Announcements

NWMLA AGM November 19th 2020

October 19, 2020

New Westminster Minor Lacrosse Association's Annual General Meeting will be held on November 19, 2020 at 7:00pm. This years meeting will be held online via Zoom. Please email secretary@minorbellies.com to register before November 17, 2020. Only registered members will be permitted to attend.

Start Of Season Information

September 13, 2020

Hi Bellies Family,

We know you’ve been waiting patiently for further information on the start of field season, and we apologize that we’ve not been able to provide updates sooner.

The unique challenges we face this year have meant far more planning, and time, to ensure we provide a safe environment for your children to enjoy the game again.

As a result, we we will be delaying the start of practices for one week, with sessions now starting on Monday, September 21st.

Fortunately, we are finally able to share our tentative practice schedule with you:

TIME	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY
4:15-5:15	U8 Girls	U5 Boys	U15 Girls (1)
	U12 Girls	U7/U9 Boys	U15 Girls (2)
5:30-6:30	U15 Girls (1)	U8 Girls	U7/U9 Boys
	U15 Girls (2)	U12 Girls	U13 Boys
6:45-7:45	U19 Girls	U11 Boys	U11 Boys
	U15 Boys	U13 Boys	U15 Boys
8:00-9:00	Not Available	U18 Boys	U18 Boys
			U19 Girls

I have included two attachments to this message: the BCLA Waiver Form and the NWMLA Players Code of Conduct. Both of these documents must be completed and returned to admin@minorbellies.com by Sunday, September 20th. Your child will not be permitted to practice until we’ve received your completed forms.

For those that are first time registrants for field lacrosse, you’ll also need to ensure you’ve completed payment and submitted all necessary documents to registrar@minorbellies.com.

In the coming week, you can expect to receive the following:

An invitation to your child’s TeamSnap
An email detailing NWMLA’s COVID-19 Phase 3 Return to Play Procedures for Parents & Players
An invitation to attend a Team Parent Meeting

Once again, we appreciate your patience as we get the season underway. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact:

For Boys: Bill Tyler - vpfield@minorbellies.com
For Girls: Julie Edgar - girlsfield@minorbellies.com

Thanks very much,

Julie Edgar - VP - Girls Field Lacrosse

Bill Tyler - VP - Boys Field Lacrosse

Please See The Latest Message Below From The BCLA President Gerry VanBeek

August 28, 2020

Dear Members,

On August 24, the BC Provincial Government announced viaSport BC's Phase 3 additions to the Return to Sport Guidelines. This is welcomed news for sport and for BC Lacrosse members!

The BCLA reiterates that a patient approach to new activities will be vital, that each sport and organization will progress at different rates, and that each region and municipality will have its own ways of keeping their communities safe.

The health and safety for all participants in the BC Lacrosse community is paramount and is central to our decisions around COVID-19 and Return to Lacrosse. All involved in our sport must take direction from the appropriate health authorities, including the Public Health Agency of Canada and the BC Ministry of Health and your local health authority. We strongly remind all, as we return to some levels of lacrosse activities, we cannot relax our health and safety practices (I.e., 2-meter physical distancing; increased hand hygiene; outdoor activities with small groups, etc.).

The BCLA Return to Lacrosse Committee and support groups are working hard to update and align the next phase BCLA Return to Lacrosse Guidelines to the viaSport BC Phase 3 Return to Sport Guidelines. The committee will swiftly clarify any issues, update, and publish the plans accordingly. Once the draft is ready, the document must receive BCLA Board approval before implementation.

What this means for BC Lacrosse Associations/Clubs-

We are entering the traditional Field Lacrosse season with encouraging expectations. The BCLA has confirmed a reduction in 2021 field player registration fees and communicated to associations/clubs to open registration and promote registration to their athletes. Let's embrace this opportunity and invite all lacrosse athletes to participate.

The viaSport Progressively Loosen phase will offer revised guidance for activities involving contact, cohorts, competition, competition hosting, high performance camps and travel. See viaSport BC Phase 3 guidelines here: https://www.viasport.ca/sites/default/files/Phase3ReturntoSportGuidelineswebV2.pdf

The BCLA Return to Lacrosse Phase 2/3 document will align with viaSport BC's guidelines. Our new guidelines will include activities and game play with modifications that are as close to normal lacrosse activities. All activities will follow the direction from viaSport BC and the appropriate health authorities.

We expect the BCLA Return to Lacrosse Phase 2/3 Guidelines will be complete for release the first week of September.

The BCLA Board, Directorates, and Technical Support Groups continue planning normal fall meetings of which all are being conducted virtually. We will continue to communicate information to the lacrosse community as we receive it to inform our sport leaders.

To all administrators and volunteers, thank you for remaining strong through this trying time.

Thank you for your patience.

