Three coaches from the Brant Youth Volleyball Club were recognized during the Ontario Volleyball Association’s (OVA) annual OVAtion Awards Banquet in Kitchener on Saturday, June 3, 2023.
Andrew Andvicula, Rick Beedham and Sandy Beedham, all from the Brant Youth Volleyball Club (BYVC), were honoured for distinguishing themselves by providing their time, effort and support to the promotion and development of volleyball in Brantford and the province.
Andrew Andvicula was presented with a Recognition Award for his involvement in the sport of volleyball for a minimum of five years. So far in his career, he has been involved with BYVC in both the competitive and developmental programs as a coach in the indoor and outdoor streams. He is also a certified referee and has officiated high school, OVA and OUA and OCAA matches. He recently became certified as a beach official.
Rick Beedham was one of three people from across the province to be presented with the Diane Wood Special Achievement Award. This award is presented to recognize an outstanding contribution to volleyball at the provincial level for 15 years or more. Rick, who is one of the co-founders of the Brant Youth Volleyball Club, was recognized for his contribution to the local volleyball community via his roles with the BYVC in their competitive and developmental programs for both indoors and outdoors. In addition, he has been involved with the summer regional program as a coach and treasurer for Region 3 of the OVA.
Sandy Beedham, who is the other co-founder of the Brant Youth Volleyball Club, was one of three people from across Ontario to be inducted into the OVA’s Hall of Fame in the Builder Category. To be eligible for this award, an individual must serve for a minimum of 20 years and have made significant contributions in multiple roles. In addition to her 25 year career as a competitive stream coach with the BYVC, she was also recognized for her involvement at the local elementary and high school level, the OVA regional program and the International Children’s Games (10 years). Over the years she has mentored many young athletes in both high school and club volleyball and encouraged them to be the best they can be. This has resulted in the BYVC having a significant number of alumni on our current coaching staff. In addition, two BYVC alumni are currently professional head coaches at schools in the USA.
