Hey!
I’m Roger! Roger Mennell, or affectionately known to some in the ultimate community as Coach or Rog.
I have the incredible honour to support, encourage, empower and facilitate the sharing of stories from members of our Ultimate Spirit community. These are the stories that show us who we are: many different links in a chain that unites us and keeps us connected and stronger as a community, the Ultimate Spirit community. As one of those links, I would like to share a little of my own story with you here.
I want to start by acknowledging my immense gratitude to be living on the beautiful lands of the LEKWUNGEN, SENĆOŦEN and HUL’Q’UMI’NUM speaking peoples, the Songhees, Esquimalt,W̱SÁNEĆ, Snuneymuxw nations (to name a few); it truly is an honour and a privilege. I have been very grateful to learn some traditions of the Coast Salish peoples. One of these is that when one speaks it is good to recognize where you are and where you have come from. As I mentioned earlier, my name is Roger and I am the son of Sally and Wilfrid Mennell and proud brother to Philippa and Olivia. I had the good fortune to grow up on the traditional lands of the Nsyilxcən speaking peoples, now also known as the Similkameen Valley. I feel exceptionally lucky to have had the experiences that I have had and so thankful to have lived in these beautiful places.
My experience with ultimate started in 2009. I was supremely lucky to be introduced to the game by a young, James Rogers, in a courtyard at Camosun College in Victoria, BC. I was new to town and hungry to take part in my social outlet, sports! I was quickly hooked by the game after falling in love with the sight of the disc floating, dancing, SPRINTING through the air. I was smitten! I wanted to throw at every turn, with anybody! Often by myself. For good reason, throwing with me was often more a chore for others, a game of fetch. I joined beginner courses, pickup games, hat leagues, you name it! Anything I could get my hands on that would scratch the “itch” I had developed for ultimate. Eventually, I was asked to join teams that played in leagues and tournaments. My first tournament was ‘Spawn Fest’, located in Bellingham WA, USA. It was a weekend tournament full of some of the best players in the region and some of the youngest (shout out to Small Fry).
Running around on these ultimate fields made me realize two things:
- Oh, I guess ultimate is kinda big? Seems others, and America, know about it?!
And,
- There is something more here… It’s more than what sports have represented for me in the past.
It was true, there were “Worlds players” at this tournament (people who were playing at the World Championship level); and, a sport that has World Championships said something about its size. More significantly however, was this “something more.” I had unwittingly meandered into this sensational new world of sport. One that wasn’t solely focused on winning and competition but also on community, being respectful, and encouragement to be ourselves. Weird!
Now, the game itself has things built into it to support these tenets, like self-officiating, but it is the community that exists both on and off the field that maintained the positive tone, this way, this environment. Sharing food on the sidelines, giving a helping hand to lift a competitor back to their feet following a big (or little) play, indulging in spirited cheers for both teammates and opponents alike, sharing laughs. All of this and so much more has a name in ultimate: the spirit of the game. I had stumbled across this magical thing. This tangible and intangible thing that left my heart singing.
This love led me to play with a variety of different travelling teams and eventually play at the National level. Eventually, I came to realize that the thing that was bringing me much joy and satisfaction had become more like homework. So, I quit. I played ultimate very rarely for several years and through this time I was able to relearn my love for nature and other activities – hiking, biking, snowboarding, etc.
It wasn’t until I met up with a good friend of mine, who wanted to share their recent experience coaching at an ultimate camp in the Middle East (Ultimate Peace), Jimmy Roney, that the fire for ultimate was reignited. We agreed there was room for something similar here in Canada. We wanted to connect and enhance community between indigenous and non-indigenous communities through the game of ultimate. Next thing I knew, I was invited to join Jimmy at the Songhees Wellness Centre to share my love of the game with a small group of youth. What this looked like, was two grown men in a gymnasium playing a simultaneous game of soccer, tag and ‘roll the disc’ with 8…7….4…and eventually, only 1 kid, who referred to us as “disc guy”. One could easily think, as I partially did, that this was far from a success but as we went to leave, I noticed a new feeling: I was content. I was beaming. I was feeling whole. It was becoming clear for me that sharing in laughs and connecting through play is one of the purest forms of happiness and love.
Since that day, I have been tremendously fortunate to build similar experiences with a number of communities all over Vancouver Island and the mainland of BC. It has given me so much and has played a large role in my own growth. I hope to continue to have these experiences within this beautiful, growing community and give back some of the magic it has given me. Because, what I am slowly learning is that, what Ultimate and Ultimate Spirit means to me is fulfillment.