There are few faces in the Greater Victoria sports scene that are more recognizable than Jimmy Hansen’s.
Hansen, a Saanichite whose life is dedicated to minor sports, was named Braefoot’s Volunteer of the Year at the recent 17th Annual Friends of Braefoot Dinner held in Esquimalt’s Ward Room.
Hansen is known for his timekeeping with the Saanich Braves of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey and UVic men’s hockey team in the B.C. Intercollegiate Hockey League, and as a year-round volunteer official for local youth sports lacrosse, hockey, basketball soccer and softball. Hansen also runs Braefoot’s bouncy castle, which is no small feat, having entertained thousands of Greater Victoria children at dozens of bookings in 2013 alone.
“We started a Braefoot fund over 20 years ago, and it benefitted from a government at the time which matched a lot of the money that went in,” said Jim Tighe former chairman of Braefoot’s board. “Now we’re able to invest back into our future with over a dozen bursaries and scholarships, with a focus on the immediate community of youth who have come through Braefoot’s various programs.”
Braefoot named University of Victoria Vikes basketball players Jessica Renfrew and Dominic Ohl the 2013 winners of the Walter & Charlotte Yeamons Award.
Receiving the annual Braefoot bursaries were Camosun College students Cole Navarrete and Ian Assang, University of Victoria students Emily Dagg, Sarah Jolliffe, Carla Evans, Justin Hahn and Adrian Irwin, Royal Roads University student Bruce Liu and University of Manitoba student Megan Wilson. Braefoot also awarded its Joy Paquin Scholarship to Erika Sweetland of UVic, the Peter Maddaugh Scholarshi to Lauryn Kerr of UVic, and the Rick Devison Scholoarship to Bobby Tiet of Camosun.
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