{"id":37165,"date":"2025-11-13T14:05:36","date_gmt":"2025-11-13T19:05:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/?p=37165"},"modified":"2025-11-20T13:27:32","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T18:27:32","slug":"aurora-sports-hall-of-fame-welcomes-class-of-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/aurora-sports-hall-of-fame-welcomes-class-of-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Aurora Sports Hall of Fame welcomes Class of 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The 12th Annual Aurora Sports Hall of Fame Induction Celebration Evening was enjoyed by over 230 attendees at the Royal Venetian Mansion on Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enshrined into the Hall of Fame were Ultra Runner Erlinda Biondic, CFL tailback Robert Reid, Hockey Coach Heather Morning, and NHL veteran Kris King.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With David Bowie\u2019s \u201cHeroes\u201d playing in the background, the opening lineup of Inductees strode into the Mansion\u2019s main dining room.  Included in the star-studded, red-jacketed procession were Charles Leeming (2023), Janice Jones (2022), Ryan Gardner (2019), Colin Graham (2021), Reg Chappell (2019), Paolina Allan (2018), Mike Kitchen (2016), Lois Thompson (2021), Jim Clark (2019), Bob Wall (2017), Mike Murphy (2016), and Alex Ansell (2014).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As they gathered around fellow Inductee Lowell McClenny (2015), the esteemed group received a standing ovation by an appreciative audience<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once the red-jacketed brigade was assembled at the stage, the Royal Canadian Legion Honor Guard piped in the colours and the 2025 Inductees\u2014Biondic, Reid, Morning, and King\u2014made their entrance to the rhythmic clapping of the guests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Piper Clinton Lau of St. Andrew\u2019s College delivered a brilliant performance as he led the honored quartet to the Mansion\u2019s stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The amiable and engaging Rod Black\u2014the event\u2019s long-time Emcee\u2014introduced the blue-jacketed President and Chair Javed Khan as well as co-host Alexandra Bonham who delivered greetings from the Aurora Sports Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the rules of engagement were delineated, emcee Black introduced Mayor Tom Mrakas to deliver a keynote to the assembly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mayor Mrakas noted, \u201cIt was truly wonderful to be here.\u201d He thanked Black for his \u201cenergy and humor\u201d and observed that the Aurora Sports Hall of Fame \u201cis more than just a list of [honored athletes and builders]. It\u2019s a reflection of who we are as a Town\u2014a community that produces great athletes and great role models.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mayor Mrakas spoke soaringly about the \u201cfour inducted individuals\u2014Erlinda, Kris, Heather, and Robert\u201d and praised each of the inductees as \u201chometown heroes.\u201d He concluded his address by noting that the ceremony was \u201cmore than a tribute of the past\u2014it\u2019s a promise of the future as generations are born into these traditions.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He reminded Aurorans that \u201cwe raise champions together and they represent our shared pride in our community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI associate this event with the seasons\u2014there\u2019s Winter, Spring, Summer, and then there\u2019s the Aurora Sports Hall of Fame Celebration Evening,\u201d said Black, picking up the thread.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Black marveled at recent athletic feats including the Blue Jays\u2019 heartbreaking loss in the World Series \u2013\u201cSo close,\u201d the Stouffville resident intoned\u2014and praised the team\u2019s esprit de corps and their profound impact on the nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The long-time TSN broadcaster spoke in abject amazement at recent sporting achievements such as a \u201c68-yard field goal in the NFL,\u201d and \u201c8-foot NBA players making 3\u2019s from the logo.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the context of these high-flying feats of contemporary athleticism, he spoke lovingly of the Town\u2019s sports shrine\u2014\u201cThis is a special place\u2014the Aurora Sports Hall of Fame\u201d and Black ran through a series of \u201cC-words\u201d with positive connotations including \u201cConnection, Character, Courage, Community, and Canada\u201d associated with one of the best Sports Hall of Fame in the province.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A combination of emcee-delivered accolades and high-quality production videos introduced each inductee. Upon arrival on stage, each inductee was greeted by a sponsor, an athlete in the community playing the sport of the honoree, and President and Chair Khan, which created a smooth-flowing event and efficient photo ops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first arrival on this bustling stage was the Belle of the Ball\u2014Erlinda Biondic\u2014who stole the hearts and stirred the souls of the audience with inspirational images and imparted wisdom that only an octogenarian could deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biondic, 85, opened with a charming self-effacing moment when she observed, \u201cI am glad I\u2019m the first speaker\u2014I get drowsy by 8:00.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her admission earned an amused and appreciative round of applause and she added, \u201cBefore I have a senior\u2019s moment, I want to thank so many.\u201d  She praised \u201cthe special people in my life\u201d and saved her most poignant moments for her husband, long-distance runner extraordinaire George Biondic: \u201cWithout him, I wouldn\u2019t have done these things.  He\u2019s an inspirational athlete, coach, masseuse, spokesman\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

