GAMES & TOYS – New Deroche Tennis Court

New Deroche Tennis Court

Photograph Courtesy of Mission Community Archives

The Deroche Community Hall stands as a testament to local perseverance and community spirit. The current structure, the third in a series of community halls, represents decades of determination. The first hall, built in 1908, and its successor, constructed in 1922, were both lost to fire. Undaunted, the Deroche and District Community Association acquired an RCAF building from Boundary Bay, which was shipped section by section to Deroche where it was re-erected in early 1949. Through dedicated weekly “building bees” held each Sunday and persistent fundraising efforts, the community successfully reconstructed the building, completing it in 1958.

This spirit of community development continued into the 1980s, when residents turned their attention to recreational facilities. In 1984, through collaborative fundraising between the Sasquatch Lions Club ($8,000) and the Deroche-Lake Errock Community Association ($4,000), a new tennis court was established adjacent to the community hall. The court was officially inaugurated on October 13, 1984, with Lions Club secretary Don Hutson performing the ribbon-cutting ceremony.