IceHogs Community Fund Grants Make Huge Impact on Rockford Region

In the coming weeks, the Rockford IceHogs will announce the recipients of grants for the 2024-25 grant term from the IceHogs Community Fund supported by the Chicago Blackhawks Foundation. Before announcing this year’s recipients, and with the 2023-24 grant term recently ending, it’s the perfect time to reflect on the impact of last year’s grant awards.

Last summer, the IceHogs Community Fund with support from the Chicago Blackhawks Foundation, awarded $127,000 in grants to support nine Rockford area organizations and ten unique programs. The IceHogs Community Fund is happy to share the impact and outcomes of those grants (grant terms were July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024).

Rockford Park District Junior StreetHogs ($34,000 grant)

The largest grant award for last year’s grant cycle was a $34,000 grant to the Rockford Park District that included a $17,000 award from the IceHogs Community Fund and a $17,000 match from the Chicago Blackhawks Foundation to support the RPD's "Junior StreetHogs," an outreach program designed to eliminate barriers that often prevent children from learning to play the sport of ice hockey. The grant dollars funded the purchase of a 70-foot by 35-foot inflatable street hockey rink and covered the costs for staffing, equipment, and transportation of the rink to numerous events and locations in the greater Rockford region.

Over the last 12 months, the Rockford Park District estimates around 7,000 kids participated in street hockey in the inflatable rink, engaging with RPD instructors and coaches. The RPD outreach team targeted groups of individuals and community centers with youth who haven’t had much experience playing hockey.

“This grant from the IceHogs and Chicago Blackhawks allows the sport of hockey to be played outside without the ice, reducing barriers to entry and allowing hockey to be introduced without the frustration of learning how to skate,” said Lamont Jones, Rockford Park District General Manager, Youth Sports Programs & Community Outreach.

Think Big Corporation ($20,000 grant)

The 2023-24 grant year marked the third year of a partnership with Think Big Corporation with a $10,000 award from the IceHogs Community Fund and a $10,000 match from the Chicago Blackhawks Foundation. Key outcomes for Think Big during the grant period included graduating 201 students from the Think Big School of Business and seeing 96 businesses opened by Think Big clients.

Rockford Park District “Buddy Hockey” ($10,000 grant)

A second grant to the Rockford Park District in the amount of $10,000 was awarded to support the RPD’s Buddy Hockey program which is designed to introduce the sport of hockey to individuals with disability related needs. Over the last year, 26 participants, including children and adults, were introduced to a new sport that they may not have been able to try otherwise.

“Our Buddy Hockey program was run at the UW Health Sports Factory surrounded by other sports designed for typically developing athletes and we had many people stop by to watch the program and ask questions,” said Lamont Jones, Rockford Park District General Manager, Youth Sports Programs & Community Outreach. “The program allowed individuals with disabilities to show and demonstrate to others that they are capable of learning and playing new sports, and helped those with limited exposure to people with disabilities understand the capabilities, worth and value of individuals with disabilities.”

Rockford Hockey Club ($10,000 grant)

With this $10,000 grant, Rockford Hockey Club was able to reduce costs for players at the 8U level, allowing the Club to welcome 20 new players at the 8U level.

“Thanks to the IceHogs Community Fund, we reduced costs for the starting age group, which allowed us to shift other fundraising dollars with a focus of lowering costs across the board at all age levels,” said Jordan Tuminaro, President of Rockford Hockey Club. “This should help us grow our numbers, strengthen our club, and provide access to kids and families that might not otherwise be able to afford the sport.”

Oscar Mike Foundation ($10,000 grant)

The IceHogs Community Fund grant of $10,000 to Oscar Mike Foundation supported four injured veterans by covering costs for them to participate in activities that promoted physical fitness, camaraderie, and mental well-being. These experiences are crucial in aiding their rehabilitation and adaptation of living with an injury or illness.

The four veteran participants in Oscar Mike’s Illinois program thanks to the IceHogs Community Fund grant were Cynthea Rockwell (Air Force, spinal cord injury), Justin Hall (Army, spinal cord injury), Franz Joseph Pontian Wall (Army, spinal cord injury), and Claudia Mondragon (Army, traumatic brain injury). The four veterans participated in various activities, including off-roading, flight lessons, equine therapy, firearms and archery target shooting, and watersports.

