Blessings to you all; the HMI Pacific team!
Welcome to the end of summer! Does that sound like a bit of a ‘downer’ to you, or are you excited for what the Fall will bring? (Probably a bit of both I would assume…) Now, one might assume that Hockey Ministries takes a break in July and August, but nope, that would be wrong! There really is no break at all, because the ministry is really not about winter, skates, ice, sticks and pucks, but about relationships with people. Therefore, Hockey Ministries is a 365 day per year ministry.
At the beginning of July I was involved in the Westside Daze Parade with the West Kelowna Warriors. As a team chaplain, I try to make myself as visible as possible all through out the year, and the parade is certainly one way. Throughout July, I was able to connect with a number of players who spend time in the beautiful Okanagan Valley. This summer I have had good chats with NHLers like Colorado Avalanche executive, former All Star and Hall of Famer Joe Sakic, former West Kelowna Warrior and 2 time defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguin Justin Schultz and Florida Panther goaltender James Reimer.
HMI SUMMER CAMP UPDATE: This year Hockey Ministries ran 33 summer camps; 12 in Canada, 16 in the USA and 5 in Europe. Throughout the summer, out of 2,200+ total campers, 600 campers prayed to receive Christ! I am grateful that the Lord is so very faithful! In our Chilliwack camp, (which was our first year) 16 campers prayed to give their hearts to Christ. As you will see in some of the pictures, the entire camp was very successful. Praise God, we had a week that was really above and beyond what we could have imagined. I am very thankful to the Lord for our Camp Director, Larry Wendel and his wife Min, and a multitude of volunteers who worked so very hard. We were honoured to have Carl Benoit, Nat Halbert, Josh Tjordman, Robert Rawlins and Greg Egan come as on-ice instructors. The venue for the camp was the Pacific Regional Training Centre (RCMP training centre), which was fabulous. I have never had such excellent food at any camp in my entire life! Sadly on a difficult note, we had to cancel the Williams Lake camp this year (which would have been our 8th year) because of the BC wildfires that caused the evacuation of Williams Lake and much of the Cariboo region of BC.
In early August a couple of good hockey friends Kolby Barnstable and Jayson Zilke, put together a wonderful luncheon at a local restaurant, and invited a dozen guys to listen to the HMI story. I am grateful to the Lord for Kolby and Jayson, and we will wait to see what comes out of that luncheon.
A huge part of my summer has been officiating at weddings. I was honoured to officiate at 10 weddings this summer, all in the ‘Okanagan Way’; held outside in parks, outdoor wedding chapels, patios and at wineries. Eight of the weddings were hockey related: either former players and or staff, season ticket holders, family members, etc. I find that with the serious talks involved in the marriage process that the gospel opportunity is absolutely amazing.
COMING UP:
COMING UP: On Sept. 20-21, I will be in Chilliwack at the BC Hockey League Fall Showcase, where all the teams in the league gather to play 2 games each over a 5 day period. It is primarily designed for NCAA University and College scouts to come to one place to get a good look at potential players for their schools. I will be there to chat with as many hockey people as possible, so please pray about that. I will also connect with local chaplains in the area.
On Sept. 22-28 I will attend the Hockey Ministries International Annual Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina. We haven’t met as an entire ministry since 2013, so I am really looking forward to seeing the HMI staff and missions family. Please be praying as we strategize and plan for the future.
God bless you team, I am so very grateful that you are partnering with me in this ministry.
Prayer Points:
- HMI chapel programs in BC
- Summer Camp respondents
- Chaplains across BC
- BCHL Showcase in Chilliwack
- HMI Staff Conference in Charlotte, NC
- Ongoing support of the ministryAll for Jesus,
Don Richmond
Hockey Ministries International
Pacific Region