Beyond Sport to support NHL’s Hockey is For Everyone Program
October 31, 2022
Beyond Sport is pleased to lend our expertise in support of our partners at the NHL on their Hockey Is For Everyone™ (HIFE) program in the effort to address issues surrounding inequities in the nonprofit sector. Leveraging both the sport and the League's global influence, HIFE has been driving positive social change and fostering more inclusive communities since 1998.
Currently, the NHL provides support for 26 official HIFE grassroots hockey organizations in more than 40 locations across the US and Canada. The programs offer children of all backgrounds with opportunities to play hockey and hockey-affiliated programs, leveraging the sport to teach essential life skills and the core values of hockey: commitment, perseverance and teamwork. Since its inception, HIFE has provided opportunities for more than 130,000 students in communities that are largely underserved and marginalized.
“As we have evolved this coalition of grassroots hockey partners, it has become evident that these types of external advisory resources can unlock new ways of thinking and new growth opportunities for programs,” said John Sanful, Manager of the NHL Foundation. “When deep efforts are made at the local level, we take these learnings and parlay them into broader growth possibilities for the sport.”
Beyond Sport will deliver a series of virtual masterclass workshops that will provide capacity-building training to the HIFE network across four targeted areas. These include Fundraising, Governance, Leadership and Marketing & Outreach, which were chosen according to the needs identified by participating organizations. The sessions are taking place from October to November 2022.
“We are pleased to continue our long-standing partnership with the NHL by providing the community-based Hockey is For Everyone member organizations with additional tools and training to succeed in today’s philanthropic landscape,” said Fred Turner, Executive Director of Beyond Sport. “Together, we can contribute to creating more equitable communities and help ensure that they can provide their valuable services to their communities for years to come.
Each session will provide best practices and knowledge building skills to the coaches, leadership, volunteers and providers that run or will run HIFE programs in their local communities to help scale organizational impact, while maximizing efficiency, integrity and opportunities for success.
Beyond Sport believes that initiatives like this can further assist the sport for social change sector in closing gaps by providing smaller non-profits with training and information to help ensure stability and the ability to compete for funding with established organizations.
The NHL is a Founding Supporter of Beyond Sport.