CHAMPIONS SPEAK - 2015 Hall of Fame Inductee Dr. David Hewko - Special Award
by Kristi Paukstat
Good evening
to all of our athletes and special guests.
What do you do
to pass the time?
You might go to work each day, come home,
put your feet up for a bit, watch a little TV, check
Facebook or email, even do a fitness work-out if you’re so
inclined, or maybe it is enough to just unwind with a glass
of wine. Whatever tasks that we employ for the purposes of
relaxation or to simply pass the time, I cannot figure out
how our first inductee has time for any of it.
Between owning
and working at his own business, yoga challenges, training
for triathlons, golfing, watching his beloved Oil Kings,
Oilers, and Eskies, it’s surprising that he still has time
to volunteer. Dr. David Hewko could certainly be inducted
as an athlete or a builder, but he is here tonight to
receive a much deserved special award for his volunteer
service to sports programs in and around the community.
The underlying
theme in Dr. Dave’s volunteerism is tradition. Dave is a
former Sabre and a Viking and over thirty years later, he is
with both teams again. Blaine Gusdal, head coach for the
Augustana Vikings hockey team, met Doc in 2008 at an alumni
golf tournament. Three years later, Blaine casually
mentioned to Dave that they were short a trainer for the
following season. Doc finished the Sabres football season
and promptly showed up to find out what he could do to
help. That year, with Dr. Dave as team trainer, the
Viking’s hockey team won the bronze medal. In their second
year together, the Vikings won the championship for the
first time in thirty-seven years. In the five years Dr.
Dave has volunteered with them, they have medalled in all of
them. They not only consider him essential to the team’s
program, he is also their good luck charm.
Dr. Hewko
donates an inordinate amount of his time and expertise to
community endeavours that support the growth and development
of individuals and teams alike. For parents of the teams he
works with, it is comforting to know that there is such a
high level of care waiting in case something should happen.
He is there in other capacities as well. Players and
coaches respect his demeanour and how he interacts with and
treats people. He provides extra care for players, always
making time for them, and maintains interest in their
endeavours, athletic and personal, even after they have
graduated or moved on.
Dr. Hewko is
extremely committed. He makes 90–100% of the Viking’s
games, be it home or away. After treating countless
patients at work, I’m sure many of them here tonight, he
gets in his car and drives himself in order to make it on
time, whether it is Camrose, Edmonton, Red Deer or Calgary.
Dr. Hewko is
generous. In return for all of his hard work and dedication
with the Vikings, he receives a small honorarium which he
graciously donates back to the program. At their alumni
nights, he is usually the one with his name in front of most
of the silent auction items which also goes back to the
program.
He is
described as a consummate team player who continually
gives. Players respect him so much they will make the drive
to Wetaskiwin so Dave can work on them. The team buys into
the program and gives back to it because of what they see
Dave doing for them. He was honored with a volunteer award
from the Vikings, and other alumni have since taken from his
lead. In short, the Vikings hockey program couldn’t do what
they do if they didn’t have Doc.
Doc is
incredibly talented, second to none and is loved by his
teams. In a society of kids growing up in a ”ME”
generation, Dr. Hewko is absolutely the furthest thing from
that.
In short, Dr.
Dave is an exemplar of humility. He is committed
wholeheartedly and selflessly to everything he supports,
volunteers for, and most of all, to this community.
At this time,
I would like to call upon Bill Milnthorpe to join me at the
front.
Dr. David
Hewko has always taken great enjoyment in sports and
continues to find ways to improve programs in our area. For
this reason, I am very pleased to introduce our first
inductee into the Wetaskiwin and County Sports Hall of Fame
for this evening, Dr. David Hewko.
