Conservator, Wetlands

Taking their best shot for wetlands

Small Ponds, Big Goals Year 1 winner shares her story

By Linda Browne October 29, 2026

Yvonne Kuchta (second from left) and her family, Year 1 grand prize winners of DUC’s Small Ponds, Big Goals contest, are pictured alongside Canadian hockey legends Doug Gilmour (left) and Wendel Clark (right) at the Hockey Hall of Fame in November 2025.

Frozen wetlands and ponds are not only great places to soak in nature, they also provide fun opportunities for recreation and exercise. Just ask Yvonne Kuchta of Alberta, the Year 1 winner of Ducks Unlimited Canada’s (DUC) Small Ponds, Big Goals contest.

Growing up on a farm with a pond, Yvonne learned to play shinny where nature and community came together.

“We skated around the ice using horse poop as hockey pucks. We set up rubber boots for the net and when we ran out of sticks, the goalie would suit up using a snow shovel. Some kids played in boots and some played like pros, but that didn’t really matter because we were there together,” she recalls.

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The pond was more than a rink. It was community, it was fun, it was nature. It was hockey in Canada.

Yvonne Kuchta

These days, Yvonne is sharing her love of pond hockey with her own children. The small farm where the family currently lives includes a large wetland and they’ve fenced off the surrounding bush to keep it wild.

“The whole area feels alive,” she says.

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We’re committed to keeping that wetland undeveloped so it can stay a sanctuary for our family and for families in generations to come.

Yvonne Kuchta

Their Boxing Day tradition on the pond sees friends and neighbours come together for a day of fun and friendly competition.

“Families gather, the fires get started in the morning in a wheelbarrow so it doesn’t melt the ice and the hockey game goes all day,” Yvonne says.

“Hockey has definitely brought us out here, but the peace of nature keeps us coming back.”

Conserving the future of hockey, one small pond at a time.

Learn more about our Small Ponds, Big Goals contest!

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