November 15th 2021
Kevin Liddiard is a passionate guy! He’s passionate about what he does – mortgages. And that passion has vaulted him to the very top ranks of the Dominion Lending Centres organization across Canada. And it’s our privilege and pleasure to have him representing our affiliate organization, Dominion Lending Centres Easy Street Mortgages. He’s passionate about the Toronto Maple Leafs. A season ticket holder, drop by his office or his social media site and you’ll soon see the Leafs passion on full display. And he’s passionate about sports. Specifically lacrosse. A sport he plays well and passionately.
Kevin comes from a sports family. His dad, Craig, as well as his three uncles Jim, Ken and Rob were always deeply involved in sports, Jim as a coach, Ken as the head of refereeing for the OMHL and Rob and Craig involved in ball hockey where they also ran charity tournaments in the sport.
Jim, Ken and Rob have all passed away, prematurely. But their impact lives on in Kevin. In a desire to honor their memories, and at the same time give back through sports to those less fortunate than himself, Kevin decided he’d like to host a lacrosse tournament and raise money for an organization known as GUTS – (Growing Up Through Sports). An organization dedicated to helping underprivileged kids fulfill their sports dreams by providing equipment and financing where possible to allow them to participate in team sports. Hence, the idea for the JKR Liddiard Memorial Lacrosse Tournament was born.
Slated for September 17th – 19th, and to be held here in St. Catharines at the former Tennis Club on Melbourne Street,
Kevin set to work arranging and promoting. Primarily through social media, the word went out across Ontario and teams began to sign on. The real boost, however, came when Kevin secured Cale Granton, official DJ of the Toronto Maple Leafs, to handle the audio. Before long a total of 12 teams from across Ontario were on board, including two from St. Catharines. Those two coincidentally ended up playing in the finals, with the Hot Tomatoes defeating the Warriors (Kevin’s Team) 7-6 in OT.
Funds were raised by team entry fees, along with food and beverage sales, sponsorship, donations, 50/50 draws and a host of other activities. At event end, a total of $10,200 was raised for GUTS with another $1,500 coming in afterward, which will go towards next year's event.
Many thanks go out to so many who helped along the way. Great people are generous people. And especially to Kevin Liddiard who embodies the philosophy of giving and giving back. All in all, a great event supporting a great cause and in memory of some great people. Thanks. And looking forward to another great event year again in 2022.