Time Flies

It’s been two years since I was last in India & Ladakh (in many ways, they are different worlds, even though Ladakh is a part of India).  It’s a surreal experience. I spent three and a half months in India in 2009, of which 5 weeks were spent in Ladakh.  Other than New York, there’s no place on Earth I’ve spent more time.  It’s something I never would have imagined, even as I was preparing for my first trip here. When I returned home, it was obvious Ladakh & the rest of India left an undeniable mark on who I am as a person.  It was upon arriving in India again that it became so apparent.

Upon landing in Delhi, I borrowed the phone of the gentleman sitting next to me, still on the tarmac, and called a friend to see if I could stay over for the evening.  It was no problem, as I suspected.  That pattern has continued thoughout.  My plans have consistently been last minute, yet always worked out as I intended.  With so much to do, I’ve scheduled very little, knowing that it will all play out as it should, as long as I follow up with the right people the right way.  When people have asked me what my plans are tomorrow, next week, or next month, all I can do is shrug and say “I don’t know”, even though my agenda of tasks to complete is long and under way.  Everything progresses as it must.  In response, Americans, Ladakhis and Indians have all said the same thing: “that’s very Indian/Ladakhi of you”.  All I can do is agree.  Twenty months wasn’t going to diminish that characteristic.  If anything, returning hightened the desire to operate in a state of controlled chaos.

I spent a long time upset that I couldn’t return to India last year, as I promised upon departure in 2009.  For simplicity’s sake: it wasn’t feasible for me to return to India, financially and emotionally. The previous trip went much longer than expected, and the road to recovery was also longer than expected.  At the same time, there were factors that held the organization back and other factors in India that made it less enticing to return.  That’s the short of it.  For a while, that was it.

But things started to change in life, for The Hockey Foundation, and regarding ice hockey in India.  Finances stabilized, the organization got a new identity thanks to Kevin Sterling working with me to develop a new logo, and I got news that the arena in Dehra Dun was finally completed.  From there, all it took was the support of the companies I work for, and the businesses I work with, and 8 weeks after making a decision and 5 weeks after making that decision public, I departed for India on the same date in 2011 that I did in 2009, only this time with support. 

Alex Harney has joined me for the first leg of this trip, recording pictures and video of our work here.  Alex played hockey throughout his childhood, has a background in photo/video, and is a great guy that is as passionate about this project as I am.  He’s already in love with Ladakh!  I’ve been delighted to introduce him to my friends in Delhi and Leh, and he’s been able to record what has made this experience so surreal for me.

In so many ways, it’s like I never left, and everything feels like home.  The excitement of going somewhere new has been replaced by the familiarity of Delhi and Leh.  At the same time, there’s a much greater sense of purpose and confidence that focuses my intent and allows me to enjoy things in a whole new light.  The familiar is raw.  And that’s India…raw.  Everything flows as it should, and people and situations thrive where others never could.  

The situation is a bit different this time.  Last time, I came without an understanding of hockey in India & Ladakh.  Now that I have immersed myself in it, there’s a lot more to do and a lot more to tell you about.  Future posts will give you an understanding of what we are here to do, what has been going on from our side of things, and what others are doing to support hockey in Ladakh/India.  There’s a lot, so I’ll save it for now.

The Business of Fun

This is a special feature that was written for The Business of Sports (www.thebusinessofsports.com)

At the end of the day, we all know the sports industry is about making money.  Sure, there’s a part of it that is entertainment, but not to the degree that the industry claims, and certainly not how we perceive it to be.  Listen to sports radio.  People rarely call in to talk about the amazing entertainment of the teams they watched.  They call in to complain or criticize or say they can do better.  Look at the advertisements by the teams, that tell you about the “grit”, “energy” and “determination” of their “experienced” or “youthful” team.  It’s a marketing of emotions.  It’s the business of sports.

I have no issue with capitalism.  Everybody deserves to make money for what they do.  Owners deserve to make a profit off of sales/sponsorship reps that fill the arena with fans and sponsors that are paying to see players they believe can help their local team win.  What I do have an issue with is pretending that it is for the betterment of the community if this team wins.  I’m not saying local fans shouldn’t enjoy themselves when their local favorite team wins a game or a champsionship, but keep in perspective that watching highly compensated salaried athletes from another state/country play against others of the same breed should not determine your mood the following day.  If/when those athletes go out into the community to do charity work, keep in mind that while there are absolutely those that do these events out of the kindness of their hearts, many more of them go out of obligation to an organization/league that requires they do goodwill because it will endear the player/team/league to the fans, ultimately resulting in more tickets sold.  Many community relations departments will strategize what organizations to help based on how it affects ticket sales.  Not all, but most.  An important distinction is in the case of natural disasters or tragic events, like Hurrican Katrina or 9/11.  Everybody opened up their hearts when these disasters happened, and players that supported recovery in any way should be appreciated as kind-hearted human beings, not charitable athletes.

