In 101 years of the organization's existence, Mary-Anne Veroba is the first female president of the Saskatchewan Hockey Association.
The Lampman native took over as president last year and was recently re-elected to a new two-year term which begins in June.
For Veroba, it's the culmination of many years of being involved in hockey.
"What I find among the hockey world is people are very welcoming. I find them to be very good people," said Veroba. "Volunteering is part of the hockey experience from when our kids are five years old. Volunteering is what happens in hockey in Canada. People want to make things better and make a difference."
Before starting to climb the ladder in the SHA, Veroba was the president of Lampman Minor Sports for about 10 years.
After that, she became the director of Zone 1, which made her a member of the SHA board. After several years of doing that, she became Vice President of Finance and Administration, while also acting as chair of the appeals committee, overseeing suspension appeals and the like.
"My first year. I had 14 appeals, which was the most there had ever been before or since. That was busy," Veroba said.
Part of her portfolio during that stretch of six or seven years was risk management, an area she had always been interested in. Today, Veroba sits on the Hockey Canada risk management sub-committee, dealing with matters like concussions, return to play policy and social media, which involves educating kids to help them avoid potentially bad situations.
Last year, then-president Al Hubbs stepped down before his term was over and encouraged Veroba to run to take his place. She said the experience has been "very positive" so far.
"It's interesting hearing the issues of other provinces and branches. I think we have a very good branch in Saskatchewan. We have more senior teams playing than any province. Our hockey is meant to be inclusive, so we try and get as many kids playing as possible."
She added it's important to work side-by-side with officials, something that isn't always as much of a priority in other provinces, because "without them, we don't have a game."
One of Veroba's goals is to review the board's governance and structure, and a sub-committee exists to examine these matters.
"Our mission is to promote a positive hockey experience. Our vision is shaping character for life. Do we make sure that happens? Do we do the right things for the people we serve?
"I think what we do as a board is try to empower and engage minor hockey associations so they can run the games as best they can at their local level. Most people don't care about who's president or on the board, they want their kid to have a great hockey experience."
