Hockey Helps the Homeless today announced its 2023 hockey charity tournament season will begin tomorrow, Friday, October 27. The organization will grant over $2MN to 33 charities before the holiday season.
Leveraging Canada's affinity for hockey, the Pro-Am tournaments pair community participants with NHL players and Olympians like Wendel Clark, Doug Gilmour, Jayna Hefford, and Georges Laraque, to play in a friendly, but competitive game. The general community is invited to attend their regional event for free and/or donate.
Games will take place from October 27 to December 15 in eight Canadian cities. The second last tournament will be held in Vancouver on Friday, November 24, one month after the release of the city's 2023 Point-In-Time Survey, which reveals a 32% rise in homelessness. Vancouver has raised $4MN since 2009 and this year intends to grant the largest amount of funds totaling $650,000, followed by the York Region, which will grant $350,000.
Ewan French, Founding Chair Vancouver Committee, commented: "Homelessness in Canada is on an upward trajectory and continues to outpace the level of financial aid and charitable support and services organizations have available to give. The annual cost of homelessness to society is roughly $7BN per year. This means no matter the efforts of a single organization or group, ending homelessness requires a collective effort. Our model is to grant funds to several local charities, each year, in the city in which the funds are raised. Organizations supported include the Covenant House, Salvation Army, Urban Native Youth and many more. This model is mirrored across the country."
Andrew Gucciardi, Executive Director of Hockey Helps the Homeless, said: "Each year, Canada sees 235,000+ Canadians living on the streets with a critical number unaccounted for - the hidden homeless. Those who work with people facing homelessness are carrying growing emotional burdens as demand grows. Hockey Helps the Homeless provides a program that mobilizes people and raises awareness of homelessness across, and every dollar invested in Hockey Helps the Homeless equates to $4 to beneficiary partners across Canada."
2023 Charity Hockey Tournaments:
Calgary Tournament on October 27th at Winsport Arena
Waterloo Region Tournament on October 27th at Rim Park
Kingston Tournament on November 3rd at Invista Centre
Winnipeg Tournament on November 3rd at Sevan Oaks Arena
Halifax Tournament on November 10th at RBC Center
Vancouver Tournament on November 24th at UBC Thunderbird Arena
Durham Region Tournament on December 1st at Delpark Homes Centre
York Region Tournament on December 15th at Magna Centre
To learn more, donate or register for a tournament, visit: https://www.hockeyhelpsthehomeless.com/Tournaments.aspx
About Hockey Helps the HomelessSince 1996, Hockey Helps the Homeless Canada, a not-for-profit hockey charity with over 20,000 donors, 3,000 players, and 1,000 volunteers, has granted over $24 million to face-off against homelessness. Everyone from community participants to NHL players and Olympians participate annually, and "play with purpose to combat homelessness." 100% of net proceeds stay local in the city the tournament is in. We partnered with over 50+ local homeless support agencies across Canada. To learn more, visit: hockeyhelpsthehomeless.com
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