Fifty years ago, our home-grown golfing legends Marlene Streit, Ada Mackenzie, George Lyon, Sandy Somerville, George Cumming, and Charles Murray were celebrated as the inaugural honoured members of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame. Their collective accomplishments and impact on the game endures and now it is time to ensure their outstanding contributions are remembered for future generations.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame in 2021, we will be featuring the best 50 moments in Canadian golf history.  The general public will vote on their favourite 10 moments to create a top 10 moments list that will be unveiled during our gala.

A virtual gala to celebrate the 50th anniversary will take place on Tuesday, June 8, 2021

This February, the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum presented by Dinsmore celebrates Black History Month in many ways, including telling the story of the Cincinnati Tigers, guiding guests on a tour of African American history through the Museum, and focusing on the stories and achievements of former Reds.

Beginning Monday, February 1, each museum visitor will get a card featuring the Cincinnati Tigers’ lineup and story. Founded in the 1930s, the Cincinnati Tigers became perhaps the best and most well-known of the Negro League teams that called Cincinnati home. They joined the new Negro American League in 1937, drawing crowds to home games at Crosley Field, which was the home of the Cincinnati Reds at that time. They also wore Reds road uniforms from previous seasons. Despite their success on the field and at the gate, the Tigers history came to an end following the 1937 season. Museum visitors can learn more about this team in the Pursuit of a Dream exhibit, presented by African-American Capital Enterprises.

In addition to this exhibit and giveaway card, the Hall will feature an updated version of its Black History Month self-guided tour. Museum visitors can pick up a brochure at the front desk and take this tour through the building, learning about artifacts and achievements related to African American Reds players and more. Artifacts corresponding to the tour are highlighted with a special marker so visitors know where to look for more information on these special pieces of Reds history.

In years past, the Hall’s Education and Programming Manager, Ken Freeman, has visited local schools to present an outreach program discussing on African American history related to Reds baseball. Due to COVID-19, these programs will be virtual in 2021, allowing the Hall to potentially educate even more students about these significant milestones and achievements. Additionally, the Hall’s social media channels will focus on the contributions of African American Reds and supporting artifacts.

Finally, the Hall is working on updating video interviews with key African American Reds Hall of Famers and other former players. These conversations will be used online and in exhibits to tell the players’ stories of overcoming challenges and achieving greatness with the Cincinnati Reds.

The Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame (SSHF) rang in the New Year by unveiling our newest virtual tour. Prairie Pride: A History of Saskatchewan Football debuted in September and now our newest featured exhibit is also available to explore online. 

The exhibit is supplemented with additional videos, stories, and links for the immersive virtual tour. This is the second virtual tour that the SSHF has created with the expertise of local partners White Rabbit VR. With a recent spike in COVID-19 cases in the province, the SSHF decided to close to the public indefinitely. This virtual tour allows us to share our new exhibit virtually and will endure after the exhibit closes. 

Upon re-opening our doors in the fall, not only did the SSHF have a new exhibit on display, but our renovations had also been completed. Along with new carpeting and a fresh coat of paint, our third gallery is now our Honoured Members Gallery and features depictions of each of our 527 inducted athletes, builders, and teams grouped by year of induction. Our new STEM Interactive Gallery sponsored by SaskTel brings the relationship between STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) and sport to life through interactive displays. 

 While the pandemic has not allowed for typical programming, our Education Coordinator Vickie Krauss has begun hosting “virtual field trips” where she tours a classroom through the Hall of Fame. This has allowed Vickie to do tours with multiple classes at the same time and supports the educational programming and curriculum that is on our web site. Experiments related to our new STEM Gallery have also been added to the education page on our web site. 

The SSHF also debuted the first virtual Women in Sport panel discussion video featuring SSHF inductee and Canadian Olympian Catriona Le May Doan. 

Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame (CSHoF) is looking at Covid-19 as an opportunity to widen our digital activations in order to stay connected with our community.

Our Education Department has developed three NEW types of curriculum-aligned, virtual field trips! All synchronous virtual education programs are compatible with Zoom!