“We are immensely grateful for the Rockford IceHogs' commitment to our cause and their partnership in making a positive impact on the lives of our participants,” said Karole Sellers, Chief of Staff, Oscar Mike Foundation. “We look forward to continuing to work together to empower veterans and promote their well-being through adaptive sports and recreational activities.”

VanVleet Family Foundation ($10,000 grant)

A $10,000 grant was awarded to the VanVleet Family Foundation to help provide no cost registration to 67 kids to participate in the Fred VanVleet Summer Basketball camp last summer at Auburn High School. The grant helped teach the kids basketball and team-building skills, helped the kids develop new friendships, and provided lunch for campers both days. The kids were able to engage with NBA Champion and NBA All-star Fred VanVleet along with other celebrities giving them up close personal time. This is imperative to teach kids anything is possible. The kids were provided a t-shirt, jersey, and a basketball to take home to practice the new skills they learned.

Rock House Kids ($10,000 grant)

With this $10,000 grant, Rock House Kids was able to purchase essential food items and packaging to serve children hot meals every evening and supplement with kid-friendly food bags sent home with the children.

"With the help of the IceHogs Community grant, we continued providing meals and kid-friendly food bags as we saw an increase in the number of children served each night," said Dee Lacny, Executive Director, Rock House Kids. "We served a record number of kids around Christmas time, and the IceHogs helped us to make that possible. We are deeply grateful for the IceHogs' support."

Rockford Razorbacks Lacrosse ($10,000 grant)

This grant allowed the Razorbacks to offer financial need-based scholarships to five families to play in the Razorbacks program this past year. Additionally, the Razorbacks were able to run free lacrosse clinics and launch a marketing campaign that helped the organization field its first ever first and second grade team.

“The goal of the Rockford Razorbacks has always been to spread the sport of lacrosse to as many young athletes as possible in the Rockford area," said Robert White, President, Rockford Razorbacks Lacrosse Club. "Thanks to the generous grant from the IceHogs Community Fund, we were able to offer that opportunity to a new group of athletes this year. It was really special to be able to remove the financial burden from a number of families and to see how excited these new players were to join our club.”

The Autism Program at Easterseals Serving Chicagoland and Greater Rockford ($6,500 grant)

This $6,500 grant allowed The Autism Program at Easterseals, a longtime partner of the IceHogs, to provide diagnostic services to five children in the greater Rockford region during the grant term. The five families were provided with an individualized report outlining their child’s needs and were connected to at least one community resource that will be beneficial for their child. All five assessments were completed, and the parent(s) or legal guardians received a comprehensive report including the child’s needs and community resources.

“We greatly appreciate the IceHogs’ ongoing support to our program and to children living with autism spectrum disorder,” said Lori Davie, Program Manager, The Autism Program at Easterseals. “We have enjoyed our partnership over the years and seeing how many lives have been impacted by the generosity of the IceHogs organization.”

Greg Lindmark Foundation ($6,500 grant)

As another longtime partner of the IceHogs, the Greg Lindmark Foundation put this $6,500 grant to work to continue its mission of providing confidential counseling and financial assistance to local first responders.

"First responders are increasingly using our services to help with their mental health," said Brad Lindmark, President, Greg Lindmark Foundation. "I have had several first responders give my wife or me hugs and tells us 'You have no idea how much your services mean to me and I wouldn't be here without them.' We are extremely grateful to the IceHogs for supporting our Foundation for so many years."

The IceHogs Community Fund will announce recipients for the 2024-25 grant cycle in the coming weeks with announcements throughout the summer.

About IceHogs Community Fund

The IceHogs Community Fund raises funds in three primary ways: specialty jersey auctions, including the annual Live Jersey Auction, and gameday activations, including 50/50 raffle ticket and Chuck-A-Puck sales at all IceHogs home games.

The IceHogs Community Fund, supported by the Chicago Blackhawks Foundation, is invested in making a positive social impact by supporting initiatives that will help make the Rockford region a better place to work, live, and play. Through partnerships with local organizations, the ICF is dedicated to growing the game of hockey by working to broaden exposure and reduce barriers to the sport.

Since the franchise’s inception in 1999, the charitable arm of the Rockford IceHogs has contributed over $1.6 million to support organizations and causes in the greater Rockford region.