BOW VALLEY – Barb Costley can’t speak more highly of what being a billet parent has meant to the dynamic of her home life.
Since her now high school-aged children were very young, the Costleys have opened their home as a billet family for the Canmore Eagles, housing teenage, junior A players.
For the mother of two, she says throughout the years the young adults have helped lead by example through hard work, determination, failure and how you handle failure, and balancing school with athletics. Costley is glad her kids grew up looking up to the players, who become a part of the family.
“I don’t think there’s anything I could parent as well as they lead by example,” said Costley, the volunteer billet coordinator for the Eagles. “It allows me to take my foot off the gas in some ways and let my boys observe, so I’m lucky to have that.”
With hockey season around the corner, the Eagles need to secure five more beds, including one cat-free home, for its players.
Due to common struggles in the Bow Valley, such as shortage of housing, higher cost of groceries and other programs seeking billets, finding beds is a year-over-year issue for the hockey club, said Costley.
“It’s just a simple shortage in this town,” said Costley.
Each billet family is given Eagles season tickets, $500 per month throughout the season, a 15 per cent discount on groceries at Save-On Foods, and other sponsors and discounts.
The Eagles players are usually quite busy throughout the season between school, practice, work, games and travelling. However, she said when they are at home, they have always shown respect, follow house rules such as a curfew, and lead healthy lifestyles. Families with younger kids, in particular, often form tight bonds with the players. As seen during the games, tons of children rush over to high-five their local idols entering and exiting the ice.
“We spend a lot of time connecting the right personalities and lifestyles, and so far, we have done very well in doing so,” said Costley.
Costley added hosting an Eagle can also be something families can try for part of the hockey season.
“If people are just wanting to try it, there’s no permanence to the decision,” said Costley. “They can go ahead and try it for a week or month and they can see if it’s something that works with their family."
For those interested in billeting, email or call coordinators Lyndsay Kearns at [email protected] or Costley at [email protected] (403-813-3057).
