Dynamic decade
Credit Union Place gearing up for birthday party while staff remembers their favourite moments
Paul Gallant remembers his first day working at Credit Union Place.
“It was opening day of the facility. It was pretty exciting to be moving into a building of this nature compared to the old facility that we had.”
Over his 18-year career as the program and scheduling co-ordinator for the City of Summerside, 10 of which was spent at Credit Union Place in Summerside, Gallant can recall two nights he well never forget.
“Nothing beats Elton John’s performance here. It was by far the most exciting days, but there have been so many other great times too.”
This Saturday, Credit Union Place will celebrate it’s 10th birthday with a free family event that includes Cirque Atlantic performances, a Capitals game, inflatables, fireworks and a world record attempt for the longest flame blown and much more.
JP Desrosiers has also been at Credit Union Place since Day 1. His most vivid memory is the evening of opening day.
“I was standing in the lobby and the entire wall above the stairwell going up to the main arena was a temporary wall, and that night we had like 6,000 tickets out for the first Caps game in the building. And that wall came down at like 5:30, so between the construction workers and our staff we had brooms going and were cleaning it up.
“The second we finished cleaning it up, people started arriving and the place was filled. The atmosphere was pretty amazing. There were 6,000 people. I think we broke Island hockey records for the biggest crowd.”
Desrosier, the director of community services, couldn’t pick one main event as his favourite.
“The first major show we did was the Steve Miller Band, and just seeing what it was like to have a real production crew come in and rig equipment and learning the back house kinds of things was really interesting.
“But I have to say, one of the most exciting moments was in 2013 when the Caps scored in the semifinals of the RBC Cup. We broke attendance records that night, so the place was jammed, and we scored in extra time to make it to the finals. The place went nuts.
“I didn’t want to jinx the game so I didn’t have the box office open to sell tickets for the big game the next day, but I figured if I had a plan we wouldn’t win. So the last minute I run downstairs after we score, and they’re already lined up at the box-office. So I remember driving around town picking up staff, getting them out of bed, and driving them here telling them they gotta sell tickets. Their hair was all messed up and some were in their sweats. It was pretty exciting,” Desrosier said with a laugh.
Desrosier hopes the future of the facility will include more community involvement.
“Over the last 10 years, I think people feel more and more like the building is theirs. There is a sense of ownership. So, I think, what I look forward to the most is seeing that continue, and seeing the community really buy in and really enjoying the place from all aspects.”
For a full schedule and map of the event visit www.journalpioneer.com or www.cupevents.ca/ cupbirthdayparty.