Coach4Food Founder Tom Hedican addresses the media at Memorial Gardens on Friday afternoon. PHOTO BY CHRIS DAWSON.
The Ontario Hockey League today announced the launch of a league-wide initiative called ‘Project Shutout Hunger’ in partnership with Coach4Food, the Ontario Association of Food Banks, the Gift of Giving Back, and the Ontario Trillium Foundation.
The details of the new program were announced at a media conference in North Bay hosted by the OHL’s Battalion which included Coach4Food founder Tom Hedican, North Bay's Mayor Al McDonald, Police Chief Paul Cook and OHL Director of Marketing and Business Development Kevin Boston.
The goal of ‘Project Shutout Hunger’ is to eradicate hunger in communities across the OHL. Starting in October, all 20 OHL member teams will embark on this eight-week program with teams serving as the hub for local minor hockey organizations and community groups conducting a massive food drive.
“Project Shutout Hunger is not only about helping feed families, it’s about teaching the values of giving back to your community and being a leader,” stated OHL Commissioner David Branch in a press release.
“No person should go hungry and we are excited that the hockey community has embraced this project.”
Over 272,000 people including 100,000 children in each OHL market are users of their local food bank. The goal of the ‘Project Shutout Hunger’ campaign is to collect over 200,000 pounds of food to give back to local families.
“The Coach4Food Program is thrilled to partner with a league as professional and community-minded as the Ontario Hockey League,” says Founder Tom Hedican, who originally teamed up with the Battalion for Coach4Food 3 years ago when the team was still in Brampton.
“I believe through this partnership, we will have a major impact on hunger in Ontario and educating young hockey players about a crucial issue.”
The OHL is set to launch its new 2-month campaign starting on October 1st, 2014. Like last year in North Bay, the minor hockey teams that collect the most donations will be recognized at an upcoming OHL game in each market and earn a practice with the local OHL team.
Hedican is very proud to see the growth of the grass roots program, and credits the Battalion with helping him get to this position with the program.
"I think its the relationship and the leadership from people like Mike Griffin, Scott Abbott and Phil Ercolani that hockey is about being part of the community and the food banks are part of our community and we have to do something to give back," said Hedican.
While this is a huge boost for the program, Hedican says he's never going to stop trying to build to the Coach4Food program.
"Our next goal would be to have the QMJHL, the Western League and I don’t see why it couldn’t go to the NHL," added Hedican.
The Battalion is glad to know they were the first team to help launch the program.
"What’s more basic and fundamental than putting food on people's plates and I think that’s what comes down to it, that’s why it’s so important because you are making sure people don’t go home hungry," said Battalion Director of Marketing Phil Ercolani.
Coach4Food History
In the fall of 2005 a professional hockey coach Tom Hedican, volunteered to help raise donations for the local food bank in North Bay. In the first year, they raised 1,000 pounds of food; last season, that number increased to 100,000 pounds in North Bay! Since 2005, the program successfully expanded to Guelph, St. Catharines/Niagara Falls, and Caledon-Dufferin and has raised over 600,000 pounds of food for those communities.
Here's a link to the first Coach4Food story done in December of 2005.
http://www.baytoday.ca/content/sports/details.asp?c=10986