I comment on this because of the Winter Classic, the annual NHL game played outside on New Year’s Day.  It’s a relatively new brand concept for the NHL, but for what my opinion’s worth as someone that has now worked more time since my time at the Islanders than working for the Islanders, it was the purest hockey game event I’ve seen at the professional level in quite a while.

The Winter Classic is a big business for the NHL.  It is the Super Bowl (because it’s a one day event in the Winter), without the ring.  NBC throws a lot of money to televise this game, and sponsors have returned to the league to be aligned with a magical event.  And I get it.  Even Mike Milbury was warmer than usual because this game was about a bunch of hockey players and hockey fans enjoying themselves.  The fun was palpable, even through the fighting and aggression, because it was highly skilled children playing in front of a lot of people.

When the players were asked whether the poor weather was a factor, they all brushed it off as a natural aspect of playing outside.  They were blinded with adrenaline because of the experience of playing outside in front of a large crowd, but also because they were just playing outside like many of us did when we were kids.  That’s what it’s all about, getting back to the child-like state of playing sports.

As a sports-crazed nation and species, we love watching highlight reals.  We love it because we get to witness world class athletes execute elite athletic achievements, like we envisioned we could when we were children. The next time you watch a sporting event, remember what it was like to play that game as a child, but with the knowledge as an adult that we are not them.  We can achieve what drives us, the way the sport drives the athletes.  Appreciate human achievement when Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby, or any random minor-league call-up performs an incredible feat.  Appreciate it because it’s an art-form unto itself.  If you enjoy the art of the sport, the way hockey players change lines on the fly, the way the ball swooshes through the net from a perfect shot, striking out 20 players in a game, etc., appreciate it as you would a Broadway musical or a Van Gogh masterpiece.

Ultimately, you will learn to love the sport for the beauty of the game, won’t care who wins, won’t stress out when “your” team loses, and will be happy to pay your hard earned money to see the continuation of the art you loved as a child but weren’t qualified enough to continue.  Remember, the players you watch probably can’t do what you do, because they’re human, not superhuman.  At the end of the day, you’ll have more fun, and isn’t that what it’s all about? 

An Email for Friends & Family

Over the past few days, I’ve been sending out emails to personally appeal to those closest to me to help spread the word abnout The Hockey Foundation returning to Ladakh.  I want to share that with you with an appeal to help spread the word to your contacts…here it goes…

It was around this time two years ago that my friend, former colleague and USA Hockey star Angela Ruggiero sent me a random email about hockey in Ladakh.  After a little investigation, the spark was lit to undertake a venture to go to one of the most remote corners of the world to share my love & passion for hockey with the intent of improving the community, as Angela and I had done for the New York Islanders in China.  

The spirit of giving during the holidays allowed me to piggy-back on top of the shoulders of kind-hearted people from around North America, and a month later, I was in Ladakh at 11,500 feet above sea level, on the ice with the children.  That was when the foundation was laid for The Hockey Foundation (originally “The Hockey Volunteer”).

Two years later, with a wealth of life-changing experiences behind me, I am returning to India with hockey equipment donated from more kind-hearted Americans & Canadians, as well as portable solar power donated by Goal0, a company that has its roots in non-profit work.

With that in mind, I am reaching out to you to help spread the word about The Hockey Foundation to your contacts, and appeal to the holiday spirit of giving once again.  Your support will allow me to pay for transporting all of this gear to be passed along to children and adults in Ladakh, a Himalayan region in the Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir (yes, that Kashmir).  To put into perspective what makes this region so unique, it’s one of the last vestiges of Tibetan Buddhism, yet is in a predominantly Muslim state, in a predominantly Hindu country, that is rife with corruption, poverty, sexism, religious intolerance & most recently the flood that devastated many parts of Pakistan.  The work that was begun two years ago has helped bring attention to the region, and only with the support of you and those you know can the program continue to grow & succeed. 

Donating is easy.  Just click on the Donate Now button on The Hockey Foundation’s website: www.hockeyfoundation.org.

I have attached a PDF [LINK] brief about The Hockey Foundation, but for more information on the work done and the work to do, visit: www.hockeyfoundation.org.  You can also contact me directly with any Questions/comments.

Lastly, The logo is a very personal image for me and The Hockey Foundation’s mission.  To read more about the symbolism and the amazing job my friend Kevin Sterling did on the logo, please check out www.hockeyfoundation.org/logo.

Warmest regards,

Adam 

 

Returning to Ladakh

Two years ago, a dream became reality.  There are so many variables that contributed to it, but at the end of the day, I would never have heard of Ladakh if not for my friend and former colleague Angela Ruggiero.  Once her random email about Ladakh came through, my life instantly changed, and on the shoulders of warm-hearted Americans & Canadians (in alphabetical order), I was able to begin a project that would redefine how I viewew my place on this planet.

