Dear Members,
The GAME ON Coalition of Outdoor Sports, a group of several outdoor Provincial Sport Organizations and outdoor sports clubs, including the Toronto Ultimate Club, met with the Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries on Wednesday regarding our concerns with the Province’s Roadmap to Re-opening Ontario plan.
The meeting went very well, and TUC is encouraged by the Government’s direction with the Roadmap to Re-opening.
For Step 1, the Ministry has confirmed that on a large, outdoor facility like a soccer field, more than one group of 10 participants is permitted. However, these groups cannot cross over or inter-mingle. Please note that the number 10 does not include coaches, instructors, trainers or clinicians.
The Ministry has also confirmed that masks and contact tracing requirements will remain in effect for Step 1 of the Roadmap to Re-opening.
For Step 1, the Re-opening regulations state practices are not permitted. The coalition sought clarity on this statement, and the Ministry confirmed that each Sport defines for its members what is “practice” and what is “training”. For TUC’s purposes, all practice activities, with the exception of scrimmages, and inter-squad scrimmages, constitutes training.
Per the Provincial Roadmap to Re-opening regulations, scrimmages and games are not permitted in Step 1.
TUC feels the discussions regarding the regulations for Step 2 and Step 3 of the Roadmap to Re-opening for Sport were very positive, and we look forward to sharing those outcomes with you, our members in the coming week or so.
With the clarity provided by the Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Cultural Industries on what is permitted for Sport in Step 1, TUC will be announcing and opening up registrations for clinics and tune-up training sessions early next week to get the rust off and prepare for the resumption of league games and programs Step 2, hopefully in early to mid-July.
We look forward to seeing everyone on the ultimate field soon!
Kind Regards,
Jo Malisani (she/her)
Executive Director
Toronto Ultimate Club
News
IMPORTANT MESSAGE: TUC Re-Opening Announcement
Posted: June 11, 2021, 10:45 PM
2020 Volunteer of the Year
Posted: April 24, 2021, 1:47 PM
2020 TUC Volunteer of the Year - Winners and Honourable Mentions
2020 was a challenging year, and our lives impacted in so many ways, including our ability to play and give back to the sport we all love.
TUC is a close-knit community that relies on our volunteers. We are so grateful to have so many beautiful humans willing to give back and grow our sport and club.
And while we were able to take the field at various times and celebrate and recognize our volunteers through our Volunteer of the Month Awards, our winners for the 2020 Volunteer of the Year Award are ALL OUR TUC MEMBERS WHO ARE FRONTLINE WORKERS. From our health care professionals, to emergency services personnel, to grocers, to pharmacists, etc. - thank you for your services! You have gone above and beyond for our city, our province and our country to provide others with the essential services.
We also wanted to share some honourable mentions.
Hidaya "Dee" Roderique, our June Honorary Volunteer of the Month. She is a nationally renowned speaker on equity, diversity, and inclusion issues among the many hats she wears. She is an award-winning writer, most well known for her viral piece "Black on Bay Street", a cover story for the Globe and Mail, which outlined her experiences as a young Black woman working in a Bay Street firm. Over the last year, Hadiya has continued her work on those issues, taking part in a Speaker's Spotlight Panel on Race, Equality, Justice and Hope. She also led a Q and A for junior ultimate players on Race and what we can do to make Ultimate more inclusive. Hadiya also sits on Ultimate Canada's newly established Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee.
TUC's 2020 Summer Coaches. In addition to their usual responsibilities - creating an engaging, safe, and fun learning environment for our junior athletes to grow and develop their skills - COVID-19 brought on and with it more responsibilities: wellness checks, equipment sanitization, ensuring physical distancing, all while pivoting to coach with a mask on, which required adjusting the communication tools of a coach (masks hide a lot of facial expressions and cues, and limits the projection of one's voice). Despite these challenges and additional responsibilities, our coaches showed up and created opportunities for our juniors to play safely!
TUC'S Board of Directors. COVID-19 changed the game for these volunteers, in an instant on March 12th, the time commitment and dedication level required of them changed, and they rose to the challenge, meeting bi-weekly to discuss the latest developments on COVID-19, working with staff on how to keep the community engaged, and preparing for a safe return to ultimate.
Thank you to all our volunteers and frontline workers for all you did in 2020, on the field and off!
See below for a list of the previous Volunteer of the Year winners:
2019: Emma Seaborn and Rob Grundy
2018: Chelsea Jackson
2017: Thomas Meyer
2016: Cory Lamothe
2015: Kevin Philip Lee
2014: Micheal Kukucska
2013: Mark Tran
2012: Harry Burkman
2011: Craig Stephen
2010: Natalie Fitzgerald
2009: Greg Schmidt
2008: James McCully
2007: Michael Pezzack
2006: Doug Coote
2005: Andrew Hunter
National Volunteer Week
Posted: April 23, 2021, 5:35 PM
Volunteer of the Month Nominations
TUC has been recognizing the club’s volunteers dating back to 2007. We have recognized our junior and development program coaches, event volunteers, league coordinators, and board members.
