Sorry to have been away for so long. I could go through a list of uninspired excuses, but I won't put you through that. I will simply say, life has been great lately, but extremely busy. And when I get busy, my mind doesn't work as creatively as I wish it would.
That being said, I wanted to highlight a topic that means a lot to me...The Bowling Green State University Falcons men's ice hockey team. For those that don't know, the Pittsburgh Penguins just won this year's Stanley Cup. The coach of the Penguins, who was brought up to the team with only 25 games left in the regular season, was Dan Bylsma. Dan is a friend of mine and a friend of my family's, so it was particularly enjoyable to watch him guide his team to victory. More relevant, Dan went to and graduated from BGSU, where he and his older brother both played hockey. Dan's success within hockey made me start thinking about some of my own successes in and around hockey. Further, it made me think about what impact I could have on the BGSU hockey team in helping it avoid being eliminated in the near future. After doing minimal research, I discovered that BGSU is offering a ticket package for out of state individuals. The ticket package is $120, and the tickets are distributed to under-privileged youth. This led me to the following list of thoughts:
Without Falcon hockey, chances are I wouldn’t have played hockey, and chances are then that my brother Brian wouldn’t have played hockey. Without Falcon hockey, my Dad probably wouldn’t have had the opportunity to be my coach or manager. Without Falcon hockey, I probably wouldn’t have gotten to see my brother win a State Title and play in three straight state title games. Without Falcon hockey my family wouldn’t still be able to laugh about countless private jokes that occurred while driving everywhere for games and practices. Without Falcon hockey I wouldn’t have gotten to see Niagara Falls or visited BGSU players' families in Canada. Without Falcon hockey our family wouldn’t have met and known nearly as many people in Bowling Green. Without Falcon hockey, my parents, brother and I wouldn’t have had a standing family date night on most Friday and Saturday nights around 7:30 during the fall and winter. Without Falcon hockey, I wouldn’t be able to say proudly that I attended a University that has won a Division I National Championship. Without Falcon hockey, we definitely would not be a hockey family who travelled all over this country and Canada together and separately.
To me, whether my small donation of $120 helps saves the program or not, it will at least give some under-privileged kids an opportunity to see a game or two. Who knows what that will mean for them or their future families? It certainly means and has meant a tremendous amount to me.
