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A
Message from our President, Geoff Sadowy
OneGoal
continues to focus on ways to touch more families that
either cannot afford to begin playing hockey or are unfamiliar
with the sport. This is a long term focus for the organization
and it has forced us to take our funding initiatives
to a new level in order to widen our impact. Efforts
to grow participation in the short term have proved fruitful
as results reported by USA hockey and Hockey Canada indicate
that more and more children are becoming engaged in our
great sport. Last season, North American participation
levels for kids aged 4-8 grew by more than 8000 children,
or 3.5%. While we cannot take direct credit for this,
we are pleased that our grow the game efforts are having
a positive impact.
We
have successfully completed an organizational restructuring
of our working committees in order to deploy our resources
in a more effective and efficient manner. Beyond new
leadership, we have heightened our focus on driving female
participation and are very excited to have one of the
all time best female goalies lead this charge, Manon
Rheaume. Her genuine desire to give back to this sport
she loves has been inspirational for all of us.
Our
newest outreach initiative is the introduction of a Hockey
Ambassador Program. This program allows us to reach out
and work with local hockey enthusiasts (generally parents)
supporting their efforts to grow hockey participation
with today’s youngsters, providing them with resources
and a blueprint to encourage involvement in the game.
We expect to roll out this program in selected markets
in Q3, with the goal of implementing this program across
North America during 2011. Please contact us through
www.onegoal.com should you require more information.
The
VIA Rail OneGoal Classic
Playing
spots and sponsorship opportunities are still available
for this year's VIA Rail OneGoal Classic taking
place on August 11th at the Club at Bond Head, home
course of the NHLPA. All
proceeds raised will go directly towards OneGoals "Grow
the Game" initiatives such as "Try Hockey" programs,
the OneGoal Equipment Program and more.
Individual
players, pairs and foursomes are welcome.
Can't
make it? Help by donating an item for our auction or
sign up for one of our many sponsorship opportunities.
Sign
up today to join past and present NHL stars for a
fun filled day of golf for a great cause!
OneGoal
U.S Outreach Committee Update |
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When
OneGoal was created, our mission was to grow
hockey in the 8 and under category by 5% annually.
Over the years, we have modified our mission
statement to better reflect our initiatives and
goals. Despite this, we are thrilled to report
that the recent growth in hockey membership for
the 2009-2010 season is right in line with our
original goal.
For
USA Hockey's eight-year old and under membership,
there were an estimated 95,774 members in the
past year. This is a 4.5 percent increase from
last year’s totals and this age group has
posted back-to-back years of growth for the first
time in more than 20 years. By the end of the
2010-2011 season, USA Hockey hopes to increase
their membership to over 100,000 in the eight
and under age category.
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"USA
Hockey is focused on introducing more families
to youth hockey, and we are pleased with
the growth in our membership," says Pat Kelleher, USA Hockey's Assistant
Executive Director
of Membership Development and OneGoal's US Outreach Chair. "OneGoal, and
specifically the
starter equipment program, has allowed many families to participate in youth
hockey without the
initial cost of buying gear for their children."
In
hopes of continuing this exciting trend, the
U.S Outreach Committee has been hard at work
planning "Try Hockey" events for the
fall of 2010.Missouri, Buffalo and the New England
area have been selected as markets with events
planned throughout October, November and December. |
OneGoal
Canadian Outreach Committee Update
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Great
news came out of Hockey Canada this year as well.
Hockey Canada is also growing, experiencing an
increase of 3,805 kids in the 8 and under age
group which totals a whopping 143,447 members
in 2009. Over the past four years, Hockey Canada
has added 31,613 members in the four to ten age
group!
"We
aren't resting on our sticks when it comes
to leading, promoting and developing positive
hockey experiences,"
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says
Hockey Canada's Glen McCurdie, Senior Director
of Insurance
and Member Services and member of OneGoal’s
Canadian Outreach Committee. "We're proud
to play a role in continuing to bring young
players onto the ice to experience the game."
Our
Canadian Outreach Committee, lead by Domenic
Di Gironimo, is obviously very pleased with these
findings and has been working on a pilot project
that will involve the City of Toronto, minor
hockey leagues in Scarborough, the Ontario Minor
Hockey League as well as the Ontario Ball Hockey
Association to create an innovative "Try
Hockey" program with multilingual marketing
pieces to reach into various ethnic communities.
"We
are confident that an innovative multi-week
introductory program working in partnership
with minor hockey groups and municipalities
will provide long-term benefits." - Domenic
Di Gironimo |
OneGoal
Female Outreach Committee Update
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OneGoal's
newest committee, lead by Manon Rheaume will
help grow hockey in the 8 and under female category.
Manon is off to a great start with two Market
Blitzes already in the works in Canada and two
more planned for the U.S later this year.
The Committee has been working closely with Hockey
Canada and USA Hockey to identify areas that
have low registration numbers and are in need
of support and has so far met with partners in
Grande Prairie, Alberta and O'Leary, Prince
Edward Island; the two selected Canadian markets
to host a "Try Hockey" event this
summer/fall.
"Having
the opportunity to create and support a program
that introduces young girls to the
sport I love so dearly is a great honor for
me." says
Manon. "With the help of our partners
in Grande Prairie and O’Leary we are
certain we can create fun filled events that
will leave
lasting impressions on these girls and encourage
them to become players and fans for life." |
OneGoal
Stick and Equipment Program Update
Both
the OneGoal Equipment and the OneGoal Stick Program
were extremely successful this year, with over 5,900
sets of OneGoal Starter gear and 4,800 sticks ordered
by rinks and associations across North America this
summer. Distribution of those orders will begin in
mid July.
The
next opportunity to place orders will begin in the
fall of this year.
For
more information on these great programs and for up
to date information on upcoming order dates please
visit: www.onegoal.com
OneGoal:
Growing hockey across North America.
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