Rockford IceHogs win AHL award for excellence in community service
By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — The Rockford IceHogs have been recognized by the American Hockey League for giving back to the community through grants, fundraisers and hands-on service work during the past year.
The Hogs were bestowed the Award of Excellence for Community Service for the AHL’s 17-team Western Conference last week at the AHL 2024 Awards Gala during the AHL’s board of governors’ annual meeting. The Eastern Conference award went to the Springfield Thunderbirds.
“As the 2024-25 hockey season approaches, the IceHogs organization looks forward to continuing to make a positive impact on the community through grants, sponsorships, partnerships, and service,” the Hogs said in an announcement.
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Last summer, the IceHogs Community Fund awarded $100,000 in grants, plus an additional $27,000 from the Chicago Blackhawks Foundation to nine local organizations.
The largest grant was for $34,000 to support the Junior StreetHogs, an outreach program that is designed to remove barriers that prevent children from learning the sport of hockey. The Rockford Park District estimates about 7,000 kids participated in street hockey on the new inflatable rink purchased with the grant money.
Grants from the Hogs also supported Think Big, Rockford Hockey Club, the VanVleet Family Foundation, Rock House Kids, the Oscar Mike Foundation, the Greg Lindmark Foundation, Rockford Razorbacks and Easterseals.
The Greg Lindmark Foundation and the autism support program at Easterseals were also beneficiaries of an IceHogs specialty jersey auction night last season. The Greg Lindmark Foundation received $8,600 from the auction last November, and Easterseals received $16,500 from the IceHogs’ annual Autism Awareness Night fundraiser.
The IceHogs Community Fund also supported multiple organizations with $25,000 in sponsorship, including the Rockford Boxing Classic, Kids Around the World 1 Million Meal Event, Stroll on State, Friday Night Flix, the Nikolas Ritschel Foundation, Anderson Gardens’ Spooktacular Haunts and the Family Peace Center’s annual gala.
The fund also provided $5,000 to help VetsRoll provide a once-in-a-lifetime trip to World War II veterans from northern Illinois to fly to Normandy, France, to visit historic D-Day locations.
The annual Teddy Bear Toss provided more than 5,100 stuffed animals to 20 nonprofit organizations.
The Hogs also partnered with state Rep. Maurice West to collect new or gently used clothing for the Share the Warmth clothing drive, and they worked with Life Decisions on a shoe drive.
Hammy made more than 100 public appearances at schools and special events, and IceHogs staff volunteered at multiple community projects such as building a playground in Rockton and packing meals for Kids Around the World and Northern Illinois Food Bank.
IceHogs players and staff also “adopted” two families in need and purchased Christmas gifts and groceries that were delivered on Christmas Eve.
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas
