The Peterborough Curling Club is now fully accessible thanks to replacement doors at its entrance.
The new interior and exterior doors are automated allowing those with mobility issues easier access to the club.
There are at least five wheelchair curlers who frequent the club, including Carl Bax and Alec Denys.
“We’re high-functioning disabled people, but there are a lot of people who aren’t as handy,” Bax said. “This is just great for them.”
“There’s not enough of us around to form teams and be able to participate on our own,” said Denys. “We need to be integrated into the community. This club has been great and has made us feel welcome. All the things they’ve done — the elevator, the ice surface — it’s all fully accessible.”
WATCH: Caley Bedore of CHEX Daily gets a curling lesson at the Peterborough Curling Club
Earlier this year, the club received a $25,000 grant through the Government of Canada’s New Horizons for Seniors Program.
That grant helped the club become fully accessible and land a provincial wheelchair bonspiel event on Dec. 8 and 9.
“The fact is there are lots more people who are in wheelchairs or could use wheelchairs that could curl here,” added Denys. “The bonspiel will bring that focus here.”
“This is going to become known as one of the clubs in Ontario that can host an event of that stature,” said Dave Calvert, president of the senior men’s section at the club.
The ice will go in at the club by the Thanksgiving weekend. The first curling event of the season is Oct. 9.