by Dustin Ehr
They say it takes a community to raise a child. On August 22, KidSport Manitoba was honored to be introduced to a community that helped raise Keegan Kolesar, a Stanley Cup Champion.
Introductions
Corrinne Kolesar reached out to us to learn about KidSport. Her motivation was simple. Keegan, her son, was about to have his day with the Stanley Cup, and she really wanted to utilize this moment to help kids in Manitoba follow their dreams to play hockey.
In fact, her only stipulation was that any money that was raised had to go toward helping kids in Manitoba who play hockey. This is something we are more than happy to accomodate.
Corrinne and I discussed creating a small raffle that would allow people the opportunity to win autographed merchandise. We connected with Royal Sports, who were kind enough to donate a hat for Keegan to sign.
Truly, this is only where the generosity began.
The Cup Overfloweth
The morning of the Cup celebration, we joined Correnne and many others from Keegan’s childhood at the Red River Community Centre in Winnipeg. Immediately, we felt the happiness and joy radiating from everyone who was there for Keegan.
It was there we found out Corrinne had a lot more planned to help raise money for KidSport. There were printed pictures of Keegan that people could purchase to get autographed. We sold tickets to folks they could turn in for autographs. Corrinne had cookies made from Nat’s Cookie Jar & More, which were all sold to raise money. Lastly, the Sargent’s, one of Keegan’s childhood friends, donated a jersey that Keegan autographed and added to the raffle.
Then there was Keegan, donating three hours of his time with the Cup to celebrate with the community! The whole time he was smiling, interacting with all of the fans, and taking countless pictures. His appreciation and dedication to this community was very clear to see on his face.
Making It All Possible
The Kolesar’s and their community, in three hours, helped us to raise just under $4000.00. It is efforts like this that allow us to support hockey families all throughout Manitoba. It is why when 121 kids need our support to play hockey, like this year, we can say yes.
Thank you to Corrinne, Keegan, and their friends at the Red River Community Centre for helping us ensure every child has a chance to play!
We would like to wish Keegan all the best in the 2023/24 season in his pursuit to become a two-time Stanley Cup Champion!
