A former teacher is showing her skills on the links and is our CTV Calgary Athlete of the Week.
It is a typical weekday on the range at Silverwing Golf Course in northeast Calgary and that is where you will find Maxine Bishop.
Bishop is one of the most passionate player's you will ever meet and she even found a way to fit a club or two into her luggage on a recent trip to Hawaii.
“When I went there the last time I had one of my putters cut off so that it would fit in my suitcase so I was able to putt everyday and I have my living room like a playroom where I have a little gizmo that helps me practice and I invested in an Optishot so I can hit little foam balls around my living room,” said Bishop.
Bishop , 87, has a standing tee time at the club and is there everyday.
“Here I am I'm out here 4 to 5 hours a day or more,” said Bishop. “I'm with people of all ages and everything and time goes quickly and people who just sit, I mean what would I do? Watch TV? You know I'm not a very good sitter.”
Bishop is a former school teacher who picked up golf in her 40's when her oldest son showed an interest in the game.
She is now a proud member of the Silverwing community. “They have such a welcoming atmosphere here and they let me take my cart everywhere because I’ve lived with arthritis for 30 years.”
Bishop is not letting her arthritis slow her down.
“I’ve got arthritis but I’ll have arthritis wherever I am and I just figured that when stuff like that happens you can either grab a crutch and limp through life or you can sprout wings and fly, so you do what you can do. You don't dwell on what you can't,” said Bishop.
For her perseverance and passion, Maxine Bishop is the CTV Athlete of the Week for Friday, July 27, 2012.
