Where are they now? Provincial champions, 1989-‘90 Midgets

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Where are they now? Provincial champions, 1989-‘90 Midgets

Details: Published on Wednesday, February 15, 2017

By Rick Sparling

The Neepawa Press

Dan Caruk (coach) grew up on the farm at Pine River, MB and graduated from high school in Ethelbert. He went to Flin Flon and was a brakeman for the Hudson Bay Mining & Smelting Co. until 1973, at which time, he began his career with the RCMP, his first posting being at the Winnipeg Airport. His postings took him to Thompson, Neepawa and Dauphin, where he still resides. Dan married Betty Lesiuk from Gilbert Plains and they had two children, Shane in 1972 and Curtis in 1974. They have five grandkids. Dan worked for 15 years in security at Assiniboine College in Dauphin after retirement from the RCMP. He owned the Dauphin Brewers Senior Baseball team from 1993 – 2003 and currently watches a lot of his grandkids' hockey games.

Ashley Denbow lives in Arden, but I was not able to get any responses from Ashley and if and when I do I will get his information into an up-coming column.

Chad Brooking was a bantam aged player in the ‘89-‘90 season, who Neepawa picked up for the championship tournament. He was from Minnedosa, where he graduated high school. He went to Crookston, Minnesota on a hockey scholarship and left for the University of Manitoba after two years in Crookston. He graduated from there with a degree in Civil Engineering. Chad went to Korea where he taught English for four years and in 2004, he moved to Calgary and started in the waste water industry. In his spare time, he did some minor hockey coaching while in Calgary. He started his own company in 2007 and in 2016, moved to Switzerland, where he does waste water work and also has projects in Nigeria and Kenya. Chad married Mandy Van Woesnsel from Swan Lake and when I asked him what he liked to do he told me he likes to travel. Sounds like that's a good thing!

Kelly Glen graduated from NACI in 1990 and left for the saw mills in Castlegar, BC, where he stayed for a few years and returned east as far as Edmonton, working in the oil fields until he took up carpentry, and with a partner, worked on building apartment blocks and condos for about five years. He decided to join the union (local 1325) in Edmonton and got his journeyman's ticket for scaffolding. He was a scaffolder at the North West Refinery in Edmonton for Fluor Constuctors Canada. Kelly married Marge Brook in Edmonton and they have one daughter, Keelyn, age six. Kelly is an outdoorsman and enjoys bow hunting, skidooing and ice fishing. Being a professional carpenter, his ice fishing shack is to kill for! The family also enjoys camping up at Lake Wabiskaw.

Ian Cummings graduated from Grade 12 and went to Sweden for one year as an exchange student. He attended the University of Manitoba and by 1999, completed his Commerce course. Ian moved to Toronto and did some consulting work for the Government of Ontario and worked for a global marketing research firm, “Market Probe”, in downtown Toronto. He married Michelle Pong and they have two children. A daughter, Charlotte (four) and Chase (two). Ian still laces them up for the beer league he's involved with and spends time getting the children to their various events. The Cummings live in downtown Toronto.

Jason Zagula graduated from NACI in 1992. He then went to the University of Manitoba, where he earned a bachelor degree in Engineering. He stayed on at the University to take his Masters degree in Science and Engineering and graduated in 1998. He then moved to Wichita, Kansas to work for Cessna Aircraft, where he does engineering work for Beechcraft and business jets at the Cessna plant. He has been there for almost 20 years. Jason married Kim Wright from the McGregor/Austin, MB area. They met at university and they have two girls, Lily (13) and Hazel (10). He played some rec hockey in Kansas and spends lots of time going to the girls' dancing classes and competitions, as well as doing some family travelling.

Scott Byram graduated from NACI in 1992 and went straight to farming, where he still works on the farm, about 12 miles south of Neepawa. He operates a grain and cattle farm. He married Jennifer Birch from Neepawa. She teaches at Hazel M Kellington School and they have four children, Allison (16), Shane (13), Katie-Rae (10) and Carrisa (7). Scott likes to do a little hunting in season and spends time running the kids to their activities and doing some family skidooing.

Brent Vince graduated from NACI in 1990 and went to work for an electrician in Carberry, taking his electrical apprenticeship and after four years, earned his journeyman's papers. He continued working in the Carberry area on various projects until he moved to Stonewall. He commutes into Winnipeg to work for General Mills as their maintenance electrician. Brent has fathered three children, Kirby (9), Kevin (11) and Karly (12). Brent hunts, fishes and water skis and follows his kids around to their various sporting activities.