George\u2014as he tends to do with perfectly-timed insights and humor– interjected from the front row: \u201cDon\u2019t forget \u2018cook\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His bride gently chastised him for having problems \u201cboiling water.\u201d  The love birds\u2019 spat ended when Erlinda looked at her hubby and steeped the moment in sentimentality: \u201cI am forever grateful to you, Georgie.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After this public display of affection, she joked about some miscues she\u2019s committed on the road, including mistaking foot creams during one particularly painful trek. Erlinda admitted to applying vast amounts of \u201cIbuprofen cream to her feet accidently instead of Vaseline prior to a big run and \u2018Ahh\u2014there was no pain\u2026\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biondic charmed the audience with her trekking missteps and anecdotes and showed her eternally- youthful side by describing the highlight of a recent rec centre workout: \u201cFor six hours daily, I look at pickleballers and kids playing basketball and\u2014if I\u2019m lucky\u2014a good-looking guy on the pool deck. Little does he know that there\u2019s an 85-year-old female admiring his physique.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biondic brought the house down with her admission and she proffered some pearls of wisdom in her closing words: \u201cYou\u2019re never too late to follow your dreams\u2026. Dare to be your best\u2026and as Barack Obama said back in 2008, \u2018Yes, we can.\u2019 I say to you, \u2018Yes, you can!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The inspirational octogenarian, who took up trekking and long distance running at 74, received a thunderous standing ovation complemented with much hooting from the tables of boisterous and fun-loving female hockey players buttressing the back of the room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Black was so taken by Biondic\u2019s performance that he proclaimed, \u201cThat\u2019s one of the best speeches I\u2019ve heard\u201d and added admiringly: \u201cErlinda, you\u2019re going to enjoy hosting this event for the next five years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Black switched gears seamlessly from admiring the boundless energy of Biondic to describing  the foot speed of rapid Robert Reid who, according to the Emcee, was \u201cFaster than Wi-Fi.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The England-born Reid was renowned for his speed as a track athlete and tailback at Newtonbrook Secondary School in Toronto and at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia.  Reid wowed the SFU coaching staff into offering him a scholarship after showing off his acceleration and strength during training camp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He described his progress as football player from \u201ca walk-on at SFU\u2019s training camp to being selected 9th in the first round of the 1984 Draft by the Saskatchewan Roughriders.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part of Reid\u2019s regimen was \u201cWorking out at Vic Tanny\u2019s Gym\u201d which elicited sighs of recognition and reflection from all the boomers assembled as much of the room flashed back to 1970s Toronto.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reid added \u201cThat\u2019s where I put ten pounds on to my 150-pound frame.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reid spoke glowingly and warmly of his days at Newtonbrook (\u201cIn Grade 13, we won the only Toronto football championship in the school\u2019s history.\u201d), Simon Fraser University where he triumphed \u201cin track and field and football\u201d and, finally, in the CFL with both Saskatchewan and Ottawa in the 1980s when he played against such league greats as \u201cMatt Dunnigan, Damon Allen, and Pinball Clemons.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The charming football player-turned-actor thanked friends and family, \u201cespecially Charlotte with whom I\u2019ve been married for thirty-eight years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reid reflected on a goal he set as a determined young man at Newtonbrook: \u201cI had a dream and passion to play professional football\u201d and acknowledged that \u201cNo one makes the journey alone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s truly an honor to be inducted into the Aurora Sports Hall of Fame.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The retired tailback exited the stage with the million-watt smile that has propelled him from professional football in Regina and Ottawa to a career in commercials, television shows, and movies in Toronto\u2014the kind of warmth and radiance that lights up every room that he enters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Emitting their own special brand of radiance was a pair of Future Hall of Famers honored on Thursday evening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Black introduced Team Ontario field and box lacrosse player Taylor Thornley. The Grade 10 Bill Crothers Secondary School student in the Elite Athlete program and \u201clax phenom\u201d was presented with an $850 cheque by Bursary Sponsor Lindsay Strom of Royal LePage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second honoree was former Aurora Junior A Tiger and current NCAA D1 commit Andreas \u201cMikro\u201d Mikrogianakis who is playing for the Brooks Bandits of the British Columbia Hockey League prior to joining the Rochester Institute of Technology Tigers in September, 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mikrogianakis\u2014a graduate of Cardinal Carter Catholic High School\u2014delivered a video message from BC.  His sister, Talia, accepted an $850 cheque on his behalf from Bursary Sponsor Stu Bundy, President of the Aurora Optimist Club.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Black moved effortlessly from the future stars to the present stars assembled and praised Heather Morning as \u201cthe heartbeat of Girls\u2019 Hockey.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Emcee added that Coach Morning \u201clifted an entire generation of players and \u2018Tonight is all about the Morning.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The back tables at the Mansion were populated by a generation of Central York Panthers players and \u201cNever Too Late\u201d Hockey Program enthusiasts who commingled and offered booming bouts of applause and enthusiastic bench shrieking to support their beloved mentor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coach Morning admitted humbly at the outset of her address that she \u201cwas surprised and honored to be inducted into the Aurora Sports Hall of Fame.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She thanked her \u201chusband John\u2014a great coach in his own right and such a great dad to our three children.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She also thanked her many coaches and acknowledged Reid\u2019s prior insight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs Robert mentioned earlier, \u2018No one makes the journey alone.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coach Morning reflected on \u201cMy summer mornings of working out at the baseball diamond with my dad hitting me groundballs and flyballs for hours at the park\u201d and \u201cMy mom driving me everywhere for hockey before GPS and us getting lost or going down the wrong way of a one-way street or running late and having to put on my hockey equipment in the back of a Volkswagen Bug.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She also reflected fondly on the early days of her daughters playing hockey and how \u201cthey insisted on wearing dresses to their practices.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI put the rule in place that the dresses had to be short enough to tuck in their hockey pants.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Morning applauded \u201cThe \u2018Never Too Late\u2019 participants who are a family of sorts\u201d which was met with hearty applause from the 40-60-year-olds who have taken up the game later in life and have developed a heightened appreciation for the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Morning mentioned in jest that one of the benefits of the program is that \u201cthe new players don\u2019t scream as many things at the hockey rink now that they know how the game is played and how hard it is to play.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Morning closed her upbeat and energetic address by expressing her love of the game and noted that she \u201choped to continue to coach for many years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her concluding sentiments elicited enthusiastic applause, especially from the dozens assembled who have been so profoundly impacted by the legendary coach and skills instructor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After Morning\u2019s poignant performance, Black referred to the fourth Inductee as \u201cThe King\u201d and noted how appropriate it was that \u201cKris won the King Clancy Trophy in 1996 for significant contributions to community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Black noted that King\u2014in his executive capacity as the NHL\u2019s Senior Vice President of Operations\u2014has \u201cwatched more hockey than anyone alive\u201d and he closed his introduction of the rugged, 14-year NHL veteran with, \u201cTonight, we put Kris King in the spotlight:  Warrior, Leader, Gentleman, and to offer the best words a guy can hear\u2014A Great Dude.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