Volunteers are the backbone of our community, and we are pleased to invite you, our membership, to join TUC leadership in recognizing volunteers from across our community who are dedicated to our club, and the sport of Ultimate.
As a part of National Volunteer's Week, We will be accepting nominations monthly from the first Monday of the month, to the second last Friday of the month, for volunteerism for the previous moth. Toronto Ultimate Club’s leadership will review the nominations received and will announce the Volunteer of the Month for the previous month on the last Friday of the current month. Following the announcement on our social media platforms, an article will be published on our website.
To nominate a deserving member of our community, please complete the following nomination form:
Please note, nominations for April 2021 Volunteer of the Month will open on Monday, May 3rd.
We look forward to working with our membership to continue to celebrate our volunteers!
Kind Regards,
Jo Malisani
Executive Director
International Transgender Day of Visibility 2021
Posted: March 31, 2021, 6:06 PM
Today is International Transgender Day of Visibility! We see you! And we love you!
Today is about celebrating transgender and non-binary people worldwide and within the TUC community and the progress made towards equity for the trans community. It is also about living TUC's value of inclusion by renewing our commitment to educate ourselves on transgender issues and to raise our voices against transphobia in all its forms.
RESOURCES:
Check out these great resources from our friends at GLAAD, PFLAG and Egale Canada:
Black History Month
Posted: March 5, 2021, 12:39 AM
#BlackHistoryMonth has come to a close. Our colleagues at Team Ontario recently shared Chef De Mission Steve Sevor's thoughts on how we, as individuals and the entire sporting community, need to continue to learn about Black history to continue to affect change every day of the year.
To learn more about Steve's thoughts on educating youth, his personal heroes and his message for the whole sporting community, check out this link on #TeamO's Facebook Page.
Additional Resources
For more information about Ontario Black History and Canadian Black History, check out some of of the resources we have compiled below.
Black History Month
Posted: February 9, 2021, 2:44 PM
February is Black History Month
The 2021 theme for Black History Month is "The Future is Now," the chance to celebrate and acknowledge the transformative work that Black Canadians and their communities are doing now.
To kick things off, we want to share an article written by Hadiya "Dee" Roderique, a long-time TUC player and volunteer who currently serves on Ultimate Canada's Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee. In the article published on Sportsnet, she shares her experiences in sport.
In addition to this great article, we will continue to share articles, webinars and events that showcase, empower and celebrate Black History and Black Canadians.
Here are a few Events and Programs to start us off:
- The folks at Pride Toronto are running a series of events for Black History Month.
- The University of Toronto Anti-Racism and Cultural Diversity Office is hosting several events throughout February that are open to the public, including a Lunch & Learn on February 11th, Black Athletes on the Margins- I am More!
- For our film enthusiasts, the 9th annual Toronto Black Film Festival begins on February 10th and runs through to February 21st!
- The Toronto Public Library also has a series of Black History Programs and Events happening, as well as a couple of reading lists you can tackle in February!
Bell Lets Talk Day 2021
Posted: January 28, 2021, 11:08 AM
Today is #BellLetsTalk Day!
The last 10 months have been hard!
Our lives have been impacted in so many ways. Over the last 10 days, we've shared some articles and resources to remind us how and why sport and being active is important. We've shared why folks play sport, the importance of acceptance to drive continued participation, and the resulting benefits of an active lifestyle - physical and mental well being!
It's okay to not be okay!
Now more than ever, mental health matters, and every action counts!
Small actions, from encouraging physical activity and getting outside to recognizing stressors to being there for a loved one, can all go a long way to help to support mental health and strengthen our communities during this difficult time.
Below is a recap of the research articles we have shared about the benefits of sport, how to get more active, and mental health tips for coaches and athletes to help us navigate our way through COVID-19.
At the end of the article, we have compiled a list of helpful resources and information developed by various organizations like the Canadian Psychological Association and the Centre for Additional and Mental Health (CAMH) on how you can help yourself, your friends, and your family cope with stress and look after their mental health.
24-Hour Movement Guidelines
According to the new 24-Hour Movement Guidelines published by the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP), which focuses on healthy living and the benefits of healthy living, "by getting the most out of your whole day by moving more," it can help you:
- Improve fitness.
- Strengthen muscles and bones.
- Improve mental health and wellbeing.
The CSEP has also provided some guidance on how to continue to practice healthy movement behaviours in the COVID-19 Era. Check out the article here if you are looking for some ideas.
Acceptance - the Hallmark of a Quality Sporting Experience
Research indicates that regardless of skill, age or gender, individuals continue to participate in sports as they feel a sense of belonging and acceptance.
Acceptance is achieved in one of two ways:
- Engagement in sport is through effort, which improves performance and leads to acceptance through successful performance.
- Engagement in sport first comes through acceptance, which then drives effort, which improves performance.
Regardless of the path, it is acceptance, this sense of belonging, that fuels a life-long passion for sport, which leads to a healthier, more active lifestyle and improved mental health and wellbeing!
