It rained down teddy bears at the Enmax Centre last weekend, and members of the Lethbridge Hurricanes were able to hand out some of those plush toys to patients at the Chinook Regional Hospital.
This is the first time in a handful of years the Hurricane players have been able to hand out the toys in person. Child Life Specialist with Alberta Health Services Jodie Anderson-De Boer says offering the program to the children and youth in the Lethbridge area is extremely exciting, and having the Hurricanes is greatly appreciated. She says being able to hand out a plush comfort item to kids who come through the doors for either the day or who have to stay for numerous days can make the greatest of impacts.
“It helps our day go a lot smoother; we have children coming in for procedures and operations daily. We get to give the teddy bears to our outpatients, so they aren’t staying the night, but they receive a welcome teddy bear as well because it is just as important to their treatment and their care.”
“Our needs have increased because we are able to lease with other departments within the hospital and send teddy bears out to other units who may need them. So occasionally, we get the call from the ICU that there has been something traumatic and intense that has happened, and suddenly, we can send some teddy bears to the family. Also, the emergency room, we have been sending a lot more bears to other areas of the hospital this year.”
Hurricanes Assistant Captain Blake Swetlikoff was among the players who visited the local hospital and explains that participating in these community initiatives is a grounding and humbling experience.
“We are providing just a small part to provide them some happiness and joy, so I think we have to realize that and think about that every once and while too,” he says. “There are bigger things in life than just hockey; it is easy to get wrapped up in as players going to the rink every day, and you start to forget that, but once you see more of these real-life situations, it brings it to light.”
Hurricanes Captain Joe Arntsen echoed Swetlikoff’s statement, adding that during the Teddy Bear toss game, he made sure to take in the experience.
“It is always a lot of fun to go out and be part of the community; everyone is always so great to us, so to be able to give back and do this kind of stuff is awesome.”
During the Hurricanes Teddy Bear and Toque Toss fame, they collected 3,784 plush animals and 926 toques, which will be donated to 20 different charities around Lethbridge and southern Alberta.