Those who attended the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ annual Volunteer Appreciation Event welcomed a special guest on Sunday.

“These events are better when you have the Grey Cup here,” President-CEO Craig Reynolds told members of the Rider Squad — nearly 200 strong — at Mosaic Stadium’s AGT Lounge.

The grail had magnetic powers as a steady stream of volunteers posed for pictures, many of which were taken with Roughriders players Brett Lauther, Dhel Duncan-Busby, Kian Schaffer-Baker and Mitch Picton.

Early in the proceedings, Caroline Sorensen spent some quality time with the Grey Cup — again.

She was previously photographed with the trophy alongside her mother, Alvina, a few days after the Roughriders defeated the Montreal Alouettes 25-17 in the CFL’s 2025 championship game.

One common denominator was Schaffer-Baker, who was joined by teammates Trevor Harris and A.J. Ouellette for a meet-and-greet back in November.

“I took my mother with me to see the players,” Sorensen recalled. “We didn’t know the Cup was going to be there.

“All of a sudden, it was, ‘Ohhh, there’s the Cup!’ ”

The Roughriders’ previous Grey Cup win was a catalyst for Sorensen joining the Rider Squad.

Back in 2013, she volunteered for a Saskatchewan-based Grey Cup Festival and ended up being part of the stage crew.

She helped to pull out the stage for the halftime show and, better yet, the trophy presentation at historic Mosaic Stadium.

Shortly thereafter, a friend suggested that Sorensen become a Roughriders volunteer. She embraced the notion and joined the Rider Squad in 2014. More than a decade later, she is the ticket scanning lead outside Gate 2 of the new stadium.

Her efforts — and those of her colleagues on the Rider Squad — are essential.

“We literally could not put on a game day without everyone in this room,” Reynolds said.

Volunteers’ duties range from ticket scanning to showing fans to their seats to fielding questions to conducting stadium tours to, well, you name it.

“The day after the Grey Cup, we were selling one ‘Official Champions’ hat every 12 seconds,” Reynolds noted.

“It was so wild and crazy at the Store that volunteers jumped in and helped the staff,” added Rob Harrison, the Roughriders’ Volunteer and Guest Experience Manager.

The spirit of volunteerism has long been embraced by SaskEnergy and Bernadette McIntyre.

In 2025, SaskEnergy celebrated its 25th anniversary as the Champion of Volunteers. The Crown Corporation is the Rider Squad’s presenting sponsor.

“You helped set the tone for a championship season,” SaskEnergy President-CEO Mark Guillet told the gathering. “That dedication did not go unnoticed.

“SaskEnergy is proud to stand behind such an outstanding and passionate group of people.”

McIntyre, the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan, has long been synonymous with volunteerism. To cite just one of her many selfless contributions, she co-chaired the Volunteer Services Committee for the 2022 Grey Cup Festival.

She lauded members of the Roughriders’ Fan Ambassadors Team for fielding fans’ questions “with the greatest of grace and a warm smile.”

A warm thought concluded McIntyre’s address to the Rider Squad: “Volunteers are not paid — not because they are worthless, but because they are priceless.”

• Len Davidovich was recognized for reaching the 40-year milestone as a volunteer. Marlene Hoffman and Rick Wychreschuk were honoured for 30 years with the Rider Squad. Hoffman’s son, John, played for the Roughriders’ 1989 championship team.

• Respects were paid to long-time volunteer Mel Douglas, who passed away on Dec. 5 at age 81.

For more information on the Rider Squad, or to apply to become a member, CLICK HERE.

