For nearly three decades, the name Don Robertson has been synonymous with Titans football in the valley, and on Saturday the field located at DVSS was renamed in his honour.
A ceremony was held on Saturday, November 11 before the Titans took to the Don Robertson Field in the South semi-finals versus Willow Creek of Clarsholm, where they beat the Willow Creek Cobras 27-22.
Literally, thousands of local kids have put on black and gold helmets in the valley thanks to his hard work.
He passed away in 2022.
Jason Blanke was a student at DCHS when he queried about starting a football team. He spoke to then-vice principal Tom Zariski who put him on to Robertson.
“Don was the visionary,” said Zariski. “There are lots of people like Jason and I that got on board and helped him, but it was always Don. He was the one who came up with all the ideas. There were so many people who were involved, and Don would be the first today that…but it was his dream and his absolute dream came true.”
Blanke was never able to put on a jersey as a student.
The Drumheller Community Football Association was formed in the fall of 1994, and the first games were played in 1995.
“We met and began to plan on how we would be able to get the program underway, and I believe without that meeting the Drumheller Community Football Associaton would not have come to fruition,” said Blanke. “Don stayed involved for years, always taking over ordering the bomber jackets for the senior team. He was also instrumental in creating the Strathmore Spartans football program as well as the Big Sky Football Conference.”
He saw generations pass through the program, including three grandchildren, who were on provincial winning teams. He was a booster in the community.
He spent time coaching, mentoring and teaching the importance of teamwork and sportsmanship. His enthusiasm never wavered.
At the dedication were members of Robertson’s family who were very supportive of the dedication.
“He had a passion for it, a passion for football, a passion for his community and he brought all of those things together and it is still going,” said Don’s son, John. “It is really special, I am really happy to see all of this. It's so good for all of these young players.”
