Men's Rugby 8/11/2021 7:00:00 PM

BUILDING A FOUNDATION FOR THE FUTURE: BLUES BOND WITH IROQUOIS ROOTS RUGBY

(Pictured above: Members of the Varsity Blues men's rugby team at a practice with Iroquois Roots Rugby on Sunday, July 25, 2021)

It all started with a simple act. University of Toronto men's rugby player Sultan Butt encouraged his teammates to participate in Orange Shirt Day last September.

Just a few months later, Butt and the Varsity Blues are now enjoying a fantastic partnership with Iroquois Roots Rugby, raising money for the program and volunteering their time at camps and clinics.

Orange Shirt Day was created to commemorate the residential school experience, to witness and honour the healing journey of the survivors and their families, and to commit to the ongoing process of reconciliation.

"I got a whole bunch of orange shirts for the guys to wear for a team lift and practice," said Butt. "The players started giving me money for the shirts and I decided to give all the funds I received to Iroquois Roots Rugby."

Butt was familiar with the Iroquois Roots Rugby program through his heavy involvement with Ontario Rugby and his current work with the TIRF (Toronto Inner-City Rugby Foundation).

"They greatly appreciated the support and I inquired about having some of my teammates come out and help at their youth summer camps that they run for free," he said. "They really loved that idea so I pitched it to Coach [Brandon] Kirkwood and he was fully on board with the idea."

Since then, the Varsity Blues have donated $1,800 through a virtual run fundraiser and have appeared as guest coaches.

"They used this money towards buying new equipment for their summer rugby camps," said Butt. "We have some guys on the team that have visited the reserve and helped coach at their camps."

The Iroquois Roots Rugby program is run by co-founders Melanie Squire and Meagan Wilson. Its goal is to deliver an Indigenous-led program that promotes the sport of rugby to First Nations youth in Ontario, which focuses on reducing barriers to sport participation, promoting physical activity and health and well-being, increasing the pursuit of excellence in sport and building a capacity in the Canadain sport system to be inclusive of Indigenous people.

"I think the partnership is already proving to be beneficial in numerous ways. Being able to welcome them here solidified the ongoing commitment the Blues program has not just donating money, but to actually participate with our organization."

Kirkwood commends Butt's initiative and the work of the men's rugby team thus far and looks forward to what the future of the partnership could hold.

"I was so impressed by Sultan's initiative and work ethic that myself and our student-athlete leadership group decided that we had to create a new position within our program specifically aimed at fundraising and community outreach and that Sultan had to be the guy to lead it," said Kirkwood.

"We hope that in the very near future we can bring some of these camps to our campus and continue to promote a love for the sport and offer opportunities for young boys and girls to the enjoy physical activity and sense of community that rugby has to offer."

The Varsity Blues men's rugby team opens their 2021 season on Sunday, September 26 versus the Queen's Gaels at Varsity Stadium. If provincial guidelines permit, the Iroquois Roots Rugby program will be the first to be invited into the stands.

"Our youth being able to learn from university athletes adds a huge depth to their understanding of the game, and they also feel so special that the guys would travel all this way to join us," added Squire. "It makes our youth feel very welcome in the rugby community."

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