Robert Smith
President
Robert’s curling career began in front of the TV. Watching the pros tweaked his curiosity about the game so he participated in a bonspiel. Cathy Craig gave him a few lessons and others from Jasper Place welcomed him onto their team. He was hooked on the sport and with JP as his curling home. Almost immediately, Robert volunteered to work a casino as a way to give back to JP for the help he had received. Soon after, he joined the Board at the urging of his new team mates. Robert has been on the Board for more than a dozen years, serving as Secretary for several years and as President for the past three years. He has always enjoyed volunteering – on parent councils, coaching fastball for 11 years and more – and appreciates the camaraderie it builds. When he’s not curling or volunteering, Robert’s journeyman machinist skills are put to good use.
Justin Kailan
Vice-President
Justin joined the Jasper Place Curling community just after he graduated high school and has committed many hours of volunteer time to his home away from home ever since. He has served on the Board for the past seven years, first as Treasurer and currently as Vice-President. He commits his time because he strongly supports all JPCC means to him – a great curling environment, a chance to meet an eclectic group of like-minded curlers and a tight-knit community that cares about sustaining the west-end curling experience. He has every intention of continuing to help make the club even better for current and future members. Justin is a 2017 Environmental Science graduate of NAIT and a 2020 Land Reclamation graduate of the University of Alberta.
Rhonda Willans
Treasurer
Rhonda’s deep enthusiasm for curling, JPCC and volunteering, coupled with her experience serving on boards, prompted her to join the JPCC Board when her schedule allowed. She is currently serving her second term. Born and raised in Edmonton, Rhonda caught the volunteering bug as a member of Kin Canada about 30 years ago and has been volunteering in various ways, shapes and forms ever since. She started curling about 25 years ago and is delighted the sport graciously accommodates aging knees and backs so she can continue with the game she loves. Rhonda is an Executive Assistant with the Government of Alberta, returning home each evening to be greeted by a four-legged pitty cross that thinks she's a lap dog.
Aimee Branting
Secretary
Aimee loves the sport of curling – for the skill it requires, its competitiveness, its social aspects and for the people she’s met – and is proud of her history of curling at JPCC for more than 40 years. She’s also an avid volunteer. At JPCC, she has actively participated on the Building Committee since 2018 and has served on the Board of Directors since 2019. JPCC events that have benefitted from Aimee’s efforts include the Canadian Wheelchair, the International U18, Provincial Masters, Northern Men’s, Women’s and Mixed championships. At home, Aimee is a founder of the Candy Cane Lane Food Bank Drive that in 2015 surpassed one million pounds of food donated since the drive’s inception. Aimee has four grandchildren whom she has promised to hug a lot the second COVID restrictions allow.
Wendy Campbell
Chair, Marketing & Communications Committee
Wendy brings a strong background in business communication to the JPCC Board. In the mid-‘80s she decided to give curling the nod to get her off the couch in winter. She proves the point you don’t have to be a great curler to love the sport. Wendy joined the newly formed JPCC Marketing & Communications Committee in early 2020 just before COVID-19 struck and sincerely hopes for somewhat more mundane years to follow. She joined the Board in late 2020 and is thoroughly enjoying the process of learning more about the club management and how to support it so JPCC can continue to offer quality curling to west Edmonton. Wendy has volunteered for many different organizations and strongly believes those who offer their time grow as individuals and gain an appreciation for the hands-on work of the organization through their personal effort.
Matt Michielin
Director
Matt has served the Jasper Place Curling Club as an employee since 2015. As a bartender, cook, admin, and even as a junior ice technician, Matt has had the pleasure of connecting with the JPCC community. In 2018, he stepped onto the ice as a curler and hasn’t looked back. Matt brings a unique perspective to the board as a musician, music educator, and casino chairman of the Traditional Jazz Society of Alberta. From naming shots in the bar to making some of them on the ice, Matt looks forward to serving the JPCC community as a board member.
Donna Wild
Director
Cathy Craig
General Manager
Ex Officio Member of the Board
Cathy first slid down the curling sheet as a young adult. At the same time she also started volunteering for curling. By the mid-‘80s she began coaching and teaching curling, creating several foundational programs. These included the Alberta Rocks summer camp and her own “curling in the gym” program, which inspired the current national Rocks and Rings program. After working for the Alberta Curling Federation, Cathy joined JPCC as GM in August 2000. She planned to stay five years – but knew she had found her true curling community. Her children, Erin and Mike, also spent countless hours at the club, working at jobs from busing to bartender to ice maker. Cathy loves project management – including the many prestigious championships hosted at JPCC and the added amenities such as locker rooms, updated washrooms and bar, and an elevator. Now she’s full steam ahead on the current major capital project to replace the ice-making plant and upgrade the facility ventilation.
