Will You Play Hockey For Food?

8 years ago

The summer has quietly arrived. The weather is nice, people are looking for things to do, and unfortunately, watching hockey isn’t one of their options. We’ve got lots of off-season stuff to talk about, but no games to watch. Of course, that’s a first world problem; there are much more unfortunate things out there — such as the thousands of Canadian families who aren’t able to afford to eat, especially in the months after holiday donations dry up.

Enter Five Hole For Food; an organization that aims to solve the latter via a solution for the former.

What Is Five Hole For Food?

Five Hole For Food is a non-profit organization that attempts to get food in the hands of Canadians in need, using the passion for our national past time as a method for driving awareness and fundraising. Founded in 2010, the organization has raised over a million pounds of food to date.

The biggest component of the organization’s efforts is its annual road trip. Every year, a few members of the organization hop into a vehicle and drive from coast to coast, stopping in major cities to host ball hockey games. Set up to operate with both teams and drop-in players, the only barrier to entry is a donation of food and/or money. Said donations then go to a selected food bank in the city hosting the event, as the team moves on to the next city.

This year, the road crew will be stopping in 13 cities over the course of 18 days.

We’re Playing Near You!

It wouldn’t be a trip across Canada without stopping in Edmonton, would it? Once again, the tour is coming through the city of magic lottery balls, and once again, we’ll be playing in Centennial Plaza. First Lady of Edmonton Jenny Scrivens came to play last year. We’re not sure just yet if she’ll be making a return, but if she doesn’t the average save percentage is due to tumble by at least 0.200, so if you’re a forward, you can breathe a sigh of relief. There will be multiple rinks set up, and plenty of time to show off your best moves!

The fun begins at 2 PM on July 15th. We’ll be playing until 8 PM. If you want to reserve a timeslot to play in, or have a group of friends that you would like to play with on a team, you can register here. Otherwise, you can just come with a hockey stick, a donation, and a lot of excitement on the day of the event.

If you’d like to help out by inviting your friends, there’s a nifty Facebook Event as well.

We’re Playing Elsewhere!

Obviously, not everybody who reads this site is from Edmonton. As such, here’s a nifty tour schedule:

We’re Online!

If you can’t make it to any of the events, that’s fine! You can make a donation on the FHFF website, or alternatively, buy a “Will Play Hockey For Food” t-shirt from the same link. As well, offline donations can be made via our coin drive at 7-Eleven locations across the country, or in the form of food in various London Drugs locations across the west coast. You can also follow Five Hole For Food on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for updates on how the tour is going, along with the official blog.

Any Other Questions?

If you’re curious about anything at all regarding the tour, don’t hesitate to send me a DM on Twitter, or even send me an email. I’m helping with Social Media again this year, and as such will be on the road team, so I can answer all your questions/concerns, or at least forward them on to someone who would have a better answer.

Beyond that, it would be super fantastic to see some new and familiar faces at the events this year! Any bit of extra hype helps, so don’t hesitate to tell your friends and family, or even give us a shout out on whatever form of social media you use.