This article won second place in the 2023 Michigan Interscholastic Press Association spring awards ceremony.
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), 264,000 women and 2,400 men are diagnosed with breast cancer each year. In order to raise awareness for those who are battling with breast cancer or who have lost their fight, the Wildcat hockey team held their annual Pink in the Rink tournament on January 30, February 3 and 4.
In addition to the normal admission tickets, players sold Pink in the Rink shirts at their schools. During the games, a team of volunteers held a silent auction and performed a variety of raffles to fundraise. Griff’s Ice House also hosted a free open skate after the game on Saturday.
All proceeds went to Beautiful You, a nonprofit beauty salon which is dedicated to making cancer patients feel more comfortable and confident in their body.
Beautiful You’s mission statement is to help women and girls undergoing cancer treatment look and feel beautiful, provide a community of support, share resource awareness and engage with their ongoing wellness.
The team’s first game on Friday night was against Kenowa Hills. The Wildcats started off the tournament strong by securing a ten to seven win. The second game on Saturday was against Kalamazoo, where the Wildcats won five to one. Both wins led to the team emerging as the overall champions of the tournament.
The games are about more than just playing hockey and raising funds. In addition to supporting the cause, players were given the opportunity to represent someone important to them or another community member who has been impacted by breast cancer.
Sophomore Caden Gleason was able to commemorate his grandfather, Robert Gleason, on the ice. Caden is playing on the team for the first time this year, meaning this was his first chance experiencing Pink in the Rink where put on quite a show. He had a total of four goals and one assist for the weekend. Gleason felt proud that he could help his team win such a meaningful tournament while honoring someone special to him.
“It’s more than just the game and it was nice having that extra motivation [to win for him],” Gleason said. “[But] it was sad, not going to lie, knowing the fight that he had.”
Head coach Travis Nichol thinks that being able to raise funds for such a remarkable cause is the pinnacle example for which Wildcat hockey stands.
“The organization, Beautiful You, spoke to us before the game and talked about their organization and what they do for women that are struggling,” Nichol said. “For us to get the community here and have people here to support that organization is really what sports are all about, being able to give back.”
Nichol thinks the games are especially sentimental because of the meaning behind them.
“When we play hockey, it’s usually just about hockey and getting better at your sport, but when it’s about something like this, it’s bigger than just playing a game,” Nichol said. “For our players to be able to play for somebody that has struggled and fought through cancer and then play in honor of them, it’s just an amazing thing [to experience].”
