Edward Koren’s Pink Panther is one of only 54 produced. Inside his car he carries a stuffed Pink Panther.

By Adan Shaikh

Edward Koren owns a rare 1970 Charger 500, the vehicle turns heads not for its performance, but with its distinct pink colour. Known as the “Pink Panther,” the Charger was purchased brand new by Koren directly from the dealership in 1970. More than five decades later, the car remains largely unchanged and has never required anything more than routine maintenance. The vehicle is part of many trips and car gatherings that Koren frequently attends each summer.

Under the hood, the Pink Panther is equipped with an eight cylinder 383 Magnum engine, paired with a Turboflite A727 two-speed automatic transmission. The 383 Magnum was one of the high performance big block engines offered by Dodge during the ’70s muscle car era, it’s known for delivering strong acceleration and the deep exhaust note.

“It is very unique, I belong to a site called Panther Pink, and only 54 of these were produced so it really is one of a kind,” shared Koren.

One of the most distinctive features of the car is its factory colour. The bright pink paint, officially called Moulin Rouge, was part of a short-lived palette introduced by Dodge and Plymouth in 1970. The colour was also known as Panther Pink, the name Koren prefers to use, and was offered for a limited time as part of the company’s high impact colour lineup.

While bold colours were common during that time, pink vehicles were produced in far smaller numbers than more traditional shades such as red, blue or black. Koren’s Charger is among those unique models.

The second generation body style featured a long hood, fastback roofline and wide layout that highlighted its performance. The P225-70R14 wheels provide the car with lots of traction on the road as Koren enjoys the Pink Panther’s 335 horsepower.

Koren’s vehicle spent a long stretch off the road when he got busy with family life, but he brought it back out in 2004. The Charger was parked for approximately 20 years, however, during that time the vehicle stayed in good condition and only needed to be repainted.

For Koren, his first car is still part of the family and has remained with him since the day he first drove it off the lot.

“When I went to buy my first car, the dealer only had two options – one was used and so I went with this,” commented Koren.

Equipped with leather bucket seats and an 8-track player, a quick look at Koren’s car is like taking a step back into the ’70s.

Today he spends time with his daughter and son-in-law side by side as they each work on their own classic vehicles.

This group of people are very passionate about keeping girls in sports, wanting a place for them to grow and play at high levels. From left, Adam Belanger, coach; Makena Bowman; Litsa Tryphonopoulos, girls coordinator; Emily Chanasyk; Emily Belanger; Jordyn Pollock; and Nathan Pollock, coach.

By Nadine Leming

Girls’ sports offer a large variety of skills beyond the skills of the game they play. It is an opportunity for them to learn about leadership, help develop confidence and resiliency. These are skills that they can bring forward with them in life, education, work and communities.

Unfortunately, three girls drop out of sport for every one boy, causing them to miss out on the benefits of playing sports, with many girls struggling to continue on at higher levels of their chosen sport.  According to Canadian Women and Sport The Rally Report, 2020 research has proven the positive link between social connection and quality sport experiences for girls.

Camrose girls’ soccer is one of those sports that is struggling to find and maintain enough players as they grow into the higher levels of the sport. As girls hit their mid-teens, it is hard to fill a team.

Emily Belanger (Emily B) is one of those girls who loves the game and has played soccer for 13 years. She commented, “All the players personally fight hard to recruit other players for soccer because it means so much to us.”

Emily Chanasyk (Emily C), girls’ soccer player, continued with, “As we get older, everyone’s getting jobs while preparing for the future, so it’s hard to find people who are willing to give up that time.”

Jordyn Pollock also plays soccer and mentioned, “Other communities are struggling with the same thing, so it makes it hard for all of us to come together to be able to make a league for us to play in, so we usually have to travel pretty far to be able to play.”

Adam Belanger, one of the coaches of the Camrose Vikings U17/19 girls, commented, “I think it’s important to build out sustainability with the girls. For them (younger girls) to be able to look up and see them (the older girls) knowing they can play soccer from U5 all the way up to U19 in Camrose, and represent our community.”

Nathan Pollock, another U17/19 coach, did a great job last season for outdoor soccer finding the older group of girls places to play. They participated in the Sherwood Park league on a combined team due to the lack of girls in this age group in Camrose.
He said, “There’s lots of research that shows how important it is to keep girls in sport. There’s also a lot of reasons why girls leave sports, for instance, when it’s not easy as there isn’t a league to play in.”

He continued, “To see these girls come together has been really encouraging over the last season of indoor and outdoor soccer.”

The goal of the parents involved is to try and avoid disappointment for these younger girls to get the news that there aren’t enough players to make a team or to not have a league in which to play. They want a place for older girls to play soccer in Camrose. They want the girls to play at the highest levels of soccer for life.

The Augustana women’s team has been very supportive of minor soccer in Camrose. They consistently have had two of their players come to indoor practices, sharing their expertise.

When the minor soccer girls held an exhibition game against Beaumont, half of the Augustana team were there, building that bridge and inspiring the U17/19 girls.

Litsa Tryphonopoulos is the female coordinator for the Camrose and District Soccer Association (CDSA). Her job is to try to solve some of the issues for the girls.

Her long-term goal is to have more female players, officials, coaches and administrators act as role models for the girls. She has made a conscious effort to reconnect with the Augustana women’s soccer program.

Litza said, “These young ladies stand a good chance at playing for Augustana and the benefits that go along with becoming a student-athlete at the university level are immense.”

She continued, “They go on to graduate and are still involved with the game. The experience that they gain from playing soccer will follow them into their professions.”

Jhordan Bowman is the social media coordinator for CDSA. Her daughter Makena is a huge Augustana Vikings women’s soccer fan and doesn’t miss a home game. She’s even encouraged her parents to take her to Olds and Red Deer to watch away games.

Jhordan added, “When I came to Camrose and noticed the lack of all girls’ teams, I knew I wanted to get involved and help rebuild the program. I wanted my daughter to have just as many opportunities as her brothers as athletes.”

She went on to include, “Female representation in sport is huge for young athletes and the girls in Camrose U17/19 and the Augustana women’s Vikings give these young girls the representation they need to show them what is possible.”

They all want to bring girls’ soccer to a place where players can see there is room in the sport for them beyond their recreational years and the value in continuing to participate.