Bantam B ICE Team donates $1,000 to Shoot for the Star

Submitted by EKFH on 08-01-2010

Cranbrook, BC  They may call it Minor Hockey but there is nothing minor about what the Cranbrook Bantam B ICE Hockey team has done in support of the Matt Fraser & Denny’s Shoot for the Star fundraiser.

In November of last year, East Kootenay Foundation for Health launched its 2nd annual Starlite Campaign for Excellence in Health Care with the hopes of raising $85,000 for health care throughout the East Kootenay.  Part of EKFH’s initiatives includes the Shoot for the Star fundraiser.  After seeing health care challenges in his own and billet family, Matt contacted EFKH to see what he could do to raise money for the regional hospital.  What started out as a goal of $5,000 to light one star atop the regional hospital continues to gain momentum of support from all areas of our community.

The most recent story is one that will touch the hearts of many.  Cooper Holick (son of ICE Coach Mark and his wife Janet) overheard his dad and mom talking about how they planned to get behind Matt’s project.   Upon hearing the suggested donation, Cooper responded with “that’s not enough and I wanna do something“.   So after a quick brainstorming session, Cooper decided that he was going to collect $1,000 worth of bottles.   With the idea born, Cooper quickly then emailed his Bantam B teammates with the zest of a seasoned marketer by saying “Let’s help a fellow hockey player reach his goal” and garnered great interest in the bottle drive.

Having the team in place Cooper started asking friends, family and neighbours to keep all their bottles for their team which resulted in the creation of the Holik’s Shoot for the Star Bottle Depot in the family’s garage.   With the help of Dad, Mom and his sister by the end of December they had collected and sorted over $300 in bottles.

With the $1,000 goal in sight, the Bantam B ICE Team set out on January 2 to collect more bottles.  In just a few hours the team had collected the additional $700.  The amazing part of the story is that not only were these youngsters and parents out pounding the street for bottles, Matt Fraser, Steele Boomer and Kevin King joined in to help the boys prior to heading off to their own practice with Coach Holik. 

Janet Holik shares, “I can honestly say I was totally overwhelmed at how many parents and kids worked so hard sorting and collecting that mess of bottles. It is unbelievable to see people give up the last Saturday of the winter break when they could be out skiing, skating, or cleaning up after Christmas, but no, they were all knee deep in bottles.”

During the ride home from the bottle depot, Cooper yawned and shared how tired he was, but followed that by saying “It was so worth it“.  When we hear complaints about today’s youth, here yet is another example of a group of teenage boys that rallied together for a cause that makes a difference to not only help Matt Fraser but help people in our community.   Cooper and his team mates are also sending out a challenge to other minor hockey teams and to the public at large to get behind their friend Matt.

EKFH wishes to recognize these stars of the Bantam B ICE team including their parents, friends and family that donated and helped along the way:  Cooper Holik, Taylor Brown, Jared DuToit, Russell DuToit, Braden Hall, Andrew Lafreneire, Devon Marra, Justin Miller, Teagan Nelson, Wyatt Park, Brady Reevie, Brett Soles and Matt Sopkow.

 

The Bantam B ICE Team donation of $1,000 will be given to Matt Fraser after the first period of this Saturday night’s ICE game.  This generous gift brings the Matt Fraser & Denny’s Shoot for the Star total to $11,611.97 and the overall Starlite Campaign to $58,010.77.

EKFH still needs your help to reach its goal of $85,000.  To make a donation visit www.ekfh.ca, mail to EKFH, 13 24th Ave N, Cranbrook, BC V1C 3H9 or visit us at the regional hospital.

 

Cooper Holik (front) leads Matt Fraser to the truck to drop off bottles which helped the Bantam B ICE team raise $1,000 for the Shoot for the Star fundraiser. 

 

Matt Fraser, Steele Boomer and Kevin King join players from the Bantam B ICE team in picking up bottles in support of the Matt Fraser & Denny’s Shoot for the Star fundraiser.