2ND ANNUAL EVENT
Saturday May 3/2008

I would like to personally thank EVERYONE who supported the fundrasier last night. Special thanks to all those volunteers who helped out in different areas. Without your assistance we couldn't have pulled off such a successful night  The night was absolutely a total success and everyone kept telling me what an excellent time they had!  Let's all look forward to next year's fundraiser and don't forget tell all your friends who didn't come, the great time they missed??? 
Al & Judy Lord

Kevin Lord Memorial Fundraiser planned

By Wendy Soloduik

The second annual Kevin Lord Memorial Fundraiser has been planned for Saturday, May 3. The event will be held at the new Recreational Facility in Alliston.

Kevin Lord was a well-known ice hockey and ball hockey player in the community. He passed away April 29, 2006, just 13-days after his 20th birthday, after a yearlong battle with brain cancer.

Since his passing, Lord¹s #16 Newmarket Hurricanes JR A ice hockey sweater has been retired, as well as his #86 Team Canada World Junior ball hockey sweater.

Lord was the first player from the BBHL to be scouted by a team from Toronto and play in the 2002 Canadian National Ball hockey Championships, held in Newfoundland, where he won a gold medal at 16-years of age. He was the youngest player on the team.

Lord went on to win two silver, and one bronze medal at subsequent National Championships, as well as a bronze medal for representing Canada at the 2004 World Championships. Lord would have been captain of the Canada World Jr.

team that competed in Italy in June 2006. (Visit the Beeton Ball Hockey League website at www.bbhl.ca to view the tribute to Kevin Lord.) In memory of Kevin, the Lord family will be hosting a fundraiser in support of minor players of the BBHL. This includes five young players ­ Matthew Carlucci, Christopher Brown, Randy Cox, Cody Rhodes, and Zenon Byblow, who will represent Canada in the inaugural U16 and U18 World Championship Tournament (WCT¹s) to be held in Slovakia this June. As well as Thomas Kokelj, who will play for Canada at the U20 World Junior Championships, to be held, this year, in Newfoundland.

The idea to hold a fundraiser benefitting the minor players of the BBHL originated when Lord, and another young ball hockey player Robert Crumbie, (also from the BBHL) went to Slovakia in 2004. At that time, a fundraiser was held to help cover travel expenses, which can be overwhelming. Based on the success of that event, the BBHL had hopes to make the fundraiser an annual event, to establish a travel fund for minor players faced with similar challenges/opportunities. However, the annual fundraiser did not become a reality, when factors, including Kevin¹s illness, became a priority.

³Our family is very excited and proud in deciding to support the BBHL minor players. It was our original wish to establish an annual event in Kevin¹s memory and what better than ball hockey, a sport that he loved so much and the BBHL to support,² said Al Lord, Kevin¹s father. ³The BBHL was definitely a huge part of Kevin¹s life, along with ice hockey. The BBHL provided him the support and opportunity to be able to experience top caliber competition at the same time enabling him to travel and see different cities and countries. Assisting the up-and-coming minor players in their chance to experience what could be a thrill of a lifetime as did Kevin, will be very gratifying and we know Kevin would be very proud and honored also.² Last year, the inaugural Kevin Lord Memorial Fundraiser was held in the Beeton arena. About 800 people attended, with ticket sales exceeding 1,000.

Proceeds from the first event were donated to the building fund for the new Cancer Care Centre at the Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH) in Barrie ­ the hospital that treated Lord just before he passed away.

The event raised $21,000, and total donations to the RVH in Kevin¹s name are now around $30,000. The official groundbreaking of the Cancer Centre is scheduled to begin this spring. Federal and Provincial funding, in combination with community fundraising efforts, such as the Kevin Lord Memorial Fundraiser, are to thank.

The fundraiser itself (May 3) is timed to coincide with the anniversary of Kevin¹s passing (April 29, 2006), but is also a celebration of his life.

Although the first event was a tremendous success, the Lord family is hopeful that this fundraiser will generate an even greater response from the community. Their goal is to raise enough money to send the six players representing Canada in June to their respective events.

³We have new ideas of making the fundraiser better, even though I¹ve heard that everyone enjoyed themselves last year,² said Al Lord. ³This year, with all the planned volunteers for help, I hope that I can actually relax and enjoy spending time with the people who have come out in support of this event and our family.² The event is planned to include a live band and disc jockey providing the music for listening and dancing, a buffet meal, a silent auction, and even live exotic animals for viewing and more.

For more information on the Kevin Lord Memorial Fundraiser, please look for updates in The Times or by visiting www.bbhl.ca.

Tickets for the event will be made available at various locations throughout New Tecumseth and will go on sale soon.