26
Dec
2010
Dietrich “Giving Moore” In His Hometown This Holiday
By admin. Posted in Give Moore Event | Comments Off
Coming from a small town in Manitoba, HP4K member Jacob Dietrich and his friends always knew the game of hockey would bring people together. Whether guys were away at school, working 9 to 5, or off playing the game they loved as a kid, the holidays always brought them together again in their hometown. At Christmastime, the group gets together to play an annual game of shinny — no one ever imagined it would turn into something much more.
Deloraine, Manitoba is a close-knit community with a population of less than 1,500 people. When the yearly shinny game started to attract more players and more attention, everyone wanted to see what was going on. The town started supporting this small pick-up game and eventually Dietrich and the guys were able to start giving back to the community that supported them so much while growing up.
For the past few years, money collected during the game is donated to a local organization called The Breakfast Club. The Breakfast Club is made up of a group of local kids who wake up extra early every Tuesday and Wednesday before school in order to practice and refine their hockey skills.
This year, the guys have been given an even bigger opportunity to do some good with their game. Once everyone makes it back to town this week, a shinny game will commence as promised. But now even the local businesses are backing the game and everyone in Deloraine is working together toward building a better community for current and future hockey players.
“Our small town rink is falling apart,” Jacob said, “We grew up on this rink and it plays a vital role in our community so we felt it was perfect for us to help out.”
For a rink that’s nearly 50 years old, Deloraine’s Doc Bonar Arena has had few renovations to keep up with the times. “The floor itself has never been touched,” Jacob said, “and it looks to be in bad shape. We’ve been given an opportunity to shed some light on great causes in our community, and we want to give back in our own way.”
Donations during the game will be collected on behalf of The Breakfast Club and for Arena improvement projects.
“There’s also a woman in town by the name of Jill VanGheluwe who’s been suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS) and is in need of Liberation Surgery,” Jacob explained. New developments on MS show that this surgery could cure her condition.
“Unfortunately, Ms VanGheluwe must travel to Costa Rica for this new treatment and it’s very expensive. Part of the proceeds from the shinny game will go towards helping Ms. VanGheluwe get to Costa Rica and keep fighting her battle.”
No matter what your outlet, you can always do something to make a difference in the lives of one woman, one child or an entire community. The game of hockey, played among childhood friends, in the form of shinny is helping a small Manitoba town tremendously this holiday season.
Best of luck to Jacob Dietrich and all his buddies this Christmas!
