An Edmonton woman is grateful to be back playing the game she loves after suffering a stroke that left her paralyzed on one side.
Joy Gagnon was one of 64 competitors vying for bragging rights and a $500 top prize in Nisku Sunday for the sixteenth annual International Indoor Bunnock Championships.
Bunnock is a throwing game brought to Canada by German immigrants in the early 1900s.
It’s played with replica horse ankle bones, and the goal is to knock down your opponent’s row of bones with the least amount of throws.
“I’ve been playing since I’m five years old, and [it’s] a great family game,” Gagnon said.
For her, bunnock means togetherness. It’s been a popular pastime for her family through the years, and she said it was a powerful motivator after she suffered a stroke a few years ago.
Paralyzed on her right side, Gagnon was scared she would never be able to play the game she loved again.
But she was determined not to give up.
“We had to set goals in the Glenrose, and bunnock was my first goal,” she said. “I wanted to get back at it … they got me bean bags to hold on my hand because I couldn’t even open it or move my fingers.”
Years and lots of work later, she’s back and throwing bones with the best of them.
Tournament organizer Greg Gartner said Gagnon was a top tosser before the stroke, and he’s happy to see her continuing to improve throughout her recovery.
“Her play yesterday was actually fantastic, she was doing really well and she’s still getting better and better,” he said. “This is something she uses to strive for as a goal to beat her symptoms of stroke.”
And while bunnock has inspired Gagnon in her recovery, her recovery has inspired others to take up the sport.
“My very good friend that was my roommate at the Glenrose in the stroke ward, she now plays in a bunnock league as well. So just me playing inspired her to come and try it and now she’s hooked as I am,” Gagnon said.