King thanked \u201cBlackie or Big Rod but for those of us who know him, it\u2019s Wee Rod.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After smuggling in that phallic jibe much to the delight of the assembly, King marveled at his red jacket and noted \u201c44 Regular still fits me.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indeed, the 59-year-old NHL executive looked like he could still lace \u2018em up and the former Winnipeg Jets captain shifted to some humorous barbs directed towards his daughter, Danielle, who submitted his nomination papers to the Aurora Sports Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He stared down at her and said lovingly, \u201cDanielle, you little turd.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

King reflected with great fondness about setting up \u201ca hockey house with Paula to raise our three kids in Aurora.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He expressed his surprise upon discovering there was a second Toronto Maple Leaf family living on their new street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs it turned out, we bought on the same street as my Coach Mike Murphy.  Unfortunately, Murph got fired in my first year with the Leafs\u2014he shouldn\u2019t have played me on the fourth line so much.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The easy-going relationship between King and the other former NHLer inductees in the audience\u2014 Murphy, Mike Kitchen, and Bob Wall\u2014was evident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

King\u2019s amusing and often ribald anecdotes brought down the house and his acceptance speech served as a climactic performance for the evening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He reflected on \u201cHockey careers as a series of good luck and big breaks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Peterborough, when I was with the Petes, I met Paula. When Paula first met my teammates, she referred to us as the idiots. But she finally agreed to go out on a date with me.  We\u2019re so happy to be grandparents.  Paula has been the rock behind my career.  She was always positive, even when things weren\u2019t going well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

King saved some special fun-loving invective for his former teammate and HNIC commentator Glenn Healy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After Heals dropped in a few good-natured and sardonic gems about the Inductee during the video introduction, it was King\u2019s turn to even the score. He chuckled about his times in the NHL with Healy and didn\u2019t mince words: \u201cHe was such an as*****. Cujo played all the time and he didn\u2019t.  And I was stuck on the bench on the fourth line so Heals and I had lots of time to talk together at the end of the Leafs bench.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A rousing and hearty round of applause greeted King as he exited the stage and Black closed the show with contemporary observations and insights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The renowned broadcaster praised the Toronto Blue Jays World Series squad and \u201ctheir love for one another. We saw all of these players lay it all on the line.  At a stadium that has undergone a $350 Million renovation, who knew that a ball could get stuck in the bottom of an outfield wall?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Black praised the four Inductees, especially \u201cfor their love of sports\u201d and encouraged the audience and the Inductees to \u201cCelebrate tonight. Those red coats will look great at Tom and Jerry\u2019s\u2026.It\u2019s clear that Aurora does build champions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Jim Stewart
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter<\/strong><\/p>\n\r\n\"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"mail\"<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The 12th Annual Aurora Sports Hall of Fame Induction Celebration Evening was enjoyed by over 230 attendees at the Royal Venetian Mansion on Thursday. Enshrined into the Hall of Fame were Ultra Runner Erlinda Biondic, CFL tailback Robert Reid, Hockey Coach Heather Morning, and NHL veteran Kris King. With David Bowie\u2019s \u201cHeroes\u201d playing in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":37166,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,5,24,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-37165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general_news","category-news","category-news-sports","category-sports"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025-11-13-02.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3D2k4-9Fr","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-07 01:30:39","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37165"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37165\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37167,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37165\/revisions\/37167"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}