David and Madeleine Nicholson – 1996

Inducted 1996

Dave Nicholson was involved in the early years, when the club needed someone to take over the job of ice preparation and maintenance. Dave served for several years as our ice technician. To begin, he did scrapes by hand with a disc-shaped scraper mounted on lawnmower handles; imagine the energy and time he had to spend getting our ice ready for games! He had a bit of help from some of the more dedicated members, but his dedication to the job, earned him the nickname ‘Super Dave’. He had little formal training on ice making, learning on the go, dealing with drips/frost on the ice, an aged compressor, lack of proper equipment, stones that were mismatched and a lack of money to buy stuff that would make his job easier. When he finally got a power scraper it was a major event. He was HCC president and Board member for a couple of years, working on the ice during his time on the Board. Super Dave set the bar high for those who had to fill his very large shoes. 

Same thing for Madeline, who was well known in the club as someone who would pitch in to help whenever needed. She worked many mornings in the kitchen on Carp Fair weekends. Her influence was felt by all who looked for help, such as during bonspiels and fund-raising events. To honour their contributions over the years, the club organized a major celebration party where they were awarded Honourary Memberships for their longstanding involvement, leadership and contributions to our club.