Torchbearers ready to run
Kristy deJong (right) will be among the Olympic torchbearers in the Kamloops area. Her selection was celebrated on Wednesday at an event at the Royal Bank of Canada branch in Sahali. Lending authentic five-ring flavour to the festivities was Anne-Marie Lefrancois, an Olympic alpine skier.
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Updated: August 13, 2009 1:04 PM
“Just a stay-at-home mom.”
That’s how Kristy deJong describes herself.
But, in January, the 34-year-old Kamloops resident will be anything but as she carries the Olympic Torch toward Vancouver for the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.
“It’s exciting,” deJong said Wednesday as a few dozen supporters gathered at the Royal Bank on Summit Drive to celebrate her selection.
“My family is very excited. My daughter was thrilled to hear it.”
The mother of two said she applied to carry the torch somewhat on a whim.
“I saw the commercial on TV that was describing the event and how you can go online to apply,” she said.
“So, I filled out their little application.”
Within weeks, deJong received the good news in the form of a phone call.
“Someone from Toronto called me and they explained to me that I had been chosen,” she said.
DeJong’s “platform” in her application was recycling.
“When we started curbside recycling in town, it dawned on me how much waste we are accumulating with packaging,” she said.
“So, I think that’s important.
“I wouldn’t call myself an environmentalist by any means. I’m just a stay-at-home mom who knows what comes into my house.”
DeJong said she’s been informed she’ll be carrying the torch on Jan. 28, 2010 — Day 91 of the flame’s journey to Vancouver.
Other than that, she hasn’t been told much.
“I don’t know where exactly yet,” she said. “Somewhere between Kamloops and Williams Lake.”
Another two Kamloops residents have been informed they will also be a part of the torch relay.
Josie Spence, a Grade 10 student at South Kamloops secondary, will carry the torch on the same day as deJong.
“I am so excited to be part of the torch relay and add to the community spirit of Kamloops,” the 15-year-old said.
Spence, a competitive speed-skater with the River City Racers, lost her father in a tragic accident at home last December.
She said that makes her selection all the more special.
“I am extra proud as my dad entered me in this contest and my dad was a great Canadian athlete and supporter of the Olympics and sport development,” she said.
Another Kamloops resident carrying the Olympic Torch toward Vancouver in January will be Kelly Kelland, herself a former Olympian.
Kelland is slated to run with the torch on Jan. 23 in Kitchener, B.C. — just outside Creston in the Kootenays.
The former member of the Canadian softball team and competitor in the 1996 Olympic Summer Games in Atlanta works in Kamloops at Interior Community Services.
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