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Community Celebrates Auditorium's 75-Year Legacy - 20 Jun 26
Kitchener · June 20, 2026
For the last 75 years, the Odd has been
the place where our community shows up
to celebrate, cheer, and connect. It's a
place where local pride comes to life
and where memories are made generation
after generation after generation. I've
been coming to the odds since I was 5
years old. Every day after school, my
dad and I would walk in the front doors
and watch the Rangers practice. He would
point to the plaque at the box office
and say, "This is a living memorial to
those people. It's a living tribute to
those who have served and are serving
for the cost of freedom." Was built in
the early 50s, built out in the middle
of nowhere, surrounded by farmland.
Although we've had so many expansions
and additions to the building, there are
still pieces that feel very authentic to
the history. There is a connection to
the community and people feel home when
they come here. Some people have
religious experiences going into
buildings. There's a a feeling that's
here, a familiarity, a comfort zone.
It's like going home to a home-cooked
meal. The history speaks for itself, but
also knowing that it's embracing the
future. And I think that's part of it.
It's hard to put the words together that
would describe it, but when the Ranger
score, the energy that comes down from
the crowd.
I think if I was ever having a heart
attack, it would be better than a
defibrillator.
As our community grows and expands,
there's more opportunities to have
events that appeal to different sections
of the cultures.
>> The city has continued to invest in the
facility. We've added suites. We've
expanded the seating. We've replaced the
seating. We've replaced the ice surface.
>> It's not just for Rangers fans. It's not
just for hockey fans. It's for the
entire community.
Here's
a place we can all come together and be
together.
>> There's so much nostalgia here. You come
to a game and you see how all the fans
are. They interact with each other.
They've been coming here forever. It's a
real family atmosphere, but it's pretty
exciting at the same time.
>> This is where my son went to his very
first rock concert. It's where one of my
other sons got to play on the ice as a
Timbit for the very first time. My wife
has been coming since she was a kid with
her mom and dad. We have so many firsts
here and I look forward to continuing to
experience firsts and seconds here as my
family grows.
>> We trained here and it helped us make it
to the Alliance Championships.
>> I used to come fairly often to the
Rangers. They used to let you in early
if you wanted to have a beer. They're
always short on seats, but I found
myself a beer.
>> I just smell the popcorn, the cotton
candy, all the delicious stuff.
>> I've been coming for over 40 years. I
met my husband here, so that's a bonus.
>> I remember taking my shirt off, waving
it around at birthday parties, going in
the Rangers dressing room and stuff.
There's so much that I remember about
this building through being a kid. I
wouldn't put anything above it.
It's hard to describe.
I would just say this is a really
special place. It holds so many memories
in the building and in my heart.