Top CBS Athlete Rex Hillier featured in display at The Rooms

By Chad Feehan
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
November 17, 2023 Edition

The Newfoundland and Labrador Sports Hall of Fame has its own exhibit at The Rooms this month, commemorating 50 years of activity in the province.

Until now, the Hall has had no physical presence, and even now is only running at The Rooms until later this week.

Stories, memorabilia and historical anecdotes about many of the province’s top athletes can be seen showcased inside glass cases on the third floor of The Rooms.

Among them is Rex Hillier of Conception Bay South.

Long before Hillier became known as a town councillor in CBS, Hillier was even more widely known as an athlete, coach and teacher.

Hiller has been successful in many sports over the course of his life, including basketball, softball, soccer and especially volleyball. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2008.

In 1976 Hillier carried an Olympic torch for the first kilometer of its journey when he represented the province as part of the National Junior Volleyball Program during the Olympics in Montreal.

That torch is a focal point of his display, positioned next to a black-and-white photo of a much younger Hillier.

He says the exhibit is a great reminder of the accomplishments of key figures in the Newfoundland and Labrador sporting community who made sports a viable avenue for others, including himself.

“You don’t realize how involved these people have been in their sport either as athletes or builders in making sports possible,” he said. “In retrospect you have to look back at all these people who were the builders who allowed me to do that.”

For Hillier, it’s an honor to be recognized.

“You go through daily life and you don’t realize who’s thinking about you out there, and then something like this happens,” he said. “You realize you’re getting on in age when you’re on display at The Rooms.”

Other sports organizations in the province have their own permanent displays, such as the CBS Sports Hall of Fame in the CBS Arena, where there is a cabinet of plaques recognizing the people who have been inducted over the years. SportsNL has no permanent display, but Hiller hopes the temporary one in the rooms is a step in that direction.

Anyone who competed with Hillier knows his younger years of playing sports were very goal oriented, and focused on playing a good game and winning.

Now, on reflection, it’s the relationships and the memories created with those people that stick out in his mind.

“As you get older and move on, it’s all about the people that you played with,” Hillier said. “People that you played with become your friends.”

The exhibit 50 Years of the Sports Hall of Fame will be on display on the third floor of The Rooms until November 19th.