Glace Bay hockey team reaches finals of national 'good deeds' competition
by Joan Weeks | CBC News | Posted: March 21, 2017 9:37 PM | Last Updated: March 21, 2017
The Glace Bay Pee Wee A Miners spread some Valentine's Day cheer at a local seniors' home
A video of a Valentine's Day visit to a seniors' home by the Glace Bay Pee Wee A Miners hockey team has earned the team $2,000 and a chance to compete for the Chevrolet Good Deeds Cup — with a top prize of $15,000.
The team visited 67 residents of the Taigh Na Mara continuing care home in Glace Bay to pass out cupcakes, cookies plants and a little good cheer.
"I learned that a good deed can go a very long way," said player Carter MacNeil.
'It was awesome'
"It was awesome," said team coach Kenzie Wadden. "We were up there for almost two hours visiting. We were in the community room just having stories with them and talking with them and going around room to room for the residents that couldn't move.
"I think you could see it in our video, how happy our boys made the seniors feel and how happy even the seniors made our boys feel."
Wadden said the team has won two hockey tournaments this year but never received as much feedback as it has from the visit to Taigh Na Mara.
He said it's something his players won't soon forget.
"I think they are definitely going to look back on this for the rest of their lives," he said. "Even when they get older and they have children, how important it is to give back to your community and to volunteer."
'Felt like joy'
Team captain, 12-year-old Brady Doucette, said he has never volunteered before but it's something he plans to do again.
"I didn't think it was going to be that fun but when they were all nice and it put a smile on their face, I felt like joy," he said.
"It felt really important. They don't really get a lot of visitors so it just put a smile on their face."
"It felt really important. They don't really get a lot of visitors so it just put a smile on their face."
The team has chosen the Alzheimer Society of Nova Scotia to receive $5,000 if it wins. The other $10,000 will go to the team.
Online voting for the winning team starts Wednesday and will remain open for a week. The winner will be announced on April 9.