AGM Recap - Rob Virgil Acclaimed President 

Hockey Alberta’s 2011 Annual General Meeting (AGM) weekend, which was attended by over 250 delegates from across the province, concluded Sunday in Red Deer.

Hockey Alberta’s 2011 AGM brought together the governing body’s board of directors, officers, life members, and partner organizations, as well as from councils that oversee female hockey, junior hockey, minor hockey, senior hockey and hockey development.

Highlights from Hockey Alberta’s AGM include:
-    Completion of the Respect in Sport program for parents, coaches and officials will become mandatory starting in the 2012-13 season.
-    An initiative to restructure Hockey Alberta’s governance model will begin immediately
-    Spruce Grove will host the 2012 Western Canada Bantam Championship
-    Every Kid Every Community recipients announced – Calgary Boys and Girls Club ($5,000), Hanna MHA ($5,000), Bow Island MHA ($4,000), Lamont MHA ($3,000), Lethbridge MHA ($3,000)
-    Data collected from the Heads Up: Concussion Summit will be compiled and sent to the membership for review

Presidents Award Winner – Bob Olynyk (Edmonton, Alta), President, Alberta Midget Hockey League

Hockey Alberta Board of Directors for 2011-12

President: Rob Virgil, Edmonton - Acclaimed
VP Development: Wayne Curry, Grande Prairie -Acclaimed
VP Operations: Fran Zinger, Sherwood Park - Acclaimed
Past President: Annie Orton, Blairmore - Acclaimed
Chief Financial Officer: Len Samletzki, Edmonton
Zone 1 Director: Craig Reid, Lacrete
Zone 2 Director: Randy Hupka, Boyle
Zone 3 Director: Karen Hoflin – Elected
Zone 4 Director: Graham Parsons, Sylvan Lake
Zone 5 Director: Cheryl Gudmundson, Lethbridge
Zone 6 Director: George Kallay, Drumheller
Zone 7 Director: Robert Friesen, Ardrossan – Acclaimed
Zone 8 Director: Lorne McDonald, Edmonton
Zone 8 Director: Paul Schmidt, Edmonton
Zone 9 Director: David Sevalrud, Calgary
Zone 9 Director Perry Cavanagh, Calgary – Acclaimed

Junior A Director: Greg Wood, Camrose - Appointed
Senior Council Director: Kim Marsh, Red Deer – Acclaimed
Female Council Director: Laury Schmidt, High River – Acclaimed
Minor Council Director: Fred Horbay, Blairmore - Acclaimed
Junior Council Director: Terry Engen, Eckville – Acclaimed
Referee Council Director: Curtis Nichols, Sylvan Lake - Acclaimed
WHL Representitive: Brian McNaughton, Lethbridge – Appointed

Minor Female Rep (North) – Diane Blanchette, Falher - Appointed
Minor Female Rep (South) – Greg Nesom, High Prairie – Acclaimed
Female South Rep – Lil Fulton, Calgary – Acclaimed
Female North Rep – Chuk Wasylynchuk, Edmonton - Acclaimed

On Saturday, the Hockey Alberta Foundation hosted the Hockey Alberta Awards Gala. Over 650 people attended and over $30,000 was generated supporting the Hockey Alberta Foundation. The following people and organizations were presented with a Hockey Alberta Award for 2010-11:

Hockey Alberta announced Monday five Alberta communities selected to receive funding through its Every Kid Every Community Project to get more children involved in hockey. A total of $20,000 is getting awarded through this year’s funding.

“Our goal is to empower and challenge communities across the province to identify their local needs and come up with a creative way to engage their youth in hockey,” said Scott Robinson, executive director, Hockey Alberta Foundation. “This is our second round of funding since the program’s inception. Last year, the success of this program gave over 350 kids the chance to experience hockey and these projects will continue growing that number.”

Boys and Girls Club of Calgary - $5000- The Boys and Girls Club of Calgary has created a ball hockey program for their club kids to introduce them to the game. Many of them have never stepped on the ice before and are using this as introductory program. Their goal is to have this grow into an ice hockey program in future years.

Hanna MHA - $5000 - Hanna Minor Hockey Association is launching a “Let’s Skate” program which will focus on skating skills and introductory hockey skills. This program will target kids in grades one to six and will be promoted in the local schools.

Bow Island MHA - $4000- Bow Island Minor Hockey Association will be holding a four day “Hockey Fun Dayz” program in October, 2011. It will target kids ages five – twelve who are not currently playing hockey. 

Lamont MHA - $3000- Lamont Minor Hockey Association will be holding a Sunday Shinny program between October 2011 – March 2012 to introduce new kids to hockey. They have teamed up with their local Canskate program and have reached out to the town’s hockey players to act as mentors to the new kids stepping on the ice.

Lethbridge MHA - $3000 - This fall, Lethbridge Minor Hockey Association will be running an “Intro to Hockey” program for kids ages three – ten. They will partner with the Boys and Girls Club, Elementary Schools, the Lethbridge Sport Council and Lethbridge Hurricanes to recruit kids for this program.

Applications for Every Kid Every Community funding were accepted from March 1-May 15, 2011.

The Every Kid Every Community Project was created as a funding based program through Hockey Alberta as a way of getting more kids active in hockey. The percentage of Alberta’s population ages 5-19 that are registered in hockey is 9.6%. This is the third lowest percentage per capita in Canada. Hockey is a great way for kids to be active, healthy, and be surrounded by positive leaders in their community. Hockey Alberta recognizes that the existing minor hockey system doesn’t accommodate the needs of all communities and this program offers an opportunity for groups to create innovative ways to get more kids involved.

Funds for Hockey Alberta’s Every Kid Every Community Project have been made available through the Hockey Alberta Foundation’s fundraising efforts, Government of Alberta’s Community Spirit Program Grant, and generous contributions from ATB Investor Services and Penn West Energy.

Hockey Alberta announced on Thursday that the Senior AAA Bentley Generals of the Chinook Hockey League will host the 2013 Allan Cup, the national senior AAA men’s championship.

“We had three great bids from Alberta for this event (Bentley, Sylvan Lake and Stony Plain). It was definitely a tough decision and there are no losers here,” said Hockey Alberta’s Senior Council Chairman, Kim Marsh. “This event is a great opportunity to raise the profile of senior hockey in Alberta and we are very excited to bring this event to our province. We know Bentley will do a first class job and we’re looking forward to 2013.”

“On behalf of our Allan Cup 2013 bid committee and the Bentley Generals Senior Hockey Club we are extremely excited to have the opportunity to showcase the best in senior hockey to our fans, sponsors and Central Alberta,” said Host Committee Chairman, Dave Mousseau. “Bentley has represented Alberta at multiple Allan Cups and we now feel this is a natural progression to host this Championship.  We look forward to putting on a top notch tournament that will prove why Central Alberta is the heartland of Hockey.” 

The exact dates for the 2013 Allan Cup have not yet been determined but the event is expected to take place in the later part of April, 2013.

The Bentley Generals have competed at the previous five Allan Cup Championships, capturing the cup in 2009 and finishing in 2nd place in 2011, 2010, and 2008.

The Allan Cup was last hosted in Alberta by the Stony Plain Eagles in 2007.