Artefact Talks – Virtual, curriculum-aligned education programs delivered in real-time! With Q&A engagement and panoramic WebRotate 360® software showcasing one-of-a-kind artefacts these inquiry-based education programs simulate an in-person field trip experience from the safety and comfort of the classroom.  Learn More >>

Beyond the Win: Hall of Famers on Tour – The virtual adaptation connects Hall of Famers with students across Canada. During these virtual presentations, Hall of Famers share their personal stories in real-time, showcasing important values, like perseverance, ethics and resiliency, inspiring character in our youth. Learn More >>

Innovation Exploration: Asynchronous Virtual Scavenger Hunts – Educational recorded activities that provide students with new insights into innovations and adaptations that have transformed sports, making them a great option for teachers seeking a dynamic and flexible in-class or at-home activity. Learn More >>

 Our Marketing Department has been hard at work creating new digital initiatives to allow us to stay connected to Canadians across the country!

#MyCanadianMoment – 15 Hall of Famers, 1 Class of 2020/21 Inductee and 33 other notable Canadian personalities shared their favourite Canadian sporting moments, stories that make them proud to be Canadian. All Canadians were encouraged to share their stories using #MyCanadianMoment.  See the videos here >>

#WeWillDoBetter – Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame is committed to “doing better” to support the current anti-racism awareness movement. In partnership with TSN, we have created eight vignettes, short curated documentaries featuring Black Hall of Famers. The first vignette launched on November 25. Learn More >>

Our Curatorial Department has been working hard on a digital exhibit that shares the truths and experiences of the 14 Indigenous Hall of Famers inducted into CSHoF (the exhibit is planned to launch in May 2021). 

The Indigenous Sport Heroes Digital Exhibit – The Indigenous Sport Heroes Education Experience will share the journeys of the 14 Indigenous Hall of Famers inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame. This multi-media exhibit will be a new asynchronous virtual experience in which students have control over both what they learn and how they learn.

Goshen, NY – The Living Horse Hall of Fame Committee of the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame has announced the slate of six candidates for election into the Hall of Fame. The nominees are:

ANDOVER HALL

CHAPTER SEVEN

FATHER PATRICK

MISSION BRIEF

PEACEFUL WAY

YANKEE GLIDE

Standardbred horses are elected into harness racing’s Living Horse Hall of Fame by current members of the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame. SIX candidates will be presented to the Museum membership for consideration. Ballots were mailed to members the week of Thanksgiving and must be returned (postmarked) by December 31, 2020. The THREE top vote getters will be inducted into the Living Horse Hall of Fame on Hall of Fame Day – July 4, 2021 – in Goshen, New York.

If you wish to participate in the Living Horse Hall of Fame election process and are not currently a Museum member, please contact the Museum to become a member.

In July 2018, the Board of Trustees of the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame approved a revised set of Living Horse Hall of Fame eligibility criteria. Those criteria are as follows:

A racehorse must be retired from racing for two years and have had a drug-free career. In addition, racehorses must have been the winner of $2.5 million lifetime WITH 2 Dan Patch Awards, OR been the winner of $3 million lifetime, OR been named Dan Patch (U.S.) Harness Horse of the Year. Horses over the age of 12 that are still racing and meet the criteria are also eligible.

A racemare must be retired from racing for two years and have had a drug-free career. In addition, racemares must have been the winner of $1.5 million lifetime WITH 2 Dan Patch Awards, OR been the winner of $2.5 million lifetime, OR been named Dan Patch (U.S.) Harness Horse of the Year. Mares over the age of 12 that are still racing and meet the criteria are also eligible.

Stallions must rank among the 10 all-time leading moneywinning sires at their gait, OR have sired at least 100 $200,000 winners, OR been a leading moneywinning sire at his gait in three or more seasons.

Annually on March 1st, a list of the broodmares that have produced two Dan Patch winners, OR two millionaires, OR one Dan Patch winner and one millionaire will be assembled for the Living Horse Hall of Fame Committee to review. Committee members can also nominate a broodmare that does not meet the criteria. Each of the committee members votes for his or her top 5 broodmares, voting results are tabulated and the top two vote getters are elected to the Living Horse Hall of Fame.

The Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame, located at 240 Main Street in Goshen, New York is temporarily closed to the public due to the pandemic. For information on the Museum, membership, special events, gift shop services and educational programs the Museum offers, please call (845) 294-6330 or visit www.harnessmuseum.com.