'Gordie's Rink' back in action after Stratford pond drained and restored to health

In Stratford, P.E.I., it's known simply as 'Gordie's Rink,' named for the man who has lived across the street from Moore's Pond for almost three decades. 

Gordie Cox has been flooding, shovelling and supplying electricity to the ice surface across the road from his house each winter since his family moved there. He clears and grooms various patches of ice for different groups of users.

But over the years, weeds and sediment gradually filled in the long, narrow pond, reducing its surface area and water level.

Two winters ago, the ice was usable for only a couple of weeks. Last winter, there were no rinks at all. 

"I know the community really does cherish those rinks," Cox said. "Last year, I heard from so many people who stopped me and said, 'It's a shame that there's no rinks this year. It's terrible, my kids are missing it, and we miss driving by seeing kids.'"

Those laments are over now, after the town got federal and provincial funding to cover most of the cost of dredging away the sediment, leaving the pond deeper and a bit narrower.

Cox said the rinks started small, and "my time multiplied" as they grew in popularity. 

"I got nets, and I got shovels, and started setting up a little community for hockey and ringette players, and kids who want to skate — just a pond for everybody," Cox said.

After nearly three decades, Cox said he's now getting to meet the second generation of local residents coming to the pond.

"I'm starting to hear from people that are saying, 'This is my four-year-old,' and saying, 'I remember Gordie used to clear it off for me and my friends,'" he said.

"Now they're bringing their kids."

Cox is a retired school counsellor, and these days he serves as a town councillor in Stratford. 

"It's funny