Commemorative pins are the currency of the Canada Games, and the market in St. John’s is hot

Garrett Barry reports on the Canada Games’ souvenir pin exchange event that took place in St. John’s, N.L. on Friday.

Well before the pin booth opened for business early Friday morning, a lineup was forming on the St. John’s, N.L., campus of Memorial University.

Dozens of Canada Games athletes, viewers, coaches and volunteers — each with 100 small recyclable plastic bags in hand — were anxiously waiting for their chance to receive a limited edition dolphin pin, one of the top prizes for pin seekers at this year’s games in St. John’s.

Within minutes, after the staff from Laurie Artiss Ltd. arrived, supplies had run out. That brought elation for some and even tears for others.

Pin trading, a long-time tradition at the Canada Games, has reached another level over the past two weeks in St. John’s, according to Lewis Taman, who is manning the pin booth for Laurie Artiss Ltd.

“You can never really expect what’s going to happen at a games,” Taman said. “Being here in St. John’s, it seems to have just taken off.”

There are 240 different pins that collectors can chase during this year’s event. A full set is nearly unheard of, so many are chasing particular themes — like one from every province.

“We have to stay in the village a lot of the time, so we have a lot of free time,” said Laura Zeid, a soccer player for Team Manitoba. “I like to go around and just talk to random people and just make fun of it. And it’s just fun to, like, bargain.”

The pins are fulfilling their initial goal, bringing athletes and coaches together during the games with an easy icebreaker.

“When we first started, we really wanted to make sure that we’ve got kids from P.E.I. talking to kids from Newfoundland or B.C. or Nunavut,” said Taman. “There’s nothing easier than just do you want to trade a pin?”

They’re not as prized as medals — but maybe the second best bit of hardware that competitors can take home with them.

“It’s something that everybody can do,” explained New Brunswick wrestling coach Mike Trites “Not everyone stands on the podium, but everybody can go out and trade some pins.”

Laurie Artiss Ltd. — which brands itself as The Pin People — has many clients, including Curling Canada, the World Curling Federation and Lions Club International.

“Canada Games isn’t necessarily our biggest client, but it is a passion project for us. My family has always been really involved in youth in sport in general.”

Pins can be bought, traded, and in some cases earned — an installation that ran at the St. John’s convention centre this week offered pins to participants who rowed for 60 seconds on a rowing machine.

And young fans are even getting in on the action — like cousins Zyler O’Meara and Willa Dumville, both of whom were making deals Friday morning looking to complete their extensive collections.

“I have around 130 of this year,” Zyler said.

“We were only here for ten days,” Willa added “I think (my favourite) is the potato one. Because these are impossible to get.”