Playing to win
Betty Opersko's trophies and awards 
show her commitment to sports
by Monique Beech
From Reformer-Times Simply the Best June 25, 2002

Whew! Looking through Betty Opersko's athletic trophies and championship titles is exhausting. There are two albums, lists of championship titles, applications for lifetime athletic achievement awards, and sheets of years she's umpired. Again, whew!

Since her 11th birthday, the Waterford native has been involved in numerous sports -- softball, basketball, volleyball, curling, bowling, and broom ball. "I grew up with the boys," she says. "All of my sisters were much older and went off to the city when I was very young. I was a tomboy, I've got to admit."

Betty's first love is softball. She played catcher for many years for a host of teams, many which won league, provincial, and national championships. Perhaps she is best known for her spot on the 1953 Simcoe Stars; a championship team recognized in 1998 by the Norfolk Sports Hall of Recognition.

She played sports throughout her time at Waterford District High School. She even tacked on a sixth year of school so she could keep on playing. After year six, the principal of Hagersville High approached her to become a physical education teacher. Betty taught for 35 years, taking time out to complete a B.A.A. at Ryerson University. Opersko has also acquired a B.Ed., M.S.Ed. and an M.A. -- all through correspondence and night courses.

While teaching, Opersko found time for athletic competitions. She entered 10 international plow matches in her twenties, winning the event in 1953 against an all-male field. "Girls sports were just starting to come in. With what I had in sports [as a man] I would have been in the Olympics refereeing today."

Opersko has officiated baseball, volleyball and basketball for 50 years. She's also run volleyball, baseball and basketball clinics to train officials. "I can go anywhere in Ontario and someone will say 'Betty are you still refereeing? You refereed me 25 years ago.'"

The name of Opersko's game is winning. Her awards hold a special place in her heart, and for that matter, her home. In her rec room sits a large shelf unit full of trophies -- 1953 WOSSA Volleyball Championship, 1961 Simcoe Stars OASA Championship, 1960 Dairy Princess... Wait a minute, dairy princess?

The image doesn't mesh with that of a rugged athlete. But yes, Opersko held the title of Norfolk Dairy Princess three times, the Ontario title once, and was Canadian runner-up. Winning the contest wasn't exactly about grace though. "I had to milk the cows and give a speech." Her stint even gave her the chance to meet the Queen Mum. Her time as princess is just one of many memories stashed in her albums.

But what does Betty value most after a lifetime of sports heroics? "This is me," she said, gesturing to the pictures, awards, and lists of accomplishments strewn in front of her. "Family knows bits and pieces of it, but nobody knows all the details. I value all this," she pauses. "I don't know what to say. It has been interesting."  

The 1953 Stars were inducted into our Hall of Recognition in 1998.
Betty was inducted for individual achievement in 2002.