IAN WATT
Western Cup President
"Skiing is why I work and why I'll never leave Calgary"
​Ian grew up in Calgary, attending French Immersion from kindergarten to Grade 12 and graduating with a bilingual diploma. From there, he headed to Mount Royal University to major in psychology, ultimately making the pivot to finance. Fast-forward to today, where he runs a boutique mortgage brokerage with 17 agents! Ian has served as President of Apollo Friends in Sport (and thereby Western Cup) since 2017.
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Ian's passion is creating safe spaces and memorable experiences for our community and its allies, and he brings that passion into both his work with Western Cup and with his mortgage broker team. "Giving back is a big part of what I do in my day job," says Ian. "We love hosting charity events and are big on supporting women's emergency shelters in the community."
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You can find Ian—if you can catch up with him that is—speeding down a mountain near you.
KEVIN WONG
SECRETARY
Originally from Cranbrook, BC, Kevin has been a resident of Calgary since 1986, where he followed his dual passions through work in both urban planning and the medical sciences. He has served as a volunteer for AIDS Calgary, and as a board member for SIDS Calgary Society, the Marda Loop Communities Association, and Apollo Friends in Sport. When time and budget allow, he tags along with his partner of 25 years indulging in food and travel. He is passionate about bringing his insights, life experiences, and empathy to his role at Apollo.
SEAN CODY WATT
FINANCE COORDINATOR
Sean is probably one of the funniest people you'll ever meet, and he is both a hoot and a holler on a spin bike.
BRAD MCCARTY
SPONSORSHIP COORDINATOR
Hello there everyone! All around active, sporty, and social guy here who has a special connection with the Western Cup weekend! Taking a chapter from my gay book in life, for over 6 years now I’ve dedicated my spring long weekend to spend with my chosen family and friends. It just so happens the biological family traveled to the city to join in on the fun to either participate in a Western Cup sport or cheer on the teams! It’s fun to compete, be social and cheerlead fellow teammates and competitors to grow the connections within the gay community and cherish our rainbow allies!
In my professional life, I work in tourism and events, and in my new role with the board I will be tackling the sponsorship and eventually taking over the entertainment aspects of the Western Cup weekend to ensure we have a healthy slush fund to manage all our operations, annual activities and of course to diversify and grow the celebrations! Always keeping busy and active…I love tennis, swimming, yoga, lawn bowling, softball, and going to the gym for those sweaty spins, HIIT, and build classes. Now looking forward to exploring and adding curling to that list starting this fall!
It was a record-breaking attendance in 2024. I’m looking forward to further grow the Western Cup brand within Calgary’s queer community, in Canada, and the US to attract even more attendees and sportos and of course, continue breaking records.
JAMES WONG
SPORTS COORDINATOR
"Licensed professional, part-time artist, full-time geek."
James has been participating in Apollo sports for over 15 years including badminton, curling, dodgeball, volleyball, and outdoor pursuits. This has proven to be a much more rewarding way to interact with others in the community than dating apps. As a chance to give back to the organization, James has joined the board since 2014. He has also been organizing badminton for the LGBT community since 2016. He is currently the president of Mosaic Badminton Club.
James had participated in badminton and dodgeball at the annual SinCity Classic in Las Vegas, and was a badminton participation medalist in the 2018 Gay Games in Paris.
As a graduate of University of Waterloo, James is a full-time professional engineer in the private sector specialized in community development. Outside of his 40-hour week, James takes pride in his ever-growing cumulation of LEGO hoard, and takes annual gaycations whenever he can.
BEAU CAIRNS
SOCIAL COORDINATOR
Beau is such a ray of sunshine. In fact, in this photo, he's actually the light source.
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True story.
JASON FITZGERALD
MARKETING COORDINATOR
“I liked avocado toast before it was cool”
Jason was born in Halifax and grew up in small town Fall River, Nova Scotia. Shortly after completing his BSc in biology at StFX University, he packed up and moved across the country. Jason holds a Certificate in Graphic Design from the University of Calgary and he brings a design lens into everything he does, which is either a blessing or a curse…or a little of both to be honest.
Jason began his career in housing and ancillary services with three universities across Canada, and nine years ago he made the leap to Apple where he now works with Canadian game developers. Jason freelanced with Apollo in 2011 as a graphic designer and formally joined the Apollo board as the Marketing Coordinator in 2017. Western Cup is such an inclusive and exciting community event, and Jason loves the opportunity he has to come up with creative new ways to promote it. To that end, recently he's been deeply invested in strengthening his skills in 3D modelling and animation.
