Outside Coverage

List of websites/blogs that have supported & posted something regarding "The Hockey Volunteer" project (earliest post first, please scroll down):

Chris Lucas of LucasonSports.com - "Have Skates Will Travel"

• http://www.lucasonsports.com/2008/12/09/have-skates-will-travel/

Sarah Elizabeth Foster of SarahElizabethFoster.com - "Adam Sherlip"

• http://www.sarahelizabethfoster.com/blog/2008/12/11/adam-sherlip.html

Michele Catalano of ABigVictory.blogspot.com - "Hockey and Hope "

• http://abigvictory.blogspot.com/2008/12/hockey-and-hope.html

Russell Scibetti of TheBusinessofSports.com - "The Culture of Sports: Start Them Young"

• http://www.thebusinessofsports.com/?p=534

Paul Kukla & Alanah McGinley of KuklasKorner.com - "Making the World Better Through Hockey"

• http://www.kuklaskorner.com/index.php/hockey/comments/making_the_world_better_through_hockey

Joe Flasher of JoeFlasher.com - "Using Hockey as an Instrument For Change"

• http://joeflasher.com/wordpress/?p=545

Heather B. of TopShelfCookies.blogspot.com - "And Now For Something Completely Different..."

• http://topshelfcookies.blogspot.com/2008/12/and-now-for-something-completely_17.html
  

PJ Swenson of Sharkspage.com - "Hockey Notes - December 18" - scroll down in the article

• http://www.sharkspage.com/2008_12_01_archive.html#2067459461293764170

Kyle Kosior of IllegalCurve.com - "Afternoon Delight Thirstday"

• http://www.illegalcurve.com/2008/12/18/afternoon-delight-thirstday/
  

Tyler McKinna of NHLDigest.com - "Hockey Volunteer Warming Hearts Around the World"

• http://www.nhldigest.com/hockey-volunteerism-warms-the-heart/
  

Damon Donovan of HockeyHeaven.blogspot.com - "Hockey for the Holidays"

• http://nhlhockeyheaven.blogspot.com/2008/12/hockey-for-holidays.html
  

Dee Karl of 7thWoman.blogspot.com - "The Brotherhood of Hockey - Perfect for Christmas"/"The International Brotherhood of Hockey"

• http://7thwoman.blogspot.com/2008/12/brotherhood-of-hockey-perfect-for.html
  
• http://bleacherreport.com/articles/96847-the-international-brotherhood-of-hockey
  
• http://fans.nhl.com/members/seventh_woman/blogs/26032
  

Richard Pollock of IllegalCurve.com - "Some Saturday Reading"

• http://www.illegalcurve.com/2008/12/27/some-saturday-reading/

Rory & Eric of 5-hole.com - "One Puck at a Time"

• http://5hole.wordpress.com/2008/12/30/one-puck-at-a-time/
  

Kat of SportsGirlKat.com - "Five Questions With...The Hockey Volunteer"

• http://www.sportsgirlkat.com/?p=541
  

Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo! Sports Puck Daddy Blog - "Puck Headlines: Attempting to Rain on the Blackhawks Love-Fest"

• http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/Puck-Headlines-Attempting-to-rain-on-the-Blackh?urn=nhl,131632
  

The success of this program is contingent upon the support of warm-hearted, idealistic people & everyone listed above fits that description! Please return the favor and visit their websites and see what they are up to and writing about!

If you have a website and have written about this program, please tell me & I'll link back (plus I want to thank you for your support)! If you would like to write something on your website, please contact me as well, as I'm more than happy and available to contribute to your blog.

Special thanks to Russel Scibetti (@rscibetti) of The Business of Sports, Paul Kukla & Alanah McGinley (@alanah1) of Kukla's Korner, and Tyler McKinna (@nhldigest) for allowing me to be a guest blogger on their sites, and to Sarah Elizabeth Foster of SarahElizabethFoster.com for conducting the video interview.

