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A special feature marking Minor Hockey Week in Saskatchewan:

OUTLOOK - Outlook Amateur Sports President Aaron Williams says it's really simple when it comes down to putting in all the work, the hours, the driving, and the costs related to minor sports programming in the riverside community.

The smiles on kids' faces and the memories that they'll process and remember for years to come is worth all of it.

Williams, who's serving his first year as OAS President, says that's what he enjoys most about the role; seeing the smiles on kids' faces after a heck of a game and knowing that they just took part in something that'll serve as a cherished memory of their young lives.

With four kids of his own involved in local sports, including hockey, baseball and flag football, Williams says being with their friends is a big part of what makes minor sports attractive to kids in the community area.

He says that it helps them form a sense of self among their peers.

"I think they get a sense of being a part of a team and belonging," he said. "And meeting new kids along the way too. There's always that. They're out there working together as a team to strive to win games, and it can be hard work. It's the work ethic that they gain along the way."

Outlook's minor sports programming offers kids at the youngest of ages opportunities to take part in a number of activities. At the moment, with the temperatures doing what they do and the snow sticking around, hockey is dominating many family schedules with kids as young as seven years or younger taking part, all the way up to kids aged 18 or younger.

When the snow finally melts and springtime rolls around, the cold feel of the ice gives way to the outside warmth of the ball diamond as minor ball programming kicks up. When activity on the diamonds slows down, attention then turns to flag football.

All of it provides kids the chance to get out there, get active, and make both some new friends and new memories. For parents and family members, it's great to see the youngsters out there giving it their all, but Aaron isn't blind to the realities of such programming along the way. The dollar amounts can get up there with the rising costs of, well, it seems everything these days, and Outlook Amateur Sports is always looking for volunteers who are vital to ensuring that such programming can continue trouble-free and without any issues.

"Honestly, the only way we lose kids along the way is because of, I would say cost, because it gets quite expensive," said Williams. "Because as the kids get older, they have to travel further to play. That's kind of out of our control. And we also lack volunteers, usually, for coaches and help and sometimes that gets to be an issue. We are always, always looking for more volunteers. It's very tough to find volunteers for coaches and for boards and for everything."

Williams has been on the board for six years and says that now, as the president, he does his best to try and keep everyone happy; making sure all the kids playing sports are having fun and working to ensure equality is applied to make sure that every kid gets a chance to play. He says if the kids are having a blast, then it's worthwhile to him and the rest of the involved parents to keep things going in the future.

"I just enjoy going to the rink and to the ball diamond and seeing all the kids," he said. "If they're smiling and having fun, it makes it all worthwhile at the end of the day."

What makes it so important for the kids taking part is having that opportunity to make moments out on the ice, or the diamond, or the field. If coaches and parents can help harness that feeling for kids playing local sports and help foster their love and admiration for the game, then in Aaron's eyes, it's mission accomplished.

"I think outside of school sports, being as we live in Canada, hockey is maybe our greatest sport," he said. "I wouldn't say they're 'pushed' to take part in it, but in a way, they are a little bit and I think once you get them on that ice and, you know, you see a kid get his first goal and they just get out there and they're smiling and they're skating hard; it's worth it in the end. They're part of a team and if you can just build that into keeping it going all the way to midget hockey, that's kind of our ultimate goal."

For parents who may be interested in getting their kids involved in amateur sports, or anyone who wants to volunteer their time in local sports programming, you can visit the official website of Outlook Amateur Sports at oashawks.com, and you can also follow the organization on Facebook.