Where Sport Connects, Grows, and Thrives.

Sport Wood Buffalo didn’t begin as one organization.

It began with two organizations, each serving a different but connected purpose in the Wood Buffalo sport community.

Where It Started

The Wood Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame was formed first, with the organization established in 2005. Its purpose was to recognize and preserve the legacy of sport in the Wood Buffalo region.

More than a decade later, the Wood Buffalo Sport Connection was formed on June 5, 2017, with a focus on supporting and developing sport in the community.

Over the years, Wood Buffalo Sport Connection built programs and initiatives that connected people with sport, including the Sport Passport Program, Girls with Grit, and the Multi-Sport Awards Banquet (MSAB).

The MSAB would eventually become an important connection between the two organizations. The event created an opportunity to recognize the achievements of people contributing to sport today, while also celebrating the legacies of those who came before them through Hall of Fame inductions.

The two organizations were already working alongside one another. The question became: could they do even more together?

An Idea Takes Shape

The idea of bringing the organizations together was first raised by Bryce Horbachewski after [Board Chair] became chair of Wood Buffalo Sport Connection. After the organization’s first MSAB, Bryce raised the idea again.

Following the second MSAB, Jonathan Lambert, through his connections with CJ and Matt, also raised the possibility with the Hall of Fame.

The idea was brought forward to the boards, and an initial meeting between the organizations took place over a game of bowling on October 6, 2023.

From there, the conversation began to take shape.

Why Come Together?

At the time, both organizations had strengths—but they also faced challenges.

The Wood Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame was finding it difficult to retain board members. With only three or four board members keeping the organization going and no staff, it was becoming increasingly difficult to sustain the organization. The Hall of Fame also operated without a formal structure, but it had valuable assets of its own, including funding through a casino license and a strong social media following within the community.

Wood Buffalo Sport Connection had a strong board and staff and a more structured approach, but had limited funding. The organization had received a second chance through a grant from Suncor, but did not yet have a sustainable source of funding. At the same time, there was a challenge of awareness: many people in the community did not know who Wood Buffalo Sport Connection was or what it did.

Bringing the organizations together offered an opportunity to combine those strengths.

The goal was to become stronger through shared funding, processes, board members, staff and community recognition.

There was also a larger opportunity at play.

Both organizations were umbrella sport organizations, and there was a growing need for community-based non-profits to find ways to work together, reduce the number of volunteer boards required to operate organizations, and reduce overhead costs through shared resources such as staff, offices and funding.

The concept also aligned with conversations that had been happening internally about a “house of sport” model—bringing sport service organizations and functions together under one roof.

Building Something Bigger

Both organizations believed that coming together could create a stronger, multi-functional organization—one that could support both sport history and sport development.

The vision was to better serve the community through a more centralized, one-stop approach to sport services, similar to the model of FuseSocial, where three organizations came together as one.

Creating a new brand was an important part of that vision.

The launch of Sport Wood Buffalo would bring these services together under a new identity, increasing awareness of the collaboration and strengthening the public image of both organizations.

From Legacy to Opportunity

The merger created an opportunity to build something neither organization could achieve as effectively on its own.

For the Hall of Fame, Sport Wood Buffalo provides a supported home to sustain and carry forward the legacy of sport in our community.

For Wood Buffalo Sport Connection, the merger provides another revenue stream and the opportunity to build on the work that had already been established.

And for the community, it creates one organization with a joint perspective on sport—bringing together sport development and the history and recognition of sport in Wood Buffalo.

Even the brand itself reflects that coming together. The new Sport Wood Buffalo identity was designed by our own staff and created to reflect our community.

Ultimately, the vision is for sport to come full circle.

A community member might first be recognized through a regional sports award for their contributions to sport development. Years later, after building a career and legacy in sport, that same individual could ultimately be inducted into the Sport Wood Buffalo Hall of Fame.

Today’s contributions become tomorrow’s legacy.

A Model for the Future

Sport Wood Buffalo is the result of significant effort from incredibly dedicated staff and board members who believed there was an opportunity to build a different kind of community sport model.

The goal is not simply to combine two organizations.

It is to strengthen the sport ecosystem in Wood Buffalo by bringing functions, resources and expertise together in a way that better serves the community.

And perhaps the most exciting part is that this model could extend beyond Sport Wood Buffalo. The hope is that what has been built here can be mirrored by other communities looking for ways to strengthen their own sport ecosystems.

We Haven’t Even Scratched the Surface

Sport Wood Buffalo represents where two organizations have been—and, more importantly, where sport in Wood Buffalo can go next.

The merger brought together history and development, recognition and opportunity, structure and community connection.

But this is only the beginning.

We haven’t even scratched the surface of what Sport Wood Buffalo can do yet.