Special guest
Olympic gold medallist Tessa Bonhomme in county for visit after local team wins contest
It’s likely that 10-year-old Nathan Fast and his teammates will remember June 12, 2017, for the rest of their lives.
On Monday the New Glasgow AtoMC Bombers team got to play a ball hockey game with TV personality and Olympic gold medallist Tessa Bonhomme – the prize for their hockey team winning the McDonald’s Golden Moments contest.
The AtoMC hockey ambassador also shared a meal with them at the New Glasgow McDonald’s restaurant.
“That was honestly, really the best experience I’ve ever had,” said Fast, who was a goalie for the game.
He said he was pumped to meet the celebrity — a TSN sportscaster who won gold at the 2010 Olympics as a member of Canada’s national women’s hockey squad — and he got to sit next to her at the team party.
As well, Fast said he and his teammates got to wear her medal. “The whole team did — that was really fun.”
He was astonished that his team won the contest. “It was really surprising because I never thought I would be this lucky.”
Team manager Cheryl MacPherson said the Monday-night event was “fantastic. It gives them confidence and makes them proud to be on the team. It’s something they’ll remember forever. They were such a great team — they became so close and all the parents became so close — they just bonded.”
Stephanie Jones, a McDonald’s restaurant owner/operator whose father Larry Swenson owns the East River Road store, said the contest recognizes teams that have “something special about them.”
She noted that the New Glasgow Bombers team got off to a “rough start” with a shortage of players and no coaches, but they managed to rally.
“The last game they had they lost – it was 3-2 – but the last time they played that team the point spread was huge, so they really improved over the year, so it’s a really good news story,” she said. The Golden Moments contest is part of McDonald’s AtoMC program, which sponsors the Atom division of hockey across the country, providing jerseys and socks and other supports to the teams.
“It’s a great program. We try to emphasize teamwork and working together and building synergy between kids, and it’s nice for us to be able to give back in a meaningful way,” said Jones.
“They’re all nine- and tenyear-olds, which is an optimum ages for team building and team work, which is what McDonald’s is all about. So it’s a natural fit for us,” she said.
Bonhomme said she loves coming to events like this. “I get to see the way the kids have grown into a team, a family of sorts, and play with the biggest smiles on their faces. That’s the way the game should be played,” she said.
“I know growing up hockey wasn’t the most affordable for my parents, and that stands true with today’s game. McDonald’s does a great job relieving some of that burden for parents so their kids can continue to play and enjoy a game that has given me so much.”