Donations & Sponsorship

DONATIONS

I received an email today from SECMOL, requesting hockey sticks (mostly lefty, some righty), skates (men's 6-9), and protective equipment. If you have extra equipment you are able to donate, please contact me immediately.

That being said, the more money raised for this trip, the more money I will be able to use to purchase the equipment requested from local stores & pro-shops. There are a handful of places I can pick up equipment that meets the needs of the village.

SPONSORSHIP OPTIONS

The value in sponsorship in sports has been debated at times, but I am in full belief that a sponsorship done right is valuable for all parties, the sponsor, the sponsored, and the consumer. This is no exception. The consumers are not only the villagers in Ladakh, Kahmir, who will see that citizens and businesses all over the world care about their welfare, but to the people that see this website, articles that will be posted in newspapers, magazines and television programs, the book I am writing about this initiative, and in the collateral presented to major corporations, NGOs, and governmental bodies when I return and apply for grants.

Available sponsorship packages include:

• Track suit: logo branding/co-branding available for on-ice outfit - $1,000/suit - 3 available
• Hat: co-branded hat(s) worn on AND off the ice as it's very convenient - $500/hat - 2 available
• Clothing: I have to wear something, so a few shirts with your logo on it will be worn often - $500/shirt - 5 available
• Village Hockey Equipment: Equipment companies can donate the equipment as specified above, but please contact me first to arrange details
• Volunteer Hockey Equipment: If your company wants to outfit me in your equipment, I will only be bringing 2 sticks, hockey gloves, and hockey skates (I own a brand new pair of Eastons & a beat-up pair of CCM Pro Tacks - I haven't decided which I'm brining, but I would prefer to bring my own skates). That leaves gloves and sticks, as well as a hockey bag and the smaller accessories, like tap, wax, Sweet Stick and/or SkateMate, Blade Tape, etc.). Please contact me first to arrange details.
• Sports Memorabilia: This is actually a very helpful donation if done quickly. Any memorabilia donated will be auctioned off towards the program. Auctions take time, and there are fees involved, so larger ticket items that can be shipped quickly are most helpful.
• Website Sponsor: The face of this project (other than my face), is this website. Sponsoring my page will give you prominant placement and link-backs. - $5,000
• Full-shabang (for equipment companies): If your company wants to be THE sponsor of The Hockey Volunteer, it will include 3 Branded Track Suits, 2 Branded Hats, 5 Branded Shirts, 1 pair of Hockey Gloves, 1 Bundle of Sticks, 1 Hockey Bag, Website/print-collateral, 20 sticks for the village, 10 pairs of skates, an assortment of equipment. This sponsorship package is associated with the Ladakh trip only, and all activites and publications related to that trip. - $15,000

If you have other thoughts for sponsorship or donations, please contact me. All sponsorship packages must be approved by me in advance (contact info on the right side), so as to not wear anything offensive or conflicting. Once agreed upon, sponsors will donate through the ChipIn client (also on the right side), and will write in the comments box what they are sponsoring.

• Example: Your company is sponsoring 1 track suit ($1,000) & 1 hat ($500). You'll email adam[at]hockeyvolunteer[dot]org that your company meets the standards (not offensive to anyone/any culture and is not a conflict of interest - which there are few of). Once that has been approved, you will donate on the ChipIn client, select to donate $1,500, and write in "Sponsoring 1 track suit & 1 hat".

It's that easy & affordable, and your contribution will go a long way!

Auction for a Cause

I have just posed another auction on ebay.  It is of an autographed, game-used stick from Angela Ruggiero during the 2006 Winter Olympics (pictured).  Angela was kind enough to donate this rare & valuable stick to support the cause.

ALL proceeds from the auction will be used towards this program.

Check it out: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280297302697&ssPageName=ADME:L:LCA:US:1123

Don't forget about the ebay auctions of the items donated by the NHL (Holiday presents)

Time is a Burning Flame

While time may be infinite, and immeasurable, and possibly even tangible (sorry, that was my Trekkie talking), this visit to Ladakh is not an open invitation.  Time is limited, as the Winter season will end by early-mid February.  Please keep this in mind if you are considering making a donation.