Calgary will always be close to Jason’s heart, and he now lives back east with his husband Cote, son Ethan, and their two hilarious French bulldogs, Henry and Ganon.
TERESA DAUNAIS
COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR
“I’m one cat short of becoming Crazy Cat Lady #1”
Teresa was born and raised in Calgary. She lived in Penticton, BC for four of her teenage years but moved back to Calgary just before starting high school. Once she graduated, Teresa thought she might go into accounting. That proved to be a short-lived dream so she switched paths to become a teacher. After not liking the path she was on in university, her mother sat her down to suggest Teresa go into law.
“At first, I thought she was crazy,” Teresa says. “But thankfully, it was the best piece of advice she gave me. Here I am now, some 30 years later and I am a real estate paralegal and love what I do every day. Well, most days anyways!”
Teresa has been a member of Apollo Friends in Sport for many years, being a bowler in the Rainbow Riders Bowling League (who hosts the Western Cup Bowling tournament). At an Annual General Meeting a handful of years ago, Teresa was approached about becoming a Member at Large.
“I’ve always looked forward to Western Cup every year as a participant, so I thought it would be fun to put my thoughts and efforts to help plan an organize the event.” After a few years in this role, Teresa has stepped into her first year as Communications Coordinator, a new position that was created recently.
Reflecting on what has made her who she is today, Teresa remembers volunteering for charity events with her mother, like The Humane Society and Tim Hortons Brier, where she was responsible for transporting the curlers, officials, and broadcasters throughout the city while the tournament was going on. “I have already felt very fulfilled doing volunteer work, and Western Cup was just part of that feeling. We have a great team here and I’m happy to be a part of it.”
Outside her job and volunteer work, Teresa admits she has a fierce shoe addiction. “This addiction requires my wife to supervise me when I find myself wandering into a store,” she says. And of course, her life as a cat mom keeps her quite busy: “I have two fur babies now—though if my wife had her way, we would have four or five—and we are strongly considering fostering, which would add to the volunteering quota in my life.”
THERESA KOWBEL-DAUNAIS
VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR
“I’m one cat short of becoming Crazy Cat Lady #2”
Theresa grew up in a small town in BC called Campbell River, the salmon-fishing capital of the world! “An amazing person—who shares a strikingly similar name to mine—swept me off my feet and brought me to Calgary,” she says. “Her first words to me were that she ‘wasn’t a stalker’—seriously!”
“Like many people during the pandemic, I lost my job. On the advice of my mother-in-law, I went back to school and became the oldest student in my cohort, soon after graduating from Bow Valley College to enter the career that my mother told me 20 years ago that I’d be really good at—a healthcare aide working in harm reduction for a not-for-profit.”
Theresa became involved in Western Cup through her wife, who was a former participant, sport coordinator, and Member at Large before moving into the Communications Coordinator role (yes, you guessed it…her wife is Teresa!). “Teresa spoke so highly about the history of Western Cup and how much she enjoys it, and it just sounded amazing so I tagged along.”
Theresa reflects on her experience giving back to the community: “I was raised that volunteer work was just what a responsible person does, so I have volunteered for more than 30 years, from my local teen hotline to being part of the first aid team for events, to being NCO in the first aid brigade in my youth, to a hospital and women’s auxiliary member. I even spent a period as a member of a pipe band and all the fun volunteering that went along with that!”
So what vices does Theresa have? “I require supervision when going into stationery stores. I have a strong desire to hoard writing instruments. My coworkers recognize my highlighters on sight.”
Moral of the story: be careful if you lend Theresa your pen—you might not get it back!
TAMMY REDMON-LANNARD
MEMBER AT LARGE
“My wifey calls me the southern belle”
Tammy grew up in a small town: Asheville, North Carolina. She eventually met a Canadian woman and married her. Now, she lives in beautiful Calgary, Alberta and just recently received her Canadian citizenship!
“I am proud and I love to help,” she says. “Western Cup allows me to be a small part of a wonderful community.”
Outside of her volunteer work as a Member at Large, Tammy has been everything in her career from a police officer to custodian, and she currently holds a position as a support person for adults with special needs.
Tammy’s hobbies include wine-making, sports, and of course, volunteering.
kari redmon-lannard
Member at Large
DAN DAMRON
MEMBER AT LARGE
Dan has been an avid bowler for over eight years, with a passion for the sport that has led him to participate in Western Cup annually since the start of his journey, excluding the brief hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dan’s dedication to fostering community and promoting the sport inspired him to take on a leadership role this year as a Member at Large. Dan brings a wealth of experience, enthusiasm, and a strong commitment to supporting the organization’s mission, ensuring a positive impact for bowlers and the broader community alike.