If you have any additional questions, please e-mail me at gerry@bclacrosse.com

Yours in Lacrosse,
Gerry Van Beek, BCLA President

Deadline Extended Wayne Goss Scholarship, Dorothy Robertson Bursary And Ted Fridge Scholarship

June 19, 2020

In light of the current Covid-19 pandemic the deadline for submission has been extended to July 6, 2020 at 4:00 PM into the BCLA Office (original deadline was June 4, 2020).

The nomination forms for the Wayne Goss Scholarship, Dorothy Robertson Bursary and Ted Fridge Scholarship are now posted on the BCLA website.

The direct link to the nomination forms here

COVID-19 Update-Refunds

May 20, 2020

Hi Bellies Family,

As always, we hope you are all staying healthy and safe. We are encouraged by the progress our province has made in flattening the Covid-19 curve, and thank all of our front-line health care workers, first responders and those working in essential roles, for their heroics on our behalf.

While the Province’s plans to carefully, gradually ease Covid-19 restrictions continue, it has become apparent that a return to the sport of box lacrosse will not happen this summer. Though at this time there has been no official decision from the CLA, our executive has voted unanimously to cancel the 2020 box lacrosse season in conjunction with other Lower Mainland lacrosse associations.

Our lacrosse families will receive a 100% refund of 2020 Box Lacrosse registration fees. The only funds that will not be returned are the try-out fees for A Team Evaluations, as these sessions did take place and the floor time was paid for. All refunds will be issued by cheque, regardless of original means of payment, to avoid the high cost of credit card processing fees.

While our executive is united in this decision, it does not come without careful deliberation. Our Association is a non-profit organization that operates on a very tight budget. Though the box season will not proceed, our Association has nonetheless incurred costs and expenses that we remain responsible for. We’ll have some tough choices to make as we manage our budget going forward, but feel this is the right thing to do for our member families.

The CLA, BCLA and other bodies governing the sport continue to work on ideas to get our athletes back on the field in a safe, physically distanced manner. However, any return to play this summer will not resemble the sport of box lacrosse for which you registered your child. We know these times are difficult for everyone, and you are as eager to see a return to normalcy as we are. We sincerely hope that when a return to play is possible, we’ll see you and your children back at the field, arena, or box alongside us. Moving forward we’ll keep you updated with any news or information from our governing bodies.

Warm regards,

Rich Catton

President
NWMLA

April 17, 2020

Hi Bellies Family,

We hope you’re all staying healthy and safe, as we all do our part to help flatten the COVID-19 curve.

As announced previously, all formal lacrosse activities remain on hold until at least May 15th. While we remain hopeful that we’ll be able to hit the floor in some format, that remains far from certain. The CLA, BCLA and Lower Mainland Minor Lacrosse Commission continue to monitor the situation and discuss plans for the possible resumption of lacrosse, should it be deemed appropriate by the relevant government authorities. We, as your Executive, are doing the same.

Recently, we've received a few inquiries regarding the refund of registration fees. As resumption of lacrosse activity remains a possibility, the Club may yet be responsible for floor times, BCLA and league fees etc. As a result, we are unable to make a plan for potential refunds until final decisions on the season are made by our governing bodies.

We appreciate your patience in these uncertain times, and will continue to provide updates as they come available.

Warm regards,

Rich Catton
President - NWMLA

BC Lacrosse Association Update

March 26, 2020

March 25, 2020

LETTER FROM THE BCLA PRESIDENT RE: COVID‐19

Dear BCLA Members:

As we continue to navigate through the implications of COVID-19, we hope that you are coping

with the ever-changing environment that is the world right now.

It is too early for anyone to make a call on whether or not the box lacrosse season, or some

format of the season, will take place. So, because we have no idea of what is going to happen

over the next several weeks, we are taking a wait-and-see approach at this time

We urge all of our members to take this same approach. It is too early for any

association/club/league to make any firm decisions about their seasons at this time. We need to

protect the future of the not only the BC Lacrosse Association, but all of our member

associations/teams/leagues. We believe cancelling the box lacrosse season is premature. It is a

drastic step that would be detrimental to the sport of lacrosse in BC as we hope to facilitate some

form of box lacrosse competition this summer.

The BCLA insurance is still in place, and the BCLA office is still fully operational, albeit mostly

remotely. Most minor box athletes have stepped on the floor which put the insurance into play.

So, I would assume that if refunds are necessary (if there is absolutely no box season), the

refunds will be a portion of, to cover both portions of the BCLA’s fees and the minor association

expenses incurred.

We are in communication with the BCLA Minor and Senior Directorates, and they are

discussing contingency plans that include looking at new alternatives for lacrosse activities in

2020.

You will continue to hear about major events being cancelled, many that were supposed to occur

in the summer of 2020. Most recently, the BC Games Society just announced that they have

cancelled the BC Summer Games that were going to happen in Maple Ridge in July 2020; and

the 2020 North American Indigenous Games event has also been cancelled. This does not mean

that sport will not happen this summer.

For now, in the same way that we are asking for patience and calmness from our member

association/club/leagues, we ask that you reach out to your community members to do the same.

