Desert Hockey Development

Dedicated to building youth hockey in Arizona

News

Glendale Inline Rink Painting Complete

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Jen Lacey - DHD Board Member
Jen Lacey – DHD Board Member

On Sunday, December 15, Desert Hockey Development (DHD) volunteers completed the repainting project for the city owned inline hockey rink in Glendale’s Bonsall Park. DHD volunteers began the project the week before on December 7 but were unable to complete the work before darkness fell.

DHD donated all materials, supplies and labor to complete the rehabilitation project. The City of Glendale didn’t have to spend a cent for the improvement of their asset.

Click here for the DHD Facebook page.

The inline hockey “court” needed some TLC in preparation for an upcoming series of FREE youth hockey clinics DHD will be providing at Bonsall Park.

Starting in early 2014, Desert Hockey Development will be offering introductory, intermediate and advanced street (ball) hockey and inline hockey clinics. The goal of these clinics is primarily for kids to have a lot of fun, get some exercise, learn the sport and