Ann Holmes of Vernon has won another award for going the extra kilometre in the community.
Holmes, 68, recently was honoured with a Presidents’ Award from Sport BC, the second such plaque she has received.
This time, Holmes was recognized by Softball BC. She served as the second vice-president and director of coaching with Softball BC from 2004-12 and minor director from 2013-2016.
The feisty go-getter also coached her son, Jon, in baseball in Seattle and later coached her daughter, Becky, and future daughter-in-law, Shannon Schofield, for two years of Bantam fastball in Vernon.
“Anything you do for your kids or anybody else’s kids, it’s always rewarding,” said Holmes, a mother of four and grandmother of eight. “That’s why I still do one-on-one reading and volunteer for KidSport.”
The Presidents’ Awards go to member organizations who “represent the spirit of volunteerism and whose dedication, energy and commitment contribute to development of their sport or organization.”
Each Sport BC organization is eligible to nominate one volunteer per year.
Holmes, who was honoured with the Tim Hortons Leadership in Sport award last year, has worked behind the scenes on scores of softball, fastball, volleyball, curling and lacrosse events.
She is also the funding allocator for KidSport, which raises and distributes money for children in need to get involved in sports. She has handled more than $250,000 in Greater Vernon since 2001. The program helps more than 250 kids a year.
She was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer two weeks before Christmas two years ago and is now cancer-free. She lost her loving husband Bob to a heart attack last spring.
“Bob didn’t know how much it cost me to volunteer until I quit working at the curling club,” joked Ann, who remains as the provincial softball advisor for the 2018 B.C. Summer Games in Duncan.
In 2016, Softball BC spent $82,000 on provincial and regional championships in 17 communities.