12:00 AM - August 02, 2023
John Labonville
The Nepisiguit Sports Lodge Snowmobile Club is deeply saddened by the loss of one of the founding fathers of what we now know as one of the most successful clubs in New Brunswick and might we dare say, all of Canada. We give our deepest heartfelt sympathies to his wife Darlene and his family.
John was one of the co-founding members of the club and was always an untiring supporter to the club through all of his years. He had a great vision of the club and indeed the future of snowmobiling as we now know it in the province of New Brunswick. He was a past president of the club and when the NBFSC was founded, they made him their first president of the NBFSC because of his vision and wisdom of snowmobiling and what it could do for the province.
As everyone knew, John was a hard worker and deep hole drilling was his career and with his knowledge and know-how took his experience and knowledge of his job and launched a successful business, Discovery Drill Manufacture Ltd of which is one of our great business supports of our club.
He leaves a lasting legacy to which the club is truly grateful for. The club was formed in the early seventies (the first in the province) consisting of trails just west of the lodge primarily in the Nine Mile / Rogers Lake area, which were equipped with lodge structures (shelters) and all named after animals. By the late seventies a groomer was purchased, thus beginning of the vast structure we have today. The Nepisiguit Lodge is truly thankful to John and prides itself as the leading example in the formation in the mid eighties of the now provincial wide NBFSC.