Len Williams was left feeling "overwhelmed" and was "very humbling" after seeing the huge response from family and the community to the Len Williams Coaching Legacy benefit fundraiser held Saturday evening in the Legion Hall.
Len Williams was left feeling "overwhelmed" and was "very humbling" after seeing the huge response from family and the community to the Len Williams Coaching Legacy benefit fundraiser held Saturday evening in the Legion Hall.
Organizers said upwards of 300 people came out for the evening's event, set to raise funds to establish the Len Williams Legacy, a fund to help coaches obtain training and take courses to upgrade their skills.
Williams has been a coach and mentor in several sports, both at the Comp and in the community, for over 40 years, and recently was diagnosed with stomach cancer; thus, in a conversation with long-time friend Gary Frederickson, the idea for a legacy fund was born, and the event was put together in a matter of weeks.
Virtually all of Len's siblings and their families were able to make it, with the exception of his youngest brother Sid, who was unable to come due to other commitments.
In addition to the family members, many of Len's past students were able to come, some travelling from out of province to be there to support him.
An unofficial tally put the fundraiser at over $55,000, with more funds yet to come in, some from Sask Sport, which will match some of the funds that were raised on Saturday night.
"This is overwhelming. I expected it would be good, but the support is unbelievable. I got so much support from family and friends, and students coming back from all over the place; it really is a humbling experience," said Len.
A big part of the fundraising activities was the live auction of rare sports memorabilia, with some of the hardest to get items arranged for by Len's brother Dave "Tiger" Williams, who is an alumni of NHL teams Toronto and Vancouver.
One of items he arranged for was two tickets to the alumni box in Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens, which can be used at any time, with meal and drinks included; this was the top item in the auction, fetching $16,500, bought by Mike and CJ Mainil.
The winning bid earned a standing ovation from the crowd as the very last item in the live auction, with the auction fetching $35,850, and then the silent auction and donations were tallied in later.
Len's brother "Tiger" Williams was kept busy throughout the evening, and he was impressed at the level of support shown for his brother.
"I think the scholarship fund for male or female anywhere in Saskatchewan is a great idea. I'm glad we got to do it now; we probably should've done it 10 years ago," said "Tiger". "The night went better than most people expected."
He added that this was a typical response from Weyburn residents for a cause like this, and said, "You couldn't get any more people into the room."
"It goes to show you don't have to like your coach, but you have to respect your coach. It was good for all of Len's siblings to come home, except for one," he added, noting he attends fundraisers like these all across Canada all the time. "Events are only as good as the people who live there. Gary has done a great job here tonight."
The siblings who were able to come included, in order of oldest to youngest, brother Hugh, sister Ann, brothers Dave and Morgan, sister Heather and brother Trevor, with only Sid unable to attend.
Brother Morgan, known locally, provincially and nationally in boxing circles as a boxer, coach and referee, and a past volunteer with Sask Sport, was also really happy to see the support given to his brother and the legacy fund.
"It's a great idea, and really the community of Weyburn, I knew they would really come through on this. I always wanted to come back to Weyburn, but it just didn't work out. This was a great event; it exceeded my expectations," said Morgan.
He was impressed at how many family members were on hand, noting, "Most of the nieces and nephews made it too."
Morgan noted this legacy fund will be good for any coach looking to upgrade their skills or to take a training program that would be otherwise cost too much to attend.
Morgan did up an information sheet for all those who attended, which fully explains the intent and goal of the evening and of the legacy fund.
"The fund is essentially a high-interest savings account for donations that have been made to the legacy fund in Len's name. The fund grows at an annual interest rate of five per cent.
The goal is to achieve a funding level of $100,000 and use the interest to help new and current coaches to get educated, trained and certified in the area of coaching youth in the province indefinitely," said the information. Sask Sport will make a matching donation of 20 per cent for donations of $120 and larger.
Asked if he was surprised at the level of support shown, Morgan said, "I'm surprised but not shocked, because I know what kind of community Weyburn is, and I know the impact Len has had as a coach. I went into Phys. Ed myself because of Len."
He added that his sports were completely different from the ones Len coached in (hockey, ball, basketball, football, volleyball) but some of the principles of coaching he learned from his brother were still applicable in the boxing ring.
Former Comp fellow coach and former city councillor Gary Frederickson (now of Lethbridge, Alta.) was the emcee for the evening, and as he explained, "This idea was put together in his driveway four or five weeks ago. Morgan was the technical advisor on how to make (the legacy fund) all work."
As the evening went into the fundraising aspect, Gary said "Len is very adamant on this, nobody should feel pressured at all, just if they want to give support."
Speaking of his longtime friend, Gary said, "Len and I back a long way; our relationship has grown a lot over the last 50 years," noting they first became friends around when they were in Grade 8, and then headed to university and ended up coaching together at the Comp.
"Len had a definite kind of vision He mentored me, and there's been a lot of people touched through me as a result," he said. "I really think coaching is a lifestyle. Len embedded that to me early on."
