A man synonymous with the Harbour Grace Regatta passed away suddenly on Friday. Albert ‘Bud’ Chafe was 83.
A Newfoundland and Labrador Sports Hall of Famer (he was inducted in 2002), Chafe was the face of the Harbour Grace Regatta for many years. In fact, the boathouse at Lady Lake is named the Albert ‘Bud’ Chafe Rowing Centre.
Elected president of the Harbour Grace Regatta Committee in 1990, his participation in the Regatta goes back over 40 years, from rower, to coxswain, coach and executive member.
In addition to the provincial Sports Hall of Fame, Chafe is also in the Harbour Grace Sports Hall of Fame.
He was selected his town’s Citizen of the Year in 1983 and ’84, and received the Governor General Award in 1993.
He was also heavily involved in hockey in the area since 1957. His first coaching experience came in 1958, the first year of the S.W. Moores Memorial Stadium in Harbour Grace.
Selected hockey’s coach of the year in 1989, Chafe was also a recipient of Hockey Newfoundland and Labrador’s Outstanding Service Pin award.
In 1996, he formed a female hockey team in the C.B.N. Association and the following season, his team from C.B.N. won the provincial championship.
For more than 24 years, he was a minor hockey executive in C.B.N., serving as president of minor hockey in the area for 10 years.
Resting at Noel's Funeral Home in Harbour Grace until Wednesday, a funeral service will take place 2 p.m. Wednesday from St. Paul's Anglican Church in Harbour Grace.
Twitter: @telysports