Yours in Lacrosse,

Gerry Van Beek

BCLA President

UPDATED April 03/20A Message From Rich Catton, NWMLA President About COVID-19 (Coronavirus)

March 13, 2020

Updated April 03, 2020

Hi Bellies,

I hope you're all staying healthy and safe during these uncertain times. Based on recent direction from both the BCLA and CLA, all lacrosse activities will remain on hold until at least May 1st. While we remain hopeful that some semblance of a season can be salvaged, we will continue to prioritize public health and safety. We encourage you to continue to follow the advice of our public health officials - stay home and practice physical distancing. As updates become available, we'll be sure to share them with you.

Best regards,

Rich Catton
President, Minor Bellies

Updated March 14, 2020

Please read message below from NWMLA President Rich Catton:

Subsequent to the Covid-19 update we emailed to our membership earlier today, the Canadian Lacrosse Association issued a recommendation that all lacrosse activity in Canada be postponed until April 5th.

In the interests of the safety of our players, coaches, officials, staff and fans, the Minor Salmonbellies will follow this recommendation.

We will continue to closely monitor COVID-19 developments in consultation with the CLA, BCLA, and public health authorities, and provide updates.

Posted March 13, 2020

A message from Rich Catton, NWMLA President about COVID-19 (Coronavirus)

As per the recent declaration by the World Health Organization (WHO) the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) is now a pandemic. The situation both here in BC and around the globe is changing hourly and daily, and we wanted to provide an update on how the New Westminster Minor Lacrosse Association (NWMLA) is responding.

We’re lucky to have had strong leadership from the province’s public health officials. This is why we’re basing our response on the expert advice of those organizations, as well as the BC Lacrosse Association and the Canadian Lacrosse Association. While, like you, we are concerned about the turn of events in the last 48 hours, the risk level to Canada and British Columbia remains low as defined by the leading health authorities.

Despite that assurance, we know the situation will evolve. We want to assure you that the NWMLA is taking steps to ensure that the health and safety of our players is paramount.

We are in the early stages on the 2020 Box Lacrosse season with evaluations nearing completion. As such we will continue to proceed with completing evaluations, balancing teams and beginning the process of scheduling games and practices.

We will also be taking further steps, including:

No handshaking after games
No shared water bottles

Some may ask why we don’t go further at this point. The simple reason is as stated above: we are committed to following the advice from federal and provincial public health agencies and right now this is based on what they’re advising.

As the situation evolves locally and the risk level changes, we will respond accordingly, whether that’s further restrictions on practices and / or games, or postponing the season.

As for what players and parents / guardians can continue to do:

Keep following the recommended practices, such as washing your hands more frequently with soap and water, using proper coughing & sneezing etiquette
If you or your child is ill, please stay home
If you think you have coronavirus-type respiratory symptoms or have travelled to a country with a travel health notice, immediately speak to a medical professional or call 811
If you are returning from a trip outside of Canada, please follow the 2 week self quarantine period recommended by government health authorities

There is a ton of information in the news and online about the virus, some factual and some not. It’s important to make sure what we’re consuming comes from credible health sources (the links below offer a few good ones).

We understand that we’re all anxious and that right now things are changing

quickly. Thankfully, this province has some of the leading public health institutions and testing practices. We’ll continue to monitor and update you on the situation as it pertains to the NWMLA.

If you have any questions about what we’re doing at NWMLA, please reach out to either of the board members listed below.

Rich Catton

President NWMLA External links:

NWMLA Board Contacts 2019/20 Directors
President	Rich Catton
1st VP - Boys Box Lacrosse	Kevin Stewardson
2nd VP - Girls Box Lacrosse	Tonya Roy
3rd VP - Boys Field Lacrosse	Bill Tyler
4th VP - Girls Field Lacrosse	Julie Edgar
5th VP - Equipment	Jason Plante
6th VP - Scheduler	Mark Smith
Secretary	Karen Poole
Treasurer	Nicole Christiansen
Registrar	Lynda Callard
Director At Large - Head Coach	Steven Porter

Wall Ball Challenge

March 12, 2020

*CONTEST TIME*
With most of us home for Spring Break and organized activities on pause, you can stay ready for the season by...HITTING THE WALL!

Send us a video of you and your most creative wall ball work out for a chance to win some cool Bellies swag! The Winner will be announced after Spring Break.

Keep that stick in hand - box lax will be back Bellies!

Bellies Store At The Hazelwood Clinic

February 19, 2020

The Bellies Store will be selling a small selection of youth sized hoodies, t-shirts and shorts at the Hazelwood Clinic this year. February 19th only from 6-8pm.
Come check it out!

Coaches For 2020 Box Lacrosse Needed!

January 09, 2020

NWMLA is always on the lookout for great coaches! If you have coached before or are interested in coaching during the 2020 box lacrosse season please fill out the coaches application form. Scan and send completed forms to headcoach@minorbellies.com. All training is covered by NWMLA and no prior experience is necessary.

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