Calling all Catan fans: Louis Riel Day weekend is your chance to shine.
Sixteen13 Ministry is hosting its second Manitoba Catan Tournament on Saturday Feb. 14 and Sunday, Feb. 15 at The Bunker in Winkler (545 Industrial Dr.)
But there’s much more than just local bragging rights on the line.
“This is a qualifier for the Catan National Championship,” explains organizer Harold Espinosa, noting this year the only other Manitoba qualifier, so far as he knows, is in Brandon.
The winner of the Winkler event will have their hotel and airfare to the Canadian championship in Toronto covered. That tournament’s dates are still to be determined, but it’s expected to take place sometime in late spring.
The last time the ministry hosted this event was 2024, and its winner—Morden’s Nastasha Kroeker-Ortiz—made it all the way to the semi-finals at nationals.
“We had almost 40 people out last time,” Espinosa says. “I’m hoping for 100 this time around.”
Every registered player will get six games, running from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the Saturday and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on the Sunday, followed by the playoffs that evening. Lunch on Saturday and supper on Sunday is included with your registration fee of $50.
You can register online at etherlan.ca. You must be 18 years old or up to take part.
While only the last player standing will win the trip to nationals, every player will be entered to win raffle prizes, including a 3D Catan game and expansions.
Proceeds from the weekend go to support Sixteen13 Ministry’s work helping those in need both close to home and around the world.
“Whatever is left goes to the ministry to help families. So we’re going to be buying groceries so we can bring it to them, show we care, get to know their families, and just pray with them, invite them to church, just be an encouragement to them,” Espinosa says of their food ministry program—one of several support programs they operate across southern Manitoba.
Connection is a big part of what the ministry is all about, Espinosa notes, so it’s quite fitting to host a board game weekend to support its work.
“It’s interactive—people can talk, have some fun, share their thoughts,” he says of the big draw of Catan, which has been getting people into modern board gaming since the late ‘90s. “It’s just that relationship that people have, that common ground to just play a game and relax.
“I think the second draw is the strategy of it—everybody plays until one person wins, so everybody has a blast and a half.”
