Jeremy Salamandyk stands in front a banner at the McArthur Island Sport Centre in Kamloops.

(SHANNON AINSLIE / iNFOnews.ca)

Jeremy Salamandyk is a familiar face at hockey arenas, rodeo grounds and the food bank in Kamloops where he has been avidly volunteering for years.

He spends more than 30 hours a week working with the local organizations in several different roles, and has made connections with folks from all walks of life.

“I absolutely love Kamloops, I like to give back to the community,” he told iNFOnews.ca.

Salamandyk hasn’t had a paid job in his life — he is on a permanent disability pension — but his disabilities haven’t stopped him from pouring his time and energy into his community, a lifelong legacy that began when he was 15 years old living in his hometown Enderby.

“I played hockey when I was young, like every kid, and then fell in love with the game,” he said. “I started volunteering with a local hockey junior hockey team at a young age. I was the equipment manager, I looked after skates.”

Salamandyk arrived in Kamloops two decades ago and swiftly took on new volunteer positions. He volunteers as an usher for the Kamloops Blazers Hockey Club and helps manage equipment for the Kamloops Storm, the local junior A team. He manages the gates for events at the local rodeo grounds, and has volunteered with the Kamloops Food Bank for a decade.

“I work out front at the food bank making sure the clients get looked after, we have so many homeless people and so many low-income families,” he said. 

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Salamandyk said volunteering gives him a sense of purpose, community and pride, and he has become an invaluable part of the fabric of the city.

“Jeremy has run the gate at barrel racing events for me for five years now,” said Jim Cornelson, former owner of Kamloops Central Racing. “All the barrel racers love him, he puts his heart and soul into it, he knows the riders and the names of all the horses.

“If we are short handed, he has a knack for finding extra helpers to come help when I need it, he has a heart of gold.”

Last year, Salamandyk was recognized by the City of Kamloops for his dedicated volunteering when he was honoured an Exemplary Service Award.

“It’s amazing for me having received the award and recognition,” he said. “I got a crystal plaque with my name engraved on it, it’s mine to keep for the rest of my life.”

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While he doesn’t have kids of his own, Salamandyk enjoys connecting with families and watching kids grow up in sport.

“Sports are important, it’s a success to get kids passionate about something, it inspires me to help out,” he said.

When asked why volunteering is important, Salamandyk said none of the organizations he is part of can happen without volunteers, and while he is seeing a strong group of volunteers showing up in his circles, there is always room for more.

“There are places where volunteers can just do two or three hours if they want, it has value,” he said. “The food bank is very flexible that way.”

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Salamandyk said his volunteering has provided him with too many special memories to count. 

“There are lots, too many to mention. I have moms and dads come up to me all the time, thanking me for what their kids have accomplished,” he said.

The lifetime volunteer doesn’t mind working long days and has no intention of quitting anytime soon.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Shannon Ainslie or call 250-819-6089 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

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