Grade 9 volleyball player at recent tournament looking into the stands: “So, which one’s your grandpa?”
Plamondon Wolfpack player Gage Sehn: “The one howling on the sidelines... the one with the wolf mask, paws and tail.”
For Dale Meyer, age is simply a number.
The 72-year-old Lac La Biche resident is actively involved in the local community and is a familiar face at Plamondon Wolf Pack volleyball games, not only cheering on the local team, but also donning a wolf’s costume and running around with the youthful vigour and enthusiasm of a man decades younger.
The gracious grandpa has even been known to change costumes depending on the theme of the event, sometimes donning a hula dress and pom-poms to cheer-lead from the sidelines.
Meyer says it's important for seniors to stay active and young. Across the province, from June 3-9, the contributions, and achievements of seniors across the province will be recognized during Alberta Seniors Week. Many people who have reached their golden years such as Meyer continue to remain very active in their communities and have no intention of slowing down. In some way, Meyer jokes, he's just warming up.
The opportunity to interact with younger generations, he told Lakeland This Week, serves as the motivation to get out to local sporting events, adding that they help to keep him young at heart.
“Age is just a number… my brain tells me I am 16, but my body says I am 72,” he said with an energetic smile.
A lifelong dedicated sports enthusiast, the Lac La Biche resident used to play baseball and hockey and continues to enjoy all sports. Meyer has shared his love for sports and physical pursuits with his children and grandchildren. Meyer and his wife Elaine rarely miss any events involving family members from hockey games to dance recitals. And Meyer doesn’t only go to where the action is... he makes it in his own yard.
He builds sled and luge runs on his Christy Creek area acreage, sliding down the ice and snow creations with as much energy as the dozens of kids invited by his grandkids. He likes going for long ATV rides with the kids, finding hidden fishing holes, and has worked for years on a wooden mini-townsite that has served as a giant-sized play fort and a creation of wonder for family and friends.
He loves to see the smiles on the faces of his kids and grandkids when they work with him on the projects. And even though he gets a big kick out of the projects himself, he realizes the deeper meaning as well.
“I feel it’s important to support the young people as they are the future,” he said.
He supports that future by keeping a playful spirit.
Whether its running wind-sprints with high-school aged volleyball players in a crowded conference centre – dressed in a wolf disguise, calling the attention of a night-time toboggan party as he races down the 200-foot ice hill sitting on a metal shovel, or learning a few new moves during a dance rehearsal, Meyer say shaving fun is ageless.
While he may not be the athlete he was during his younger years, and yes, he does have a few bumps, bruises and creaks from his youthful activities, Meyer says it’s important to be active and present.
“I believe if a senior stays active, they will live longer, he said, adding than an active life at any age is a great way to improve not only family connections, but links in all parts of the community. “People see how active the community is, how engaged the people are and it just grows.”
