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Blazing wall of jerseys

From the blue and white shirt reading simply “Boyle ” to the modern red and black top with a B on fire, 40 years of Boyle hockey jerseys now adorn the walls of the village arena.
Boyle Arena operator Marg Duma said she has put about 250-300 hours into fixing up the facility. One of her pet projects was taking Boyle Blazers jerseys from throughout the
Boyle Arena operator Marg Duma said she has put about 250-300 hours into fixing up the facility. One of her pet projects was taking Boyle Blazers jerseys from throughout the years and putting them up on the wall.

From the blue and white shirt reading simply “Boyle ” to the modern red and black top with a B on fire, 40 years of Boyle hockey jerseys now adorn the walls of the village arena.

As she was renovating the arena and repainting its walls, Boyle Arena operator Marg Duma said she found a bunch of old jerseys beneath the seats.

“So before the season started, one of the other village guys got the lift truck over here, and we hung them up so everyone can basically see them for the different changes though the years, ” she said.

Duma started working at the arena in September 2016, and she began repainting it in April 2017. She said from that time, she has spent about 250-300 hours working on the project.

“It was a continual banking this thing in memory, as to what I wanted it to look like this year, to kind of put my touch on it, ” she said. “I'm pretty satisfied now. ”

She also said that so far, she said the response has been positive.

“Even a lot of the coaches, when we basically opened the first week, I didn't tell them what was there, ” she said. “One coach was just about in tears. He went, ‘That is the most awesome thing I've ever seen.' He says, ‘I remember when I wore that jersey.' ”

Duma said there is ample opportunity coming up for locals to get a look at local hockey's new home.

On Oct. 28, the arena is hosting the second annual Spooktakular skate from 4-7 p.m. She said people can dress up and enter the costume contest, and eat the hot dogs, candy and hot chocolate “generously ” donated by Buy-Low Foods Boyle.

On Dec. 9, the Santa Skate will run from 5-8 p.m. Duma said that again, people can dress up if they wish, noting that last year Santa made an appearance, and there were decorations and a tree on ice. Donations of either money or gifts for Santas Anonymous will be accepted.

The entry fee for both events is $1 for kids, $2 for adults. Proceeds for the Spooktakular skate go toward the Boyle Leadership Group, while the proceeds from the the Santa Skate will go toward Santas Anonymous.

Duma also said there is one jersey missing from the wall, and they are looking to fill the void.

“It's just a matter of trying to find somebody that would have that jersey, if they're willing to give it up so it could be hung up on the wall, ” she said. “It's closer to the most recent ones. It was, like, one of the third last ones. ”

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