Squash BC - Annual Awards

The John Burris Memorial Trophy for Sportsmanship

Recipients
06/07	Melanie Jans
05/06	Eng Khoon Chua
04/05	Garett Hennigan
03/04	Mike Revell
02/03	Mike Revell
01/02	Nicola Martin
00/01	Andrew Lynn

This award is best described by a tribute to John Burris written by John Furlong.

If a player and a sport could ever be in perfect harmony with each other then John Burris and Squash were won and the same, both at peace with each other. He brought to our game a gentle calm, never allowing the fury of play to destroy the camaraderie between competitors that should, in all games, be sacrosanct. It was a game and John was comfortable with that.

It will be said over and over that John Burris died doing what he loved to do, playing squash with a friend. It may not have been his choice but it will forever mark his time with us and remind us fondly of how fortunate our sport was to have him, and how better squash is because of him.

We have lost a true champion and great pal in John Burris. He will be remembered for qualities far more considerable and worth then the games he won or lost, or the number of trophies on his cabinet at home. If we were to properly reward decency, honour, respect and fairness, the league title would easily be his.

For John these deeply human traits marked his life. Like a bright , glowing badge on his lapel, they set him apart from the crowd. The outcome in every endeavor was to John significantly less important than how you got there.

I feel so fortunate for the times I had with John, doing business, friendly bantering behind a squash court, or just playing hard. He always added something and invariably made you feel better if you were a little down. Never one to pass his challenges or trials over to you, but rather he was someone willing to take some of your load, if you would just let him.

For each of us we now know that our time with John was a gift. It would put a smile on his face to know that we learned something from him. It would give him great pleasure if we would pass it on.

Sadly for most of us we never tell our friends how important they are to us until it is too late, the tributes we pay them they rarely get to hear. If I could, I would tell John that he lived a perfect life. I would tell him to change nothing. I would tell him how much I will miss him when he is gone. I would tell him well done and I would thank him for being may friend.

John A.F. Furlong