Hello BADinTO members.

I hope this email finds all of you well. We seem to be turning the corner on this Pandemic, and hopefully we will be able to get out and enjoy the summer and each others company very soon.

Now, down to business.

REFUND or CREDIT:

The BADinTO Executive have worked out a rebate for the time we have lost at the end of the season. We have basically lost 11-12 weeks of badminton from permit cancellations due to the COVID-19 outbreak. We have pro-rated a refund to all 2019/2020 Full Time Members, 2019/2020 Fridays Only Members, and 2020 Winter Session Members. Your refund is based upon your membership level.

The link below is an application for your refund. Please fill it out ASAP. There are only three or four questions for you to answer and it will take less than 90 seconds of your time. If you are planning to return to BADinTO for the 2020/2021 badminton season, we would appreciate if you accept your refund as a credit instead of cash back. This credit will be applied towards your membership fees for next season. If you would prefer the cash, unsure or are NOT planning on joining us again for the 2020/2021 badminton season, please choose the e-Transfer cash back option on the form. If our club is unable to open due to school closures next season, we will e-Transfer the refund to all those members who selected the credit option to clear the accounts.

2019/2020 BADinTO Refund Application

During these unprecedented times, we will be keeping a close eye on how sports clubs will be rolling out in the Fall. We will keep you updated on our Facebook groups page (https://www.facebook.com/groups/BADinTO) as well as the BADinTO website (BADinTO.ca).

REGISTRATION FOR THE 2020/2021 SEASON:

After years of consideration, this seems like the right time to move our registration online. We will be sending out an email to all our 2019/2020 Full Time, Friday Only and Winter Session members when we have confirmation of gym permits. The procedure will be the same as in-person registration. Returning members will have first right of refusal to join the club, and will have to register and pay within a set amount of time. After that, returning member registration will be closed and we will know how many spots will be available to new members. If you are a returning member and have missed the deadline to pre-register, you will have to take your chances and register with the new members … first come, first accepted.

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT:

I just wanted to take a moment to thank all of you for your patience and understanding this season. It has been a very unusual and trying time for many of us. I always feel very fortunate to be able to be a part of the TGBL and honoured to have some small roll in bringing this amazing club to all of our members. Every season I reflect on all the incredible people I meet in our club. Even though badminton is the main reason we gather each week, it is you, the members, that keep us all coming back year after year. We have arguably the best LGBTQ sports league in the City because our members are so friendly, open and welcoming. You are all amazing!

For the first time in the history of the Club, we have had to cancel the Queen’s Cup Badminton Tournament. Hopefully we will come back, bigger and better next year!

Of course, this club would not be possible without the BADinTO Executive Committee who have given up their time to volunteer at the club year after year.

Thank you to:

Peter Conquest, Vice President
Damon Lin, Treasurer
Christine Lam, Membership Coordinator
Paul Henman, Webmaster
Felix Tse, Play Director
Mark Galeazza, Play Director
Larry Xu, Play Director

I would also like to give special thanks to all of our members who have donated and volunteered to the club throughout the season.

I hope to see all of you back next season, and if not, I hope that you will consider joining us again in the future.

Sincerely,

Vincent Chan, President.

Dear BADinTO Members,
The following is some important information about the club moving forward for the rest of the season.

GENERAL CLUB INFORMATION:
The club will be dark from now until April 7th.
For now, the permits department is saying that we will be able to play on Wednesday, April 8, but will be closed Friday, April 10 for Good Friday holiday. The club will be back to normal scheduled play starting the week of April 13th. With that said, the club is at the mercy of public health, and closures may happen anytime due to the continued spread of the COVID-19. Please check our website www.badinto.com or the BADinTO Badminton Club’s Facebook Groups page for updated information.
We apologize that we were not able to get any hand sanitizers for the club last week as promised. Hopefully we will have some when we get back from the break.

IMPORTANT: If you have tested positive for COVID-19 (or will test positive over the next two weeks), please email Vincent Chan directly to let him know. Vincent can be reached directly at kaktusstudio@sympatico.ca. Your privacy will be 100% protected. Upon return from our closure, we ask that members wash their hands before entering the gym to play. Also wash your hands afterwards for your own protection. If you are feeling under the weather and have not yet been medically diagnosed to be COVID-19 negative, please do not come to the club for the safety of our members. We would like to keep our doors open for as long as we can, in the safest and most responsible manner possible.

QUEEN’S CUP INFORMATION:
After careful consideration and discussions with both the BADinTO Executives and Queen’s Cup Committee members, it saddens me to announce the 2020 Queen’s Cup Badminton Tournament is cancelled due to the threat of COVID-19 contagion.

We did not come to this decision likely, but the health and well-being of all of our members and guests is paramount. We feel that there is a real possibility that COVID-19 cases are going to rise sharply over the next couple of months before things begin to improve. At this point no one can project the timeline of this pandemic, so we could not simply postpone the tournament to a later date. For this reason, we’ve decided to cancel it altogether.

We thank you for your understanding and apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out by email at info@badinto.com. This is a very unusual situation and we wish you continued good health.

Stay healthy, reduce risk, wash your hands, and be better, stronger and faster for the 2021 Queen’s Cup Tournament!

Virtual hugs,
Vincent Chan
President, BADinTO LGBTQ Badminton League

Toronto District School Board have notified us that all permits are cancelled from March 14 to April 5, 2020.
This means our next club night will be April 8th … however, April 10th is cancelled as it’s the Easter long weekend.

We will post any updates to our website & Facebook group.