Four athletes and one team are headed into the Chatham Sports Hall of Fame.
Melissa Bartlett and Alan Cattrysse will be inducted in the Athlete Modern category, Arnie Robbins in the Athlete Legend, Peter Cobb as Builder, and the 1992-93 Chatham-Kent Secondary School (CKSS) Senior Girls Volleyball team in the Team category.
Bartlett was a multi-sport athlete who competed in basketball, track and field, badminton, and swimming, but excelled in volleyball. She led CKSS to three OFSAA silver medals, captained Team Ontario to gold at the Canada Games, and played on Canada's Youth and Junior National volleyball teams. Bartlett played for Eastern Michigan and Hillsdale College, and after university, she played pro volleyball in Spain. Since 2012, she has been the head coach of the women's volleyball team at Western University and was named the 2025 OUA Coach of the Year.
Cattrysse was also a multi-sport athlete, leading John McGregor Secondary School (JMSS) to OFSAA titles in volleyball and basketball, but really excelled in baseball. The two-time OBA 'A' champion, MVP, and Fergie Jenkins Award winner, played three years for Team Ontario and on Canada's Junior National Team. He earned a full-ride baseball scholarship to Michigan State, where he was second all-time in career hits. After university, Cattrysse played for London in the Intercounty Baseball League for three years. He is currently the Delta Waterfowl R3 Coordinator of Canada and a competitive bass angler.
Robbins was an outstanding football player at JMSS in the 1960s, then went to compete for 35 years in baseball, softball, slo-pitch, and racquetball. He won multiple provincial and national baseball championship titles, and is a top racquetball player, earning 16 club titles while competing in Canada and the U.S.
Cobb has promoted and supported Chatham athletes, coaches, officials and teams for 45 years as a broadcaster, coach, official and teacher. He's coached soccer, volleyball, basketball, track and field, baseball, wrestling and curling, and has been on the Boards of Directors of Chatham Minor Baseball and the Chatham Sports Hall of Fame. Cobb has been broadcasting local sports since 1979 and has called football games for the University of Guelph and for the National Ringette Championships. He also convened elementary volleyball for 25 years.
The 1992-93 CKSS Senior Girls Volleyball team went 122-17, while winning three tournaments that season. The Golden Hawks only gave up 12 points in the entire SWOSSA tournament, then went to OFSAA where they went undefeated in their run to win the 'AA' gold medal at home. They were he first Kent County team to win an OFSAA gold medal at any level. Many players went on to play university level and coach at several levels.
The annual dinner and induction ceremony will take place on Thursday, September 25, 2025, at the John D. Bradley Convention Centre on Richmond Street in Chatham.
Tickets are $55 for adults, $25 for children 6-12, and free for children under 5. Tickets go on sale on August 8.