There’s always plenty to celebrate at Apex, and the 52nd was no different.
Just over 110 golfers hit the course for two days of beautiful weather and friendly (but competitive) golf, with a few extra games and challenges thrown in—and plenty of fun continuing beyond the greens.
Here’s a look back at some of the highlights from Apex Weekend 2026.
2026 Tournament & Awards Recap
Colin Carvery, a returning Apex golfer representing Grandview Golf & Country Club, entered Day 2 with a six-stroke lead after shooting an even-par (71) on Friday. Despite a more challenging second round, Colin had built enough of an advantage to hold off a competitive field that included Darrell Maxwell, Butch Borden, Wayne Talbot and Trevor Jordan, finishing with a two-day score of 153 to capture his first Apex title.
Belinda Bennicke, meanwhile, added yet another championship title to her long history at Apex. The Truro (Island) native entered Saturday tied for third before battling back to win it for the women with a two-day score of 205. According to Apex records, this marked Belinda’s 15th tournament victory, with her first dating all the way back to 1985.
Our 9-Hole division winners were Donald Paris (Men’s) and Heather Maxwell (Women’s).
Winners by Division:
- Men’s 18 — Colin Carvery (two-day score: 153)
- Women’s 18 — Belinda Bennicke (two-day score: 205)
- Men’s 9 — Donald Paris (two-day score: 90)
- Women’s 9 — Heather Maxwell (two-day score: 95)
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At Saturday evening’s dinner, MDR Strategy Group joined us to speak about its work supporting the Truro Black Cultural Development Association (TBCDA) in its efforts to secure a community space. This future space is intended to support the economic, social and cultural growth of Truro’s Black community and the wider Colchester County community.
One of the more meaningful moments of the evening came as Raymond Tynes received the Arthur Jordan Award, nominated by Jo-Anne Jordan and presented by his daughter, Tamara Tynes, while the rest of his family looked on. Tamara spoke about her dad’s lifetime of community service and the example set for him by his father, Ronald “Bussie” Tynes, and other community leaders before him. She also shared some of Raymond’s own accomplishments over the years, from becoming Truro’s first Black elected school board member and the first Black Nova Scotian elected to Truro Town Council, to serving as its first Black Deputy Mayor and continuing to advocate for his community.
Kevin Jackson became the 2026 Legacy Challenge Champion, recording the lowest score on holes 2 to 7—the “Island Holes”—during Day 1 of Apex. Established in 2025 in memory of late committee member Foster Paris, the challenge honours Foster’s connection to these holes. He grew up playing them alongside family and fellow community members and, in later years, could often be found walking them as a spectator and greeting golfers along the way. Kevin also received a surprise recognition alongside his cousin Junior Jackson, honouring their contribution to golf 50 years ago when they represented Nova Scotia and The Island at the 1976 Canadian Junior Golf Championships.
There were plenty of other prizes and bragging rights earned throughout the weekend. Dana Saunders and Trevor Jordan came out on top in Friday’s Closest to the Line challenge, while Closest to the Pin honours went to Michelle Garrell and Kevin Jackson on Day 1 and Lillian Ash and Trevor Jordan on Day 2. Dana Saunders also won our annual Scholarship Fund donor basket draw, while Herb Mullings was the lucky winner of the 65″ Samsung Smart TV donated by The Brick. And in perhaps the most suspiciously lucky draw of the weekend, Gilbert Daye correctly called—and then drew—his own name from the bucket to win the basket donated annually by Ardith Jordan-Simmonds in memory of her late parents, Bonnie and Arthur “Arty” Jordan.
We also welcomed Black Youth Planting Their Future to the course on Friday. They put our golfers’ skills to the test with a putting contest and raised $130 for the Apex Scholarship Fund in the process.
2026 Scholarship Recipients
Apex was proud to award scholarships to 11 students pursuing post-secondary education this year, continuing one of our longest-standing traditions. Since 2000, the Apex Scholarship Fund has awarded 167 scholarships to African Nova Scotian students from Colchester County, totalling more than $141,600.
Another pretty great stat shared during Saturday’s presentation: approximately 80% of African Nova Scotian students graduating from CEC go on to post-secondary education.
This year, Jamar Maxwell and Kai Lyngo were also selected to receive the Robbie Jones Award for Community Achievement, presented by Robbie’s brothers, Tommy and David Jones. Established by the Jones family in 2009, the award honours Robbie’s memory by recognizing students who have shown strong community involvement and volunteerism.
For those who may not know the story, Robbie was born and raised in Truro, where he excelled in several sports at CEC before eventually settling in Ontario. He spent 24 years with the Windsor Police Service and more than 22 years coaching youth basketball. Giving back, and especially supporting young people, was a big part of who Robbie was—which is exactly what this award recognizes.
Scholarship Recipients:
- Adrian Wright — NSCC Truro Campus
- Dasia Abbey — Dalhousie University
- Daniel Desmond — Toronto Metropolitan University
- Melia Lane — St. Francis Xavier University
- Linnah Borden — Toronto Metropolitan University
- Jamar Maxwell — Mount Allison University — Robbie Jones Award Recipient
- Kai Lyngo — Mount Allison University — Robbie Jones Award Recipient
- Chloe Eagles — Saint Mary’s University
- Javaya Talbot — Holland College
- Wuno Odumakinde — St. Francis Xavier University
- Zach Lavers — Dalhousie University
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Other Weekend Activities
Dominoes (Thursday, August 6th)
Winners: Shelay and Kasey
Apex Weekend officially got underway Thursday with the 3rd Annual Angie Parker-Brown Memorial Dominoes Tournament. In the finals, it came down to Tara and Crystal, representing Dartmouth and Truro, against Montreal’s Shelay and Kasey, with the out-of-towners ultimately taking this year’s title.
Gift Card Bingo (Sunday, August 9th)
We closed out Apex Weekend on Sunday with our annual Gift Card Bingo, with more than 40 prizes donated by businesses throughout the Truro area up for grabs. From Fletcher’s and HubCraft to Giant Tiger, Boston Pizza and many more, there was plenty to play for and one final opportunity to gather, have some fun and support the Scholarship Fund before another Apex Weekend came to a close.
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Thank You
Of course, we have a lot of people to thank.
This year, 32 corporate sponsors supported the Apex Invitational, along with many other local businesses that donated prizes and gift cards throughout the weekend. Those contributions go a long way—not only in helping us put on the tournament, but in supporting the Apex Scholarship Fund. Special thanks to Jost Vineyards, who returned for the third year to offer samples to our golfers, and to The Brick for donating the 65″ Samsung Smart TV raffled off during the weekend.
Thank you to DJ Chxne and DJs Mike Mission and C-Los for keeping us dancing into the wee hours of the morning, and to all of the volunteers who gave their time throughout the weekend, including those who helped with registration and photography. A special thank you to Forbes Sang, who came in from Ontario to capture photos around the course. Credit for the hero image used in this post goes to him with more shots to be shared soon.
And finally, thank you to our 111 golfers and everyone else who came out and spent some part of Apex Weekend with us. Whether you travelled home for the weekend, played a round (or two), came out to dominoes or bingo, joined us at the dinner, made a donation, hit the dance floor, or just stopped by to see who was around—thanks for being part of it.
See you next year!
Apex Invitational Golf Tournament 