Hockey Helps Kids Gears Up for Second Season
Program announces team captains and four participating junior high schools for 2016-17
(Edmonton, AB) – Hockey Helps Kids, an exciting charitable initiative which made its debut last year, returns for a second season as a key program for the Edmonton Oilers upcoming 2016-17 Inaugural Season at Rogers Place after its incredibly successful and engaging campaign last year. For its second year, junior high school students, Grade 7 to 9, will again be afforded the opportunity to learn about the importance of being active and positive members of their community.
Hockey Helps Kids is co-founded by Chloe and Harrison Katz, children of Edmonton Oilers owner Daryl Katz and his wife Renee The pilot project is funded by the Katz family and administered by the Edmonton Oilers Community Foundation (EOCF), who help connect the Katz children with the four local Edmonton schools and four Oilers players to serve as team captains for each school to learn about community service.
This past summer a Hockey Helps Kids panel, which included Chloe and Harrison Katz, Sandra Woitas, Hockey Helps Kids Educational Consultant and past Hockey Helps Kids participants’ Florence Hallock School’s students Vanessa Chong, Suzanna Tran and Assistant Principal Corene Zmurchik, helped select the participating schools. Hockey Helps Kids is thrilled to welcome four new Edmonton schools on board for the upcoming year.
“We are eagerly anticipating the second season of Hockey Helps Kids and can’t wait to see what charitable causes the four new schools choose to support. We’re so inspired and motivated by all of the students’ interest in the program. It’s going to be a great year,” said Chloe Katz.
The four local schools have teamed up with four Oilers players and will compete in a unique Charity Cup Challenge later this season.
The teams for the 2016-17 season are:
• Team Jordan Eberle – St. Edmund Catholic Junior High School
• Team Milan Lucic – John D. Bracco Junior High School
• Team Connor McDavid – Highlands Junior High School
• Team Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Father Michael Troy Junior High School
“Being new to Oil Country, I’m really excited to jump right in and help the community as a Hockey Helps Kids team captain,” said Milan Lucic. “It’s incredible that Hockey Helps Kids is a student-driven program. It’s awesome to see youth so engaged in the community and I’m looking forward to getting started this fall.”
“Chloe and I are excited to have Milan Lucic joining Hockey Helps Kids with our three other returning team captains. Both the students and schools have tons to look forward to this year!” added Harrison Katz.
More details on Hockey Helps Kids activities will be announced when this year’s program launches in the coming weeks. To learn more about Hockey Helps Kids, please visit HockeyHelpsKids.com, download the Oilers Mobile App or check out Hockey Helps Kids on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Edmonton Oilers hockey is presented by Rogers, Molson Canadian, Scotiabank, Ford and the Rexall Family of Pharmacies.