Why Folks Start to Play or Get Involved In Sport
Again, regardless of age or gender, the TOP 5 reasons why folks start to and get involved in sport are:
- To Have Fun.
- To improve their skills/learn new skills.
- To be with friends and make new ones.
- To be part of a team.
- For the excitement/challenge of competition.
Sports organizations, activity leaders and coaches that embrace these "whys" as a part of their underlying core values and integrate them into their programs and activities create the accepting environment that develops that sense of belonging and plants the seeds for a lifelong passion for Sport, reaping the benefits of an active lifestyle, improved mental health and wellbeing not just in the short term but in the long-term!
Mental Health Tips for Athletes, Coaches and Sport Administrators
COVID-19 has limited and changed our ability to reap the benefits of sport and physical activity. This has affected us all in different ways and similarly impacted our health and wellness.
As we continue to stay home and stay safe, our friends at the Sport Information Resource Centre (SIRC) have put together some Mental Health tips for coaches, athletes and Sports administrators to support our mental health and optimal mental performance to help us through to the other side of this pandemic.
- Pre and Post Daily Routines. Create a pre-day and a post-day routine to bookend your work or school day.
- Get excited for new solutions. Adopt a solutions-focused mindset and challenge yourself to find new and better ways of doing things.
- Cognitive fitness. Find fun and creative ways to engage your mind in diverse and meaningful ways. Take an online course, read a book, do a Sudoku or crossword puzzle, etc.
Check out the full list of tips in the article here!
ADDITIONAL ARTICLES AND RESOURCES
Articles, Factsheets and Information:
- SIRC: Supporting the Psychological Wellbeing of Athletes: What Can Coaches Do?
- CAMH: Mental Health in the World of Sport
- Canadian Psychological Association: "Psychological Works" Factsheet: Psychological Impacts of COVID-19
- Canadian Mental Health Association: Mental Health for Life
- Candian Mental Health Association: Supporting a Loved One
- Kids Help Phone: How to Help a Friend
- Kids Help Phone: Asking for Help
- Canadian Mental Health Association: Getting Help
Organizations with Helpful (and great) Resources:
Celebrating Our LGBTQ+ Community
Posted: June 17, 2020, 1:08 PM
CELEBRATING OUR LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY – IHUC’S STORY
June is Pride Month, and to celebrate TUC wanted to share stories of our LGBTQ+ community, specifically, IHUC and their teams that partake in TUC's programming and with whom TUC leadership partnered with for feedback on our Inclusion Policy. They have graciously agreed to share their story, and we want to thank IHUC's Executive for providing us with the following article.
IHUC’S STORY
Submitted by IHUC Executive
IHUC exists to provide an inclusive space for the queer community to become kick-ass at ultimate frisbee while having fun and being part of a team!
Its long and storied history dates back to 2015 when it was a casual pickup “league”. Things got serious in 2016 when the league got its first field permit, and the name was changed to IHUC (which doesn’t officially stand for anything, but unofficially stands for Incredibly Homosexual Ultimate Club).
The league is open to all players and all skill levels. In fact, many players have no experience playing ultimate at all. The focus is on having fun, learning the sport, and building community. Over the past four years, queers and allies have congregated in Riverdale Park East on summer Wednesdays in what is probably the most colourful game of ultimate in Toronto.
Part of IHUC’s success is its wonderful sponsor bar, the Old Nick on Danforth Ave. After every game, almost the entire league can be found in the back patio meeting new friends and occasionally singing along to Disney!
As the “sport” side of the league has grown, some IHUCers have started playing in TUC and TSSC leagues during the winter season (you may have noticed more bright coloured shirts at Monarch Park and Lamport Stadium – we have an affinity for hot pink). As well, for the past few years several players have gone to the world’s largest (not that it’s that big) queer ultimate frisbee tournament in Las Vegas in January (part of the Sin City Classic). The tournament has been a great way for the broader queer frisbee community to connect.
IHUC is also super excited to partner more closely with TUC, as the league grows. We were happy to give feedback on TUC’s Inclusivity Policy earlier this year.
Because our field permit only runs until the end of July, IHUC has already made the sad decision to cancel the 2020 season. We are all really missing the beautiful queer frisbee community, and we hope to be back on the field soon.
IHUC maintains a web presence on Facebook. Check out our videos!
2020 TORONTO VIRTUAL PRIDE EVENTS
While the 2020 Toronto Pride Festival Weekend, has been cancelled, Toronto Pride has put together Virtual Pride, a series of events, including, weekly events, BIPOC programming, and a Virtual Pride Parade and Marches. Click here to see a listing of all the Virtual Pride events happening throughout June.
Egale also has a 2020 Pride Inside Guide on ways to celebrate Pride.
LGBTQ+ INCLUSIVITY RESOURCES
TUC has also compiled a listing of resources on ways we can support our LGBTQ+ community members through allyship and creating inclusive, safe, and brave spaces for everyone:
Events
Stay up to date with all the TUC events this season.
Partners