To be able to depart for India, another $2225 is needed.  This number is incredibly attainable, and I hope this basic chart will show why.

I know this is simple math, but please think about how easy it is, working together, for us to reach that goal:

• 445 people donate $5 = $2225
• 222 people donate $10 = $2220 (even number)
• 111 people donate $20 = $2220 (even number)
• 89 people donate $25 = $2225

Please consider a sponsorship package (see: Donations & Sponsorship) to help me reach this goal faster and increase branding & PR for your company.

While $3000 is the minimum needed to travel to Ladakh, my goal is to raise $4000 and provide the kids there with more resources and make our collective impact felt for years to come. If we can get 600 people to donate whatever they can spare at this time of giving, it will go a long way!

I am personally saving everything I've got right now to pay my bills when I am away from home on this volunteer trip, and the time to apply for grants passed 6 months ago, when this concept didn't exist. My only option is to appeal to the kindhearted and idealist people around the world to contribute.

I'll be sure to take pictures and video of the children you are helping bring happiness to.

Best wishes!

Adam

"Aren't there more important issues in the world?"

This was the question posed to me by a friend over some Starbucks this evening after she told me she wasn't going to donate, and I felt like I was punched in the gut.

The full question/statement she posed went something like this (paraphrasing): "Aren't there more important issues in the world, like hunger, poverty, war, education, culture? How does this help?"

My response, through my dumbfoundedness, was that going to Kashmir is not exactly a dream vacation for many people (although it should be...Srinagar is apparently gorgeous!).  I am also not going to pretend that I'm not going to a beautiful region within Jammu and Kashmir that is somewhat removed from the conflict between India and Pakistan, is predominantly Buddhist, in one of the lease dense areas in the world, in the Himalayas.  A key point to make is also that Ladakh is NOT Kashmir...they are in the same state, but are very different regions with a different culture, different people, different EVERYTHING.  It is important to recognize this before making any inferences and judgments.

At the same time, Ladakh's border is with China, which is also in dispute with India. SECMOL, the organization I am looking to volunteer for, had a recent scandal with a local government official in Ladakh that tried to sabotage the work they were doing, and cut them off from the outside world. It took the outcries of people from around the world that experienced first-hand what SECMOL was accomplishing. The actions of the prior volunteers caused the Prime Minister of India to remove official of his post.

To recount the significance, this is a peaceful, Buddhist village that runs on solar-electricity and bio-sustainable practices, that is trying to provide children from a remote and tense part of the world the opportunity to get a meaningful education and develop a significant culture. Since rice has been subsidized by the government, the staple agricultural industry, rice, has been effectively wiped out.

What that means, is that these are people that have very little income, poor education, governmental corruption, and the potential for war from either side of their state. Those are the problems she identified, right?

I don't have any grandiose images of negotiating border disputes between countries, nor am I looking to ride the coattails of idealists and travel to a foreign land just to shoot a hockey puck.

When I am with the Ladakhis in Phey, I will be a villager. I will be doing at least an hour of labor on the campus, whether it be farming in the greenhouse, or making sure the solar panels work. I'll also be helping the kids and residents learn English, the language of business and of the educated across the subcontinent (other than Hindi and English, there are 17 official languages in India and over 1,650 dialects). I will be teaching them how to ice skate, as well as teaching the ones that can skate how to play hockey (or improve their skills).

As stated in the mission of my program, the goal is to spread happiness and good karma. If I can achieve this, and continue for year to come to achieve the goal of impacting the lives of people I meet, using the foundation and values of ice hockey as my language, I am confident that as a whole, we can all slowly change the world. If I reach 5 people or 5 million people, the pleasure I will take in other people's happiness will be worthwhile.

The important part is trying.

The state of happiness, love, and compassion will change the world. And this starts with every idealist working together to achieve this and share it, since we can't rely on the ignorant, the cynics, or the skeptics.

Let's prove them wrong!