Not bad for a potlicker from Blackie.
Not bad for a potlicker from Blackie.
Ask James "Bearcat" Murray if he ever thought he would go from being a little boy listening to travelling men in search of work in the Dirty 30s dished out meals on his parents' back stoop to a household name and the reaction is laughter.
"I would go out back and sit with them and listen to their stories ... from there I just kind of fell into that track," said Bearcat of his post-athletic training years for the Calgary Flamers as their ambassador and a facilitator of all things charitable.
At 85 years young, the Flames alumni was selected by local philanthropist Dan Kroffat to be this year's community honouree - putting Bearcat front and centre stage as an Albertan worthy of recognition.
"He's what I call the perfect citizen ... not only for his contributions with the Flames, but most importantly for his contributions to the community," said Kroffat, who honoured newspaper icon and former Cochrane Eagle publisher in the fall of 2016 for his contributions.
The April 27 Bearcat Tribute at the RancheHouse has already reached capacity, with all funds raised through donations and hot-ticket auction items going toward Cochrane's future women's shelter - Big Hill Haven.
Bearcat is well known for his philanthropy. Even in recent years he continues to host countless golf tournaments each year for a variety of causes - addictions and treatment, organ donation, children's charities and various foundations. He is also active with the Okotoks Oilers.
And it all started with a love for hockey and commitment to a job well done.
Inheriting the nickname Bearcat from his father, the Blackie-born, Okotoks-raised Albertan started his athletic dreams with inspiration to racehorses as a jockey. He soon discovered he was too big to be a jockey and found his way to a drilling rig.
Some 16 years later, his hockey involvement - in the footsteps of his father - earned him an invite to come on board and become an athletic trainer for the Calgary Centennials.
He took a leap of faith and switched career gears, throwing himself into the position for the next eight years. He then went on for a two-year stint with the Calgary Cowboys, followed by two years with the Wranglers.
In 1980, he stepped into the big arena as the trainer for the new team - the Calgary Flames, a position he kept on for 16 years, including through their 1989 Stanley Cup victory.
His son, Al, also became an athletic trainer for the Flames. An incident in the 1980s where Bearcat ran into the stands to rescue his son from attempting to retrieve Gary Suter's hockey stick from hoarding Edmonton fans resulted in Bearcat injuring his leg.
As he was leaving the stadium, he blew kisses for the cameras - capturing the attention of fans in Boston and birthing the Bearcat Murray Fan Club.
Injury prevention was integral to Bearcat's teaching style, where he would frequently have to keep a watchful eye on his players to ensure they weren't ripping their muscles from over-lifting.
An avid self-educator, Bearcat said he studied constantly to develop his training and nutrition regiments - overseeing not only player training regimes, but also their meals, schedules and all tour details, including 11 years driving the team bus.
"I learned everything about life from hockey. It's a tremendous education for life," he said.
"I saw a lot of hockey and a lot of good hockey ... to me, the game has gotten a lot rougher, a lot meaner," said Bearcat, heralding the Flames championship years as the best years for the sport.
He also is grateful he grew up in the sport where balance was at play - when the sport was affordable for families and summers consisted of fishing and soccer and baseball over rigorous training camps.
"Matter of fact, a lot of the players would tell you I never grew up," he laughed.
In 1996, Bearcat hung up his trainers hat and took on a new position as club ambassador. He retired in 2008 from this role, but jokes that the only thing he really retired from was getting paid - something he is more than okay with.
He keeps "fit as a fiddler" and continues to practice what he preached in his years of training growing athletes - including healthy eating of whole foods, lots of walking, light weights and plenty of golf.
Kroffat is encouraging those who wish to attend the Bearcat Tribute to get in touch with him to get on the waiting list, in the even of last minute cancellations at 403-850-1001.
