Merv Pidherny agreed he has always had a connection to the sport of curling.
“Well, I curled when I was in high school,” he explained. “And I think I probably went to school for the last year just so I could curl.”
The connection to the game is stronger and more straightforward now after it was announced this past week the Red Deer Curling Centre will now be known as the Pidherny Centre.
“We owe something back to this community, ” he said. “A lot of people work here for me. We have great success here and it’s very good for us.”
He and wife Earlyne started Pidherny’s 49 years ago when they owned and operated a single gravel truck.
The company has expanded, growing into several areas of the construction industry and their good fortune in business sees the curling centre as a benefactor with this move.
“I’ve known for awhile now what was happening,” said Curling Centre board member Kalvin Cruickshank. “It feels good now to finally let it out and say here we are, welcome to the new Pidherny Centre and introduce everybody to it.”
Merv said he had a chance to get this rock headed to the button a few years ago and passed it up but this time the moment seemed right to get a deal done.
“The Curling Centre reflects the same values that we work by at Pidherny’s,” he said in a press release.
Getting a private business to come onboard with a public facility like the curling rink is a feather in the cap for the community and it’s something local businesses appear to do very well in this region, said Cruickshank.
“It’s the fellowship, it’s the community, it’s giving back to those who allowed you to succeed in your life,” he said. “Whether that be professionally or just personally. But that’s what speaks to me – it’s about community.”
The Centre underwent an $8.8 million renovation making it one of the top facilities in the province and likely the country. It’s a building which Pidherny said he had no problem putting the family name on.
“This is a great facility. It’s well done up. It’s new and it’s going to be around for awhile.”
Cruickshank added that “We did a great job, we’ve got a sustainable product here for curling, for the community and private enterprise recognizes that and is willing to give back and we couldn’t be more excited.”
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