The Twin Rivers Curling Club will begin the 2014-15 season with a new general manager.
Monique Puffalt began her tenure as the general manager at the end of August. She previously spent two years working for the City of Estevan in event planning.
Puffalt said her background in planning events will help keep the Northland Power Curling Centre active year-round. She is hoping to hold more events at the curling centre when the ice is out, such as concerts, dances or conventions.
One of the changes Puffalt had to make for the job was to learn the game of curling. She has not played before, but has taken time to listen to members and figure out what they want from their club.
In this new endeavour, it will also be the first time she has had the challenge of working without a direct supervisor. Puffalt is looking forward to meeting that challenge head on.
Puffalt said it will be a busy year again at the curling centre during the season. For the second consecutive season, the Twin Rivers Curling Club will be hosting a provincial event. The Mixed Provincial Championships will be contested at the curling centre March 25 to 29, 2015. Puffalt said she will lean on the board's experience from hosting the Junior Men's and Women's Provincial Championship last December which was well received by participants and spectators alike.
The club will also introduce a sturling league this season to be played Friday evenings. Sturling, which is played in teams of two, has been gaining popularity in the province. Puffalt said this league will be beneficial as players sometimes have a hard time fielding a full team for curling.
All of the leagues and functions from last season will be returning, including Friday night drop-in curling, New Horizons curling and the local business league Wednesday nights. The business league, Puffalt said, has more of a friendly atmosphere as compared to the open competitive leagues earlier in the week. She said it was perfect for people in local businesses who just want to get out and curl.
The new season of curling at the Northland Power Centre is rapidly approaching. The club aims to have the ice installed for the week of Oct. 14.
