(courtesy Michelle Lee)
As stewards of the sport of golf in Manitoba and Northwest Ontario, Harvey and his late wife, Marion Goehring have a combined for over six decades of volunteer dedication to the golfing community and association.
As a mother, Marion started her volunteer journey and overseeing a program that included over 100 Juniors at the John Blumberg Golf Course. She organized and ran the Junior championships. Throughout her life Marion was a potent advocate for, and to, the youth of Manitoba golfers; she held an unwavering commitment to their development and she derived great joy from watching their growth both on and off the golf course.
She became President of the Breezy Bend Country Club Ladies League and volunteered her time as a Golf Manitoba championship starter, scorer, fundraiser, and representative. In an unofficial role, Marion also maintained all historical archives.
As a role model for others, Marion would always offer support and encouragement to all players of all levels, took on her volunteer responsibilities with absolute dedication, enthusiasm and positivity. The quiet support she offered may have initially gone unnoticed but the longstanding positive impact is undeniable. Indeed, many golfers today speak so kindly and respectfully of Marion. Without question, one of her contributions was to work together with her husband while advocating for the enhancement of the philosophy, spirit and goals of Golf Manitoba.
Harvey has held numerous roles and positions with both the Manitoba Golf Association and Golf Manitoba proudly provided over 30 years of volunteerism. His portfolio ranges from the club level through to the National level. As with his wife, Harvey always saw great benefit in giving his efforts to player development – especially at the ground level. He, too, ran the junior program at his home club.
Harvey spent several years serving on the Board of Directors of both the MGA & Golf Manitoba. He was a member of every committee of Golf Manitoba with the exception of one. He believed it was important to fully understand the functioning and purpose of each and every facet of our association. Truly dedicated to the mission, philosophy and spirit of our association, Harvey fulfilled several terms on the Board of Directors and became President of Golf Manitoba in 2009-2011.
A brief synopsis of his busy Golf volunteer life includes:
- Non-playing captain at the National level 3 times.
- Manitoba representative on the RCGA Provincial Council at the inception of this committee and continued on for several years.(governance, strategic & policy issues affecting all provincial associations).
- Golf Canada Governance Committee (Regulatory and structural aspects of the Board of Golf Canada)
- Board member of Golf Manitoba with contributions &/or chair of all but 1 committee
- President 2009 – 2011
- Past President 2012 – 2014
- Active volunteer throughout his 30 years with refereeing, starting, scoring, fund raising, player development and advocate.
- For 20 years, and to this day, sits on the Board of Directors for the Golf Manitoba Hall of Fame Committee.
Harvey believes that golf is a ‘sport for a lifetime’ and his volunteering has been a ‘lifetime experience’. Having devoted well over 1/3 of his almost 90 years of life, he continues to be a staunch advocate for the sport of Golf in Manitoba & Northwest Ontario.
Without question, Marion & Harvey embrace the ideals of Golf Manitoba’s Mission statement. Their longstanding and dedicated volunteerism attest to those principles. Their goal of introducing more people to our sport, their encouraging and positive attitudes, their humble but enthusiastic participation, leadership, dedication, team work, and lifetime contributions have made the Goehrings the most deserving recipients of the 2024 Distinguished Service Award.
Honoring a Community of Volunteers
In addition to the Goehrings, this year’s awards ceremony celebrated the dedication of twelve outstanding volunteers who have reached significant milestones in their service to Golf Manitoba. These individuals have been recognized for their continuous contributions of 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25+ years of service.
5 YEARS
Brad Beghetto
Wally Jackson
Bo Kampmann
Scott Kaler
Wayne McLeod
Lloyd Pluschow
Steve Wallace
20 YEARS
Susan Wright-Cassan
25 YEARS
Roy Smith
35 YEARS
Irv Benne
Barbara Hamill
Lou Spado
All volunteers were honoured during the 2024 Golf Manitoba Awards presented by AVID GOLF Tuesday, October 29 at St. Charles Country Club.
To view the photo gallery, click here.
About the Golf Manitoba Distinguished Service Award
The Golf Manitoba Distinguished Service Award (DSA) recognizes volunteers who have gone above an beyond in making a positive impact on the golf community locally, regionally and/or nationally. The ideal candidate will display qualities of a positive role model to fellow volunteers through leadership, creativity, mentorship, excellent communication skills and dedicated service to the sport of golf and to Golf Manitoba.
About Golf Manitoba – Golf Manitoba is the governing body for golf in the province of Manitoba and North West Ontario. Its mission is to develop, promote, govern and service the sport of golf in Manitoba and North West Ontario for the benefit of all participants.