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Chilliwack’s Garrison Archery shuts down

Unable to find enough volunteers for vacant board roles, the four year old club is folding
21932045_web1_2018-JOP-Prov---Frances-McKenna-Smith
Frances McKenna-Smith (left) of the Garrison Archers represented the club at the 2018 Junior Olympian Indoor Archery Championships in Maple Ridge. (Mandy Peacock photo)

The COVID-19 pandemic appears to have hastened the demise of Chilliwack’s Garrison Archery club.

The club was already struggling before the coronavirus hit, and made the difficult decision to shut down following a virtual AGM held June 20.

“Like so many other volunteer organizations, we have often struggled to find dedicated volunteers,” the club’s organizers wrote in an email to members. “Now that everyone’s situations have also been affected by the pandemic, recruitment has become even harder. So, unfortunately, we did not receive enough interest to replace our outgoing board members.”

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The club will offer full refunds to all 2020 members, including the B.C. Archery portion of the membership fee, but local archers will still be able to shoot at other B.C. Archery-affiliated venues until the end of the year.

The club’s remaining funds and equipment will be offered to other local clubs, starting with Sagittarius Archers in Abbotsford.

Garrison Archery’s existence was a short but successful one. Coming online in 2016, local shooters earned 10 gold medals, six silvers, one bronze and one record at the provincial level.

“We want to take this chance to thank everyone who has played their part – the hard-working coaches who personally funded their training courses and gave their valuable time, to the people who arrived early to help set up or stayed late to pack away the targets,” the organizers’ email read. “Also, the children who brought their enthusiasm, the parents for supporting them (and us) and the board members for their tireless efforts behind the scenes to keep everything going.”


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Eric Welsh

About the Author: Eric Welsh

I joined the Chilliwack Progress in 2007, originally hired as a sports reporter.
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