Ladakh is a remote region in the Himalayas in the Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir.  Ladakhis are most similar to Tibetans, in the same way that Anglophile Canadians are most similar to Americans.  They have their own social identity, their own variations on the language, but to an untrained eye, they are interchangeable.  Ladakh is a predominantly Buddhist region, in a predominantly Muslim state, in a predominantly Hindu country, sandwiched between two disputed borders, with China (Tibet) & Pakistan (Kashmir). It’s a region that has been conquered and attacked many times over the past millennia. Needless to say that Ladakh is a unique region.  It leaves an impression on everyone that goes there, in an almost mystical way.  It’s like Ladakh is in a time capsule from a thousand years ago, even with many of the things we have in our modern lives.

Through my experiences teaching ice hockey in Heilongjiang Province in Northern China & in Ladakh, I got to see how effective sports (namely hockey) can be in improving the quality of life for people who deal with more hardships than we do.  I spent a month teaching hockey in Ladakh, playing with children, and providing them with tools to further their potential in a region and country that seem to limit so many.  

The trip to Ladakh was motivated by the desire to impart values that we have come to identify as human beings as being crucial to our success: honesty, accountability, team-work & toughness (mental & physical).

As a result of the work that was started, I was honored to become the national coach of India’s first ice hockey team, and got to represent India in the International Ice Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) Annual Conference.  What started as a humble volunteer trip quickly ballooned into something bigger, and the platform to use hockey as a means to make a difference in Ladakhi’s lives spurred The Hockey Foundation.

A few weeks ago, we debuted a new logo (graphic design by Kevin Sterling) that communicates so much of what The Hockey Foundation is about: using the ideals of hockey to foster cultural understanding and to communicate and instill virtues (identified above) that motivate change in the way people live their lives.  This pursuit contributes to a better life for us all, and is recognized by the UN & USA as an effective charitable means to attain this end.  

For this upcoming Winter, we are proud to introduce Goal0 as a sponsor.  Goal0 provides portable solar power for every day situations as well as massive expeditions.  They are providing some solar panels & batteries to be delivered to SECMOL, a local alternative school that is providing Ladakhi children of all religions with an opportunity to get a real education and broaden their horizons. They have also developed very promising young hockey players!

In less than a month, the next excursion to Ladakh begins.  The work started two years ago will be continued, with many bags of equipment donated by people from around North America, as well as the solar power products provided by Goal0.  This is going to be a big expense to drag to the other side of the planet, and your support is greatly needed to make this possible.  Space to store the equipment is running low, and the desire to help these children is strong.

There are so many factors affecting the lives of Ladakhis, but without a doubt, there’s a lot of hardship.  The region was hit by the flooding of the Indus/Sindhu River that devastated Pakistan.  The town I spent weeks training the Indian Ice Hockey Team was hit the hardest.  Hundreds of people died.  Even without this tragedy, there are many difficulties to overcome.  I’ll tell you all about that in my next post.

For now, please consider donating.  Your support will make a big difference, no matter the size of the contribution.

Click here to read about the new logo of The Hockey Foundation.

Warmest regards,

-Adam Sherlip, Executive Director

Victory!

As you may or may not be aware, when I was in Ladakh, India, working on developing hockey in the region and writing about my experiences, my laptop completely crapped out on me.  I was able to get by in internet cafes, with spotty internet connections and virus-filled computers.  Then my camera broke…5 days before I coached India in their first international tournament at the 2009 IIHF Challenge Cup of Asia in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.  

This made taking pictures difficult, but I pushed forward, collecting cameras and SD cards from the players and manager of the team, and put them onto my hard drive.  Well, that drive crashed with no explanation.  Every time I tried to access the drive, on any operating system, the computer would freeze, the drive would have a mini-seizure, and I would mumble under my breath that I will not let faulty technology prevent me from getting these pictures off of a little piece of magnetic film stuck under a bunch of circuits and transistors and whatnot.

I am VERY PLEASED to announce that I have cracked into the drive, accessed about 75% of the pictures, and uploaded them to my Flickr account.  Adam: 1, Technology: 9, down from 10.  Maybe I deserve another point for replacing my laptop.  2 it is.

Sorry for the big letters, but this is a big moment for me.  This was perseverence at its finest.  It validates the notion that we can overcome big obstacles with enough patience, knowledge, hard-work, and effort.  In every way, this is directly relevant in ice hockey, where these traits can not only translate into success on the ice, but success in our personal, interpersonal, and professional lives.

Please take a moment to check out the pictures on our Photo Gallery page, or head to the Flickr page located on the right side of the screen (OK, fine, you can also CLICK HERE).

Head Held High,

Adam