 MEET THE RIDER SQUAD

Joseph Akpong

Audrey Anderson

Dianne Anderson

Jan Ayer

James Balfour

Marilyn Bast

Michelle Beauchamp

Murray Beitel

Angie Beka

Michael Biette

Phyllis Blampied

Joann Blazieko

Wayne Blazieko

Carol Bobryk

Verne Bolen

Marie Bouchard

Bonita Bourgeois

Michelene Boyachek

Shelan Bradburn

Patrick Bray

Malcolm Brown

Lynn Brunen

Ellen Bumphrey

Tava Burton

Debbie Campbell

Laurie Carpenter

Megan Chamney

Nelsie Cinena

Marilyn Cleveland

Mike Cook

Debbie Corkish

Karen Cromwell

Amy Cruson

Shannon Cullen

Bev Cyca

Margaret Dagenais

Leanne Dalgarno

Len Davidovich

Muna De Ciman

Alex de Gooijer

Jaclyn de Gooijer

Tami Denomie

Blaine Deutscher

Tom Dickson

Will Dinu

Sherri Dittmer

Laurier Donais

Shawn Dreger

Joyce Dunn

Linda Duong

Tom Duong

Dolly Dyck

Lori Eberts

Ellen Edwards

Michael Fogarty

Tracey Folk

Amanda Forrester

Daniela Furkert

Theresa Gallinger

Dipankar Gaurkar

Dale Gerhardt

Adele Giannetta

Candace Giblett

Lori Giroux

Caitlin Hallett

Hal Halvorsen

Sheila Harder

Julie Harrison

Rob Harrison

Yvonne Harrison

Alice Hastings

Debra Hengen

Patty Heuck

Marlene Hoffman

Fiona Hong

Davin Husband

Cathy Jensen

Lovella Jones

Ron Jones

Gord Jooristy

Nola Jooristy

James Katryniuk

Candace Kazakoff

Devin Kazakoff

Sheila Kerester

Allan Kerr

Debbie Kilbach

Dave Kindred

Karen Klapatiuk

Marietta Klock

Desi Kniaz

Evelyn Koopman

Scott Kozoriz

Christopher Kulach

Amanda Kutcher

Victor Kutcher

Darla LaChance

Micheal Lam

Joan Lang

Marc Langlais

Marlene Larocque

Trish Lattery

Leanne Lawrance

Joyce Lee

Dolores Leier

Linda Leitner

Patsy Lim

Wendy Lindblad

Dean Loberg

Angelena Louison

Denise Lubenow

Wally Lubenow

Linda Malagride

Helene Marceau

Sharon Markwart

Donald Martin

Karen Martin

Carol Marwick

Erica Marwick

Tom Mason

Dave Matichuk

Michelle McConkey

Ken McInnis

Ian McNeil

Gloria Miller

Bev Missens

Kari Mitchell

Eileen Morley

John Mulready

Brett Murray

Blaine Nestagard

Leanne Neufeld

David Niedzielski

Nicole Niedzielski

Christian Nielsen

Ginni Nielsen

Myka Pederico

Natalie Pelletier

Patricia Peltier

Tracy Phaneuf

Jenna Phillips

Carla Pieracci

Dawn Piermantier

Alisa Powers

Donna Prince

Gord Prince

Bev Pyne

Cheryl Rae

Shannon Rains

Brian Reece

Debbie Rodger

Barry A. Rogers

Randy Rolufs

Aman Saini

Crystal Schmidt

Gordon Schmidt

Loretta Schroh

Shirley Schuett

Wanda Schultz

Gail Schurman

John Seargeant

Jim Selinger

Terri Singer

Laurie Slatnik

Rod Slatnik

Bradley Smith

Judith Smith

Neil Smith

Shivam Soni

Caroline Sorensen

Linda Spice

Kyle Spitula

Doug Sthamann

Tanya Strom

Trudy Tannahill

Irene Terashima

Bonnie Thomas

Deb Todoschuk

John Todoschuk

Perry Turton

Dianne Voz

Joan Wallman

Sharon Walters

Brian Weninger

Karen Wightman

Val Wiks

Anna Wilson

Darren Wilson

Donna Wilson

Rick Wychreschuk

Nick Zieger

Lisa Ziegler

Debra Zlatarits