Athlete honoured with Snyder award

Pointe Claire resident Geoffrey Gallagher became the seventh recipient of the annual Gerald M. Snyder Award last Friday at a Snowdon Oldtimers Association Christmas luncheon held at the Royal St. Lawrence Yacht Club in Dorval.

Gallagher, 17, a John Rennie High School honour student graduate who is now enrolled in the Pure and Applied Sciences program at Dawson College, was given a $750 bursary for combining athleticism and academics. The three main sports he has excelled at in recent years are tennis, soccer and hockey. He currently suits up for two hockey teams, the AA West Island Royals and as a call-up for the Midget AAA Lions.

“I hope to study physiotherapy, they have one of the best programs at McGill University,” Gallagher said, adding the program “connects” with his love of sports. Since he doesn’t expect to make it to the NHL, it’s the next best thing.

The award is named after the late Gerald M. Snyder, a well-known former Montreal city councillor, businessman and amateur athlete.

About $700 raised from the raffle at the luncheon was donated to the Angela’s Big Hearts for Little Kids Fund which supports the works of Dr. Christo Tchervenkov and the cardiovascular surgery team at the Montreal Children’s Hospital. The fund, set up by Paul McDonald, has raised about $300,000 since its inception in 2001.

The guest speaker at the luncheon was noted sports journalist and Pointe Claire resident Dave Stubbs, who was the News & Chronicle sports editor when he covered his first Olympics at the 1976 Summer Games in Montreal. Stubbs discussed covering the Olympics over the past three decades and how stories about perseverance, rather than a podium finish, impressed him the most.