'More than just an athlete,' Pointe-Claire honours Tony Proudfoot by naming new park after late CFLer

The City of Pointe-Claire will pay tribute to the late Tony Proudfoot by naming a new park after the longtime resident.

For Proudfoot's daughter, Lauren, the designation is a fitting way to honour her father, a former Canadian professional football player who died in 2010 after battlingALS,or Lou Gehrig'sdisease.

"My entire childhood was spent kicking around a soccer ball in the local parkor playing hockey at the community rink. We were always encouraged to be outside,"she told CBC News.

Mayor John Belvedere said the decision "is a perfect way to [memorialize] the life and career of an extraordinary man."

Proudfoot"was aman whose social commitment and professionalcareer reflected the values of our community," Belvedere said, and who showed "remarkable determination, dedication and generosity."

The parkis being built as part ofPointe-Claire'sQuartierGreenwich, a new housing development in the West Island suburb.

It will be unveiled in 2019, Belvedere said, and will include hiking trails, playgrounds and rest areas.

Proudfoot was 'more than just an athlete'

Proudfootfirstmade a name for himself as a professional football player.

A two-time Grey Cup champion, he played in theCFLfrom 1971 to 1982, with both the Montreal Alouettes and the BC Lions.

Born in Winnipeg,Proudfootmoved toPointe-Claireas a child, later attendingJohnRennieHigh School.

Pointe-Claireis alsowhere he and his wife, Vicki, chose to raise their three children: Lauren, Lindsay and Michael.

He alsoworked as a radio broadcaster, calling Montreal Alouettes games. He was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame for his work as a reporter in 2008.

A year earlier, in 2007, Proudfoothad announced he was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease, an incurable and deadly neurological disorder.

AnotherPointe-Claire resident, Norm Horner,spearheaded the initiative to have the park named after Proudfoot,after he saw a posting on a local bulletin board asking residents to suggest a name for the new park.

"I immediately thought of Tony. He had such a strong presence in Pointe-Claireand in all of Montreal,"Horner said.

Horner's suggestion was one of some 60 proposals the city received for the new park's name.

After submitting hisidea, Hornerthen posted iton Facebook, where he said the support was overwhelming.

"He was someone who was more than just an athlete, similar to JeanBliveau," Hornersaid.

Making new family memories

Lauren said it was especially touching to see someone who knew her father only casually go out of his way to nominate him.

"For everyone else to see what we've always saw in him is really special," she said.

Lauren said she is looking forward to making new family memories in the park, especially now that she hasa daughter of her own,Riley, who is four-and-a-half months old.

"It will be nice to take her to the park named after her grandfather."