HP4K members/Cincinnati Cyclones players recently partnered with a youth hockey team from the Cincinnati Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) to give a group of underprivileged children from the Cincinnati area a unique opportunity to learn about hockey.
Dozens of kids, including members from the US Bank Boys & Girls Club in Avondale and the Buenger Boys & Girls Club in Newport, KY, came out to participate alongside local youth hockey players.
HP4K members (Jason Jozsa, Jimmy Kilpatrick, Doug Krantz, Chris Morehouse, Scott Reynolds, Dustin Sproat and Mark Van Guilder) helped the children suit up with skates, sticks and helmets, and taught participants how to skate, pass and shoot.
“It was the first time many of these kids had ever been on the ice,” Sproat commented. “HP4K is about positively impacting the lives of children in our community and events like this allow us to spread the spirit of giving back beyond our professional members to youth hockey players, introducing our mission to a new generation. We love working with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Cincinnati, an amazing organization we want to continue to support in any way possible.”
A pizza party and autograph signing followed the event — everyone involved had a blast — and we look forward to making this a regular HP4K event.
Click here to check out a photo gallery from the event.
The Hinton Parklander, a weekly newspaper out of Hinton, Alberta recently spotlighted the volunteer efforts of HP4K co-founder, Mike Batovanja. Click here to read the full-text.
HP4K members/South Carolina Stingrays players recently spent time with children at an afterschool program in Dorchester, SC.
Spencer Carbery, Johann Kroll, Matt Scherer and others helped with homework, played board games with the kids (including some pretty competitive Connect 4), and organized a kickball clinic.
Click here to check out more great photos from the afternoon.
Stockton’s HP4K contingent just organized the first of many road hockey clinics to come in partnership with a YMCA afterschool program at a local elementary school. Daryl Marcoux, Oren Eizenman and Matt Robinson spent an hour playing road hockey with fourth graders, then an hour with fifth and sixth graders in the program. Daryl Marcoux shared more details about the initiative:
“I had some swedish wooden balls to do a stick handling and passing clinic. Then we did some shooting with tennis balls, and then played a good old-fashioned game using small, portable soccer nets that the YMCA had. The Stockton Thunder lent us 22 small road hockey sticks, and we will be doing the clinics every Tuesday in March. I’m looking forward to next week!”
Click here to check out more photos of the latest spring road hockey clinic in Stockton.
One of HP4K’s newest members, Bruce Mulherin, is carrying out the organization’s mission this season in Asia, spending time with school children and teaching learn-to-skate programs. Way to go, Bruce!
To see more photos of Bruce in action, click here.
This year, HP4K will benefit from proceeds raised at the Cincinnati Cyclones Fan Club charity event, Cyclones Got Talent II. On Sunday, February 21, 2010 from 5 – 9 p.m. at Raffel’s Banquet Hall (Blue Ash, OH), Cyclones players will be serving dinner, dining with guests and putting on a hilarious talent show. Attendees can also participate in a raffle and live auction with great prizes—all benefitting HP4K.
Tickets are $15 per person for non-Fan Club members and pre-registration is required. Payment can be made in cash or check payable to Cyclones Fan Club at the fan club booth behind Section 117 at US Bank Arena or call Lisa Buchman at (513) 885-0307.
HP4K co-founder Mike Batovanja has recently started volunteering in a fifth grade classroom in Wichita:
“I’m enjoying reading with the kids and helping them work on their math skills—plus, I make sure they learn a little something about hockey and Canada at the same time! Every Thursday, I spend the afternoon with the kids, just trying to be a good role model. It’s been great so far, and I hope to work with Ms. Gough’s class even after the season is done.”
Click here to check out more photos of Mike volunteering in Wichita.
Cincinnati Cyclones players represented their team and HP4K on January 26, 2010 as part of radio station 700 WLW’s “Local Sports Celebrities for Haiti Relief” effort. The guys sorted items in Matthew 25: Ministries’ warehouse, packaging nonperishable food and water, personal care products, cleaning products, first aid supplies and home goods for shipment to Haiti.
“We are so grateful… Our athletes and local celebrities have a tremendous potential to inspire the community. We appreciate them spending their time to help the people of Haiti,” said Tim Mettey, Vice President and Disaster Relief Coordinator for Matthew 25: Ministries.
Click here to check out more photos of the guys volunteering in M2M’s warehouse.
