A hockey game to help sick kids raised a record amount at the Langley Sportsplex on Saturday, Oct. 29, with the West Cast Walleye match against the Icebreakers generating $650 for the BC Children’s Hospital Foundation.
Walleye goaltender B.J. Ayles called it “a record for a single game amount, but it also sets a new record for us to aim for the next game.”
And the Walleye won, too, 10-7.
Ayles and the team have been holding charity matches to raise funds for the foundation since 2017.
They have also been a part of games raising funds for the BC Deaf Sports Federation, Canucks For Kids Fund and the Humboldt Broncos fund.
Referees are notrequired.
“Yeah, it’s usually just pretty good-natured competition,” Ayles told the Langley Advance Times.
Players and sponsors contributed to the donation, with a raffle of prizes from Cariboo Brewing, Cactus Club Cafe, Personas Restaurant Patio and Lounge, and the Abbotsford Canucks.
“It was a super fun day for players, families, volunteers and fans,” Ayles said.
Ayles gave a shout out to Tracy Pope from the Langley Sportsplex “who donated the ice to us, which was a huge help to make the day a success.”
It was the first post-pandemic outing for the team.
“We did have a break during COVID until it was safe for players and spectators to return, but [it] also gave us time to plan for a better return, making a more fun atmosphere for every and anyone to come,” Ayles remarked.
On the foundation website, the Walleye describe themselves as “an independent hockey club comprised of hockey players from around the lower mainland, who are passionate about playing hockey and helping the British Columbia Children’s Hospital Foundation.
Our goal is to raise as much money as possible this year, and beat it next, over and over again.”
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Since 1982, the BC Children’s Hospital Foundation has worked with children, families, businesses and hundreds of thousands of British Columbians to raise funds for BC Children’s Hospital, Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children and the BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute.
BC Children’s Hospital is the only full-service, pediatric acute care hospital, serving children living in BC and the Yukon.
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