January 21st, 2026Personal Message from the Pink Whistle Basketball Referees

A personal message from the Pink Whistle Basketball Referees ~ PLEASE Share this with EVERYONE else in the basketball community and with your family

The official start of the Pink Whistle / Call A FOUL On Cancer campaign is only days away..

Today, we have a special contribution and dedication from one of our fellow Referees. We share this especially with all Players, Coaches, Fans and Referees.

This campaign started in late 2009 and early 2010 when 3 people were almost simultaneously diagnosed with various forms of Cancer. (17 years ago). Amanjit Payer, Jeevan Dhillon, and Basketball Official Bob Heavenor of Richmond BC.

Today's offering comes from Basketball Official Paul Gregory:

What Cancer does Now but not Forever

In recognition of the ongoing efforts of the Pink Whistle campaign, I would like to relate a story involving Bob Heavenor, whose struggle with cancer and eventual premature passing was one of the impetus for Karn Dhillon & The Pink Whistle Team to start this wonderful movement.

Bob and I never had the time to become good friends, but he was definitely a partner who I very much enjoyed working with. Many years ago on a cold quiet winter evening, we were assigned to referee the junior varsity game between the Vancouver College Fighting Irish and the St. George’s Saints at St. George’s. For everyone who has been around high school basketball in Vancouver, you would know that the rivalry between these schools would mean the atmosphere inside the gym would be far from cold and quiet.

The game started with the stands about three-quarters full. Right from the start, the game was an intense well-played close affair. While there were mini-runs, no team could establish a substantial lead. As the game progressed, the stands filled up and got louder. Thirty-two minutes of fierce but respectful competition decided nothing and we were off to overtime. By this time, the stands were overflowing. People had arrived to watch the varsity game, but no one was giving up their seat - more like standing space - until the junior game had concluded. I remember the band (and as many spectators as could fit) had moved to one of the baselines so that when I was the lead official on the bench side, I had a drum being pounded right behind me. By this time, Bob and I had given up trying to communicate verbally and were blowing our whistles as loudly as possible.

Well, one OT period turned to two then three then four !!! With all the extra time, many of the starters fouled out and bench players were thrust into roles they didn’t expect to have at the beginning of the game but they all responded with the necessary energy and effort. A young St. George’s Saint would twice hit jumpers to tie the game to send it to another overtime period. I believe those shots helped build his confidence in taking clutch shots - something he would show a few years later to win a senior boys provincial title.

In the dying seconds of the fourth OT period and the crowd in a frenzy, the Saints had a slim 2 point lead, but the Irish had the ball. After a well-executed screen and roll, an Irish player had a slightly contested lay-up. To this day I can remember the sequence that followed. After the release, the horn sounded. The ball hit the backboard and then the rim. The ball then proceeded to roll around the rim not once, not twice, not thrice but 4 times before coming to seemingly a complete stop balanced on the rim. The crowd which had roared for so long had become dead silent as everyone in the gym had become mesmerized by the rolling ball. The pause of the ball had brought everyone together in a shared moment of anticipation. I didn’t need to see how the ball finally decided to roll off the rim. All I needed to do was listen as 2 distinct sounds emerged - one, a low collective moan from the Irish section of the crowd and two, a scream of delight from the Saints’ supporters.

I have now officiated thousands of basketball games, but that game is my only quadruple overtime game. I am sure some players, coaches and spectators remember that game and I could reminisce with them about it. However, the only person who could really relate to how it felt from my perspective, as a referee, was taken by cancer.

That’s what cancer does. It takes people from our lives too soon. It takes people who with just a mention of an experience or a place instantly know the circumstances and the emotions of a shared experience. It denies people not only the chance to talk about past events with those who were there, but also the chance to make more memories with those people.

What cancer continues to do today is why campaigns like the Pink Whistle campaign are so important. Cancer needs to be stopped. Cancer takes people from us today, but it won’t forever because of The Pink Whistle Campaign and the volunteers who connect the basketball community.

"Bob, I know your loved ones must think of you more often than I do and reflect on many more memories than we had but I just want you to know I can’t walk into the gym at St. George’s without thinking of that game. I wish we could have done more games together and who knows we might have done a quintuple OT game! "

Cancer is RELENTLESS... but so are we ~ the entire Basketball Community

PLEASE share ANY of your ideas and stories at pinkwhistlelegacyfund@gmail.com

Make your donation and any contributions on our dedicated donation site:

Donate here for your instant 2026 tax receipt.
https://bccancerfoundation.com/pinkwhistlecampaign

Sincerely and Most Respectfully,

Your Pink Whistle Legacy Fund Committee

Alex Ngai, Jason Cook, Eric Kuntz, Fred Gunn, Brent Sutter, Sean March, Gino Bondi, Mike Porteous, Mike Craig, Lee Brien, Todd Prodanuk, Karn Dhillon