David Humeny graduated from NACI in 1991 and went into Winnipeg to take an Electrical Engineering course at Red River College and discovered that it wasn't what he was looking for. He then went to Pearson for a couple of years working at Lee's Service, a local garage there. He moved to Neepawa and went to work at Ben's Auto and bought the business in 1996. David married a local girl, Debbie Wallman and they have two children, Jessica (19) and Dennis (17). In his spare time David likes to take on anything with a motor. He and Dennis are into cross country motorcycle racing and snowmobiling.

Keith Wrightson graduated from NACI in 1991 and left for Sault Ste. Marie, where he studied Natural Resources from 1992 to 1995 at which time, he returned to Manitoba. He worked at Newdale and for the Town of Neepawa, working at the cemetery. He worked seasonal work at Prairie Forest, the wood treatment plant just west of Neepawa. He worked at the Co-op from 1996 to 1998 then in 1999, he worked for Springhill Farms (now HyLife Foods). He then went to Carman and worked for four years in the beef plant there, then back to Neepawa at HyLife and onto Jarvis Meats in Gladstone. He went to work at Trail Meats in Neepawa and then for a third stint at HyLife, where he is today. Keith married Lisa Kyle and they have two boys, Kyle (17) and Trevor (15). Keith belongs to the archery club and curls a couple of times a week. The Wrightsons live in Arden.

Chad Yerex graduated from NACI in 1990 and went to college in Sault Ste. Marie, ON and took a Conservation course, which he completed in Lethbridge, AB. During the education process, he did some work with the “green team” in Carberry, St. Malo and Brandon during the hunting season and was also a resource officer with the Fisheries Department. Chad moved to Snow Lake, where he was part of “Helltac, helicopters fighting forest fires. Since all of these jobs were of a part-time nature, Chad, needing something more stable as marriage was looming, went for training in Regina to become an RCMP officer. After the six month training, he joined them and was posted to Whitemouth, MB. He married Chana Novak. They have two daughters, Charlize (14) and Courtney (12). Chad has had postings in Gillam, Thompson and currently lives in the Lee River district and works out of Lac du Bonnet. He spends his spare time snowmobiling and running the girls to their various activities.

Neil Whelpton, assistant coach, graduated from NACI in 1987 and worked for the John Deere dealership in Neepawa from 1990 to 2000. From there, he went to work out at Springhill Farms (now HyLife Foods) for 15 years and currently works for a farm near Wellwood for the past year. Neil married Marcy Kennedy and they have two boys, Austin (18) and Hayden (15). His pastime is following the rodeo circuit, as both boys are into high level rodeo. The Whelptons live on an acreage just south of Neepawa.

Mike Kryshewsky, coach, came to Neepawa from Brandon with CP Rail and hooked up with Dan Caruk to coach the Midgets. Shortly after they won the 89-90 championship, he returned to Brandon to work for Canada Post delivering mail to the area's rural customers. He still holds that position today, 25 years later. He married Nancy Wicks, from Melita. They met in Neepawa as Nancy's grandparents lived there. They have a daughter, Ashley (29). Mike likes to hunt and fish and he has season's tickets to the Winnipeg Jets, so watches a lot of hockey.

Todd Lockerby graduated from NACI in 1991 and moved to Morden, where he worked at the family's motel until 1995. At that time, he returned to Neepawa and worked for HyLife Foods and for Stu Briese, helping out on the farm. In 2011 Todd moved out to Lampman, Saskatchewan, which is the heart of the oil patch.

He hauls oil pump jacks to the various sites there. He married Cherilyn Glauser in 1998 and they have three children, Callista (2001), Brendan (2005 ) and Miley (2008). In his leisure time Todd likes to do some fishing, some family tube boating and is busy running the kids to their hockey in the winter.

Curtis Caruk graduated from NACI in 1992 and moved to British Columbia to work as a house framer. After a while, he moved to Winnipeg, where he opened up his own framing company, called Structural Homes and it’s still in operation today. Curtis is married to Tricia Federowich and they have three children Kadence, (12) Teya (9) and Braxton (8). Curtis’ hobbies include hunting, fishing and he is involved in competitive rink building and since winning a local one, is now entered in a provincial contest. Curtis also coaches minor hockey.

Kelly Funk left for Portage after Grade 12 to play for the Portage Terriers, where he played for three years and then was traded to the Neepawa Natives for his last year of Junior A hockey. He moved to Portage again to work at Keystone Sporting Goods in 1994 for eight years and became manager there until he left for The Pas, where he spent a year managing Source for Sports. He temporarily got into the restaurant business in Brandon, managing the Applebees for three years. Kelly came full circle and returned to Portage in 2011 and is now a partner/manager of the Keystone Sports store. He married Nancy Hill from MacGregor and they have four boys, Reilly (17 AAA Midget), Ty (14 AAA Bantam), Koy (9 Atom) and Quincy (4). Kelly keeps himself busy running the boys to all of their baseball games in the summer and their hockey in the winter. He is also on the board of Portage Minor Hockey Association.

Kallen Briese graduated from NACI in 1991 and went to work with Schwans (previously the Neepawa Creamery) for nine years, then decided to go back to school and attended Assiniboine Community College in Brandon for two years, where he obtained an Agricultural Business diploma. He sold farm machinery for Mayor Equipment in Neepawa for two years and in 2003 he went to work for Canadian Food Inspection Agency as a meat inspector and all of his work takes place at the HyLife plant just east of Neepawa. Kallen bought the family farm from his father and has the comfort of living in the same house he was raised in. The farm is on the south east corner of Lake Irwin, which gives him a splendid place to enjoy his hobbies of ice fishing, hunting and fishing right out the back door! Kallen has a daughter, Taylor (19) who lives in Newfoundland.

Scott Hutchinson graduated from NACI in 1990 and got a bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Manitoba. He married Tina Lacerte and they moved to the North West Territories, where she was a physician and Scott kept up the home front. They have a son, Perrin, 14 and playing Bantam hockey, and a daughter, Morgan, 12 and into ringette. Scott continues to be a stay at home dad and does a lot of the medical computer work for Tina. Scott still likes to get out on the ice and the Hutchinsons have been living in Oak Bank, Manitoba now for the past 12 years.

Garnet Nelson graduated from NACI in 1982 and went to Crookston, Minnesota on a hockey scholarship. He left after his first term as the fit wasn’t right. He came back to Neepawa and worked at the Carberry Simplot for a year and at Guinn’s Monuments, until he decided to attend Brandon University where he graduated with a bachelor of general studies in marketing. He got on with an organizing group for the Summer Games in Winnipeg, then the Pan Am Games in a similar capacity and was offered a position as a fund raiser for the Royal Victoria Hospital Foundation. He joined the bid committee for the Vancouver Olympics and after their bid was successful and disbanded, he joined the Olympic Committee. During this time, he also worked for Cossette Sports Marketing Co. and eventually opened his own business in downtown Vancouver, Score Marketing, which he is still operating today. Garnet married Tara Phillips from Brandon and they have two boys, Ryan (11) and Morgan (7). He keeps busy still playing rec hockey (goalie) and coaches his boys’ baseball and hockey teams.

Carl Kaye: I was unable to contact Carl or any of his family. If anyone has contact information on him, please advise and his information will be added to a future column.

Upon graduating from NACI, Bobby Birch went to Brandon University, where he graduated with a teaching degree. His first teaching jobs took him up north to both God’s River and Norway House, for two years at each town, and then moved to Boissevain, where he taught Math and Science until 2004. During this time, he met and married Ashleigh Pruden, from Lockport-- they met at the Dauphin Country Fest. They have two daughters, Kennedy (8) and Claire (5). From 2004 to 2015, Bobby was the Boissevain school’s guidance councillor and currently is teaching grade 6. In his spare time, he coaches his daughter’s hockey team and the high school fast-ball team.

Butch Pearson was absent for the photo shoot for this team. He graduated from NACI in 1992 and moved to Brandon, where he went to university and received his teaching certificate. He ventured up north to Pelican Rapids until 2001. He then went to Liberty, North Carolina on a “visiting international faculty exchange program”. Lindsay Coupe, from Preston, England, also decided to go there on the same program and they met and eventually married in 2004. In order to be closer to her family, they moved to England in 2003, where they had one son, Luke. In 2008, they moved to Germany and their other son, Matthew, was born. Butch is the vocational leader for a team of assessors dealing with the national standards for British schools in Germany. The Pearsons live in Paderborn, Germany.

Shane Hnidy left NACI early to play for the Swift Current Broncos at 16 years old. After a year and a half, he was traded to Prince Albert where he played for the Raiders for another year and half. He completed his high school education in Prince Albert and then was drafted by Buffalo in 1994. His hockey career took him to many places: St. John, Baton Rouge, Grand Rapids, Adirondack, Cincinnati, Ottawa, Grand Rapids again, Ottawa, Nashville, Florida, Atlanta, Anaheim, Boston, Minnesota and finally Boston once again, were he finished his career. Shane just retired in time for the return of the Winnipeg Jets and became TSN’s colour commentator for the Jets’ games and still holds that position today. He married Michaella Marchenski and they have four children, Kinnon (18), Teagan (15), Jayna (12) and Zaden (10). The Hnidys live in LaSalle, MB and in his spare time, Shane likes to work out, golf, fish and follow his children’s activities.