ESTEVAN - With restrictions lifted, the Estevan Oilfield Technical Society Oilwomen were finally able to host their annual golf tournament after two long years of a break.
Committee member Tanya George said that it was great to get together again with people from the industry and have a fun day outdoors.
"It turned out to be a warm day, but it was a really good day," George said. "It is important [for us to host the event] because it gets the women out of the office on a Friday and they can network with other women in the community … They can [also] network with women who potentially they talk to on the phone once a week, but they never actually met them. So it's a great networking event for us as well that work in the industry."
With numerous other events happening in and out of the community and a heat warning in effect, the numbers were a bit down this year with 58 golfers registered for the event. But George said it worked to their benefit.
"With a small group like that, I think everybody had fun. It was just very casual, not quite so chaotic. The golfers could just move around the golf course at their own pace," George said.
"The women were really, really thankful. It was nice to get together with people again, and people you probably haven't seen for a couple of years, given that sometimes it's the only time they see them. I think it was nice just to get out and do things with people and friends. And do a little bit of networking again and meet new people."
Each team had to have at least two participants connected to the oilfield one way or the other, but George said that probably almost every player in this year's tournament was involved with the industry, either through current or past work or through marriage.
Outside Estevan golfers, there were women coming from the Midale area and Carlyle.
"Neither one of those groups had ever golfed in the Estevan's Oilwomen's before, so it was nice," George said.
There was also a group that came from the Lampman area. George noted that there were quite a few new participants this year, which was great to see.
To keep the event fun rather than competitive, the organizers decided to draw the winners. The team drawn for the first prize consisted of Jodi Dayman, Sue Kuchinka, Holly Ruel and Hayley Racicot.
George noted that sponsorships were a bit down this year as well for multiple reasons, but they were very grateful for the support.
"We are thankful for the companies that did donate and sponsor different events for us. It doesn't matter how many you get, or how much you get in sponsorship, what's important is that there were people who actually have stepped forward and sponsored our event," George said.
The OTS Oilwomen were also finally able to present a $2,000 cheque from their 2019 tournament's 50/50 and raffle proceeds to Limitless DAS. While they couldn't have a tournament in 2020, they still agreed to dig into their reserves and make two $1,000 donations to the Hillcrest community breakfast program and the Estevan Family Resource Centre.
The 2022 fundraising proceeds will be used to support the Estevan Public Youth Centre.
