Put together a dozen or more passionate parents — who long for their children with special needs to have a community — and a group of equally passionate volunteers who catch the spirit, and you have what is becoming known as the greatest new inspiration on ice in Peterborough.
The visionaries behind the Peterborough Huskies team can hardly contain their joy and excitement when they meet, appropriately for hockey parents, in a local Tim Hortons.
“It really is an emotional experience to see these kids come together,” says co-founder of the first Huskies team Cathie Tuck. “We’ve had a lot of experiences like that — kids and parents and grandparents hugging us. They never thought their kids would play hockey.”
She and her husband Dave Tuck have two children who have special needs.
Dave coached for the other local special needs hockey team (the Kawartha Komets) for two years, but he felt there was a need for a team whose members joined for more than just the hockey.
In 2013, the Tucks launched the Peterborough Huskies, named by their youngest son, and before the first dozen players even hit an ice pad, the team building began.
They visited the Peterborough Airport, went on a fishing trip to the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters, took a trip to the Indian River Reptile Zoo, and won “Best Salute to Canada” in the city’s Canada Day Parade. They built a community garden, went to camp together, and even tried pottery as a group.
Getting ice was a challenge, since Peterborough rinks are so busy. They ended up with some ice time in Millbrook.
Getting sponsors proved to be less of a challenge, with the unquestioning support of Kevin Ott from Giant Tiger.
“Even before we hit the ice we were a winning team,” Dave says.
The team needed a head coach; Chris Williams offered to come out for an hour to give a hand, but he caught the spirit too, and hasn’t left the bench since.
Then the players needed equipment, some of it specialized. Dave made skating assists (many of the children had never skated). Local businesses stepped up, and the tireless team of Cathie and Dave have kept the momentum going.
The new Huskies also needed someone to play against. The Peterborough Lakefield Community Police Service suited up for that challenge, and the Peterborough Huskies played their first game the last Saturday in November.
Other teams stepped up too: the Trent Men’s team, the Peterborough Patriots sledge hockey team, and some nearby special needs teams.
The Huskies even attended a mini-tournament in their first year.
And they haven’t stopped building the team off ice either. Dave took the players to the Hedley concert and to a Toronto Maple Leafs game.
How the Team Gives Back
Before the Peterborough Huskies, most of the children and youth on the team were ostracized.
“A lot of the kids are bullied at school,” Cathie says. Whether bullied, or simply shunned or ignored, the Huskies has brought them together in a new accepting community, she adds.
“The kids don’t see the diagnosis; they see the friendship,” she says.
Two of the players on the team, one from Port Hope, the other from Peterborough, one with Down syndrome, the other with Asperger syndrome, have become best friends. Others have connected on Facebook.
Parents are finding support too, Cathie says.
In their search for major sponsors to keep the team going, Dave says there is no barrier to what the team will do for the community.
“We want to give back,” he says.
The Big Dream
But Dave finds it, just beneath the surface of the worry of fundraising, the exhilaration of a successful first year, and the hectic schedule of team-building.
“Our only dream right now is to make it to Michigan,” he says.
Michigan is where this year’s annual Special Hockey International tournament takes place from May 1st to 4th, drawing more than 1,000 players.
Cathie says it’s the most unusual experience. Everybody is accepted, she says. Everybody wins. The league is non-competitive, and the community support for the players, families and volunteers is extraordinary.
Ten thousand dollars would do it — but that’s a hefty amount to raise for two visionaries who already work tirelessly to build more than a hockey team.
“Raising a special needs child is expensive as it is,” she says, adding that many parents find it hard to meet the $250 annual registration fee itself, let alone the tournament fee.
Their ongoing work to raise awareness and fund raise continues. They have a number of ongoing campaigns, such as a Chapters Indigo offer where 10 per cent of the sale of gift cards goes to the Huskies.
But they need more to realize the Michigan trip.
“We will do whatever we have to,” they both say. “You just want everybody to feel like a star.”
Generous Community Sponsorship
The Peterborough Huskies have a number of major sponsors, including Giant Tiger, Darling Insurance, Maplelodge Farms, E.D. Smith, and Blade Tape.
But generous individuals who donate their time and effort also make a huge difference.
Not only did Joe Mead sponsor this kawarthaNOW story, but he provides ongoing support to the Peterborough Huskies. Joe has used his amazing air-brushing skills to customize the helmets of the team’s goalies.
Please make sure you visit and like Joe’s Facebook page.
TVCogeco’s profile of the Peterborough Huskies
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hM92yHHDA1A
All photos courtesy of the Peterborough Huskies
