The 49ers Museum presented by SONY, at Levi’s® Stadium, has a brand new exhibit acknowledging the members of the 49ers organization that have served the military. The opening of the exhibit coincided with the team’s “Salute to Service” game on November 6. “Salute to Service” is an annual initiative of National Football League wherein all 32 teams dedicate a home game to celebration of members of the United States Armed Forces.

The exhibit, “Gridiron Heroes: The Stories of the 49ers Military Veterans,” explores the experiences of 49ers players, coaches, and executives to honor their service and sacrifice and how their football careers were interrupted, delayed, and even initiated by their time in the service. Nearly every member of the 49ers inaugural team in 1946 had contributed to the war in some way, most through active service in the United States Armed Forces. Though the majority of 49ers who served our country did so during World War II, many others served during the conflicts in Korea, Vietnam, and the Persian Gulf. For these soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen, football remained a passion shared amongst servicemen of all ranks and occupations.

This photo is a prominent feature of the exhibit with the members of the inaugural 1946 San Francisco 49ers distinguished by the different branch of the United States Armed Forces they served.

Members of the Navy – Shaded Blue
Members of the Marine Corps- Shaded Red
Members of the Army- Shaded Dark Green
Members of the Army Air Forces- Shaded Gold

The year 2017 will mark the 60th Anniversary of the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum.

In 1957, the “Alberta Amateur Sports Hall of Fame” was founded by the Alberta Branch of Athletic Union of Canada.  The following year of 1958, welcomed the first inductees and Honoured Members  — Charles Cheesman, George Sutherland, Hugh Sloan, and Wilf Greaves.  In the beginning, the Hall of Fame only recognized seven sports including; track and field, boxing, wrestling, weightlifting, fencing, handball, and gymnastics. The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame now recognizes over 75 sports.

The first display was created in 1964 at the Molson’s Edmonton House. After the long journey moving the Hall of Fame around the province for years, we are proud to now have a permanent facility located on the west side of Red Deer, Alberta.

The 60th Anniversary Celebrations will bring together many of our Honoured Members at the annual Induction Banquet, held on Friday, May 26 in Red Deer.  This will be a time to celebrate the men and women who have distinguished themselves as pioneers, athletes, and builders of sport in Alberta.

We will also be celebrating our 25th Anniversary Golf Tournament Fundraiser on August 10th at the Innisfail Golf course.  We invite everyone to enjoy a day on the course with our Honoured Members.

There will be several Special Events held throughout the year to celebrate and honour our accomplishments over the past 60 years.

Check our website and social media to celebrate our 60th Anniversary with us!

Induction Baquet: ashfm.ca/events/induction-banquet
Golf Tournament: ashfm.ca/events/golf-tournament

The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum will continue to grow and enhance their collection of artifacts with the support and funding from the Alberta Community Facility Enhancement Program.

Kim Shreiner, MLA Red Deer North, presented Donna Hateley, Managing Director of the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum, with a cheque to assist with the renovation costs and improvements to the collections room which stores all the historical sports equipment, trophies, photographs and much more.

“We are out of space and there is so much more sports history that we would like to be able to preserve for years to come.  With the CFEP funding, we will be able to add an open mezzanine floor to accommodate future growth of our collections. We will also be able to incorporate tours of the collection area into our Beyond the Classroom Education.”

The renovations to the collections room will begin in the new year and will be a huge undertaking. Over 14,000 items will be catalogued, carefully wrapped and properly packed, then stored off-site during these renovations.  A project this big would not be possible without the ability to apply for funding through different sources, including the Alberta Community Facility Enhancement Program.

On November 12 the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame held its thirty-seventh annual Induction Awards Night at the World Trade and Convention Centre in Halifax. Over 600 people attended the event, which was hosted by CBC Sports broadcaster Bruce Rainnie. The induction class of 2016 included five athletes and two builders.

The Hall of Fame was very pleased to honour three-time Olympian and two-time World Champion kayaker Karen Furneaux, Olympic medallist and two-time World Champion rower Tracy Cameron, long-time professional soccer player and former Team Canada captain Ante Jazic, a member of Canada’s first national baseball team to win an international medal and four-time Nova Scotia men’s amateur golf champion Leon Carter, and three-time Olympic qualifying and world record setting hammer thrower Simon Gillis (who first competed in the Olympics in 1904). The Hall was also excited to recognize Fred MacGillivray, who brought many international calibre sport events to Halifax and also served as Chair of the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame, and David Fry, who coached swimming for 40 years and produced three Olympians and an unmatched winning streak for Dalhousie University’s varsity teams.

The full Induction program can be found here: http://www.nsshf.com/Portals/7/docs/2016_NSSHF_Program_Final_web.pdf

The Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame nomination criteria and selection process can be found here: http://www.nsshf.com/Inductees/Nominations/tabid/542/Default.aspx

The deadline for 2017 inductee nominations is January 31, 2017.

The St. Louis Cardinals Museum opened a new exhibit on November 18, titled Women in Baseball, How They Made History. Learn how women have made their mark on St. Louis baseball and the game at large, with artifacts and stories about Major League Baseball’s first female owner, the origins of the iconic birds on the bat logo, local women from the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League and more! This exhibit will run through the 2017 season.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Commissioner Karl Stressman announced at his State of the PRCA address on Nov. 29 that, starting in 2017, the ProRodeo Hall of Fame will include Women’s Professional Rodeo Association inductees.

“The PRCA and the WPRA have been longstanding partners in this great sport, and we look forward to an even closer working relationship moving forward,” Stressman said. “Including the WPRA in the ProRodeo Hall of Fame is a natural extension of that relationship, and it just makes sense to honor and recognize rodeo greats in every event.”

The WPRA is equally ecstatic about this historic news.

“I am beyond thrilled to see this partnership come to fruition – not only for the WPRA and its members, but for all of rodeo,” said WPRA President Doreen Wintermute. “I can’t thank the PRCA and the ProRodeo Hall of Fame enough for making this happen.”

The ProRodeo Hall of Fame, which is a popular Colorado Springs attraction for rodeo fans and tourists alike, has already inducted 250 people, 27 rodeo committees and 31 animals – including the legendary Scamper, who was Charmayne James’ partner in 10 of her 11 world championships. Scamper was enshrined in the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1996.

“The ProRodeo Hall of Fame is thrilled to have the opportunity to induct WPRA champions, who make up another popular segment of professional rodeo that deserves to be recognized,” said ProRodeo Hall of Fame Executive Director Kent Sturman. “The PRCA and the WPRA are great partners, so this is a next step that just makes sense for the entire sport. It will be the ProRodeo Hall of Fame’s honor to include the stories and history of barrel racing’s true legends, which the museum tells through its exhibits, displays and educational programs.”

The WPRA will implement its own selection process, and WPRA inductees will join the PRCA at the annual Hall of Fame inductions starting with the Class of 2017.