zara Clark and Xavier Dalla Rosa;
St. Jerome Catholic Elementary School – Ava Wong, Jack Wong, Benjamin McArthur, and Isla Teague;
Our Lady of Grace Catholic Elementary School – Amelia Kapuscinski and Michael Gabriele;
Holy Spirit Elementary School – Jason Iaconetti and Bianca Milani;
Light of Christ Catholic Elementary School – Marco Battaglin;
Aurora Heights Public School – Avery Vickers and Jordan Pelham;
Northern Lights Public School – Fiona McClorey, Gavin Scott, and Daniel Yoo;
Rick Hansen Public School – Ryan Kong, Francesca Conrad, and Arian Memari;
Devins Drive Public School – Owen Navarro and Nila Nouri;
Regency Acres Public School – Dylan Swan, Finell Tuccalay, and Chez Gravina;
Hartman Public School – Oliver Guevara , Juha Kim, Kaitlyn Mok; and Danica Swift.
Highview Public School – Jacob Hamilton;
Cardinal Carter Catholic High School – Vanessa Veloso, Charlotte Kimens, Athan Miwa, Keilani Wetzel, Namdi Chinaka, Alexia Salapa; and Ester Hassantari;
Aurora High School – MacKenna Smith, Tristan Skupien; and Dillon Cook;
St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic High School – Maeve Butler, Grayson Butler, Simon Blas; and Mikayla Young;
Dr. G.W Williams Secondary School – Rehan Qureshi and Emma Rusu.
By Jim Stewart