Hi, this is Fred Wallace with ” Off the Wire ” brought to you by Auto Logic, the Logical Choice.
In the middle of the Summer, the announcement was made by a Kitchener radio station, and by the Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League, that long time, and I mean LONG TIME, play by play announcer Don Cameron was retiring.
The announcement wasn’t received with sadness on my part, nor disappointment, it was received with…….well, I don’t know what the correct emotional description would be.
There are 53 years worth of good stories pertaining to Don Cameron who first called a Rangers game in 1963, here’s my two…..
Once, a syndicated newspaper columnist did a piece on the Top 10 Play by Play announcers in Canada.
The list was alphabetical, and the first name on the list was Don Cameron.
The author admitted that most Canadians outside of Kitchener might not recognize the name, but the fact of the matter was Don Cameron had the classic sound of an old time hockey announcer yet maintained a firm grasp on contemporary Junior Hockey.
The second instance occurred before I ever met Don Cameron.
In the Summer of 1989, the Owen Sound NorthStars were in Guelph to meet Fergus in the Senior Lacrosse playoffs.
The Guelph Platers Hockey team had just formally moved to Owen Sound and prior to the lacrosse game I was telling Neil Gingerich, who I knew from both Junior hockey & lacrosse, what a great performance I was going to deliver as a hockey broadcaster for the Platers.
Very simply, Neil Gingerich told me, ” if you’re half as good as Don Cameron, you’ll be fine. “
I’ve never forgotten that moment, and in truth, it remains a consistent goal of mine to be half as good as Don Cameron.
I’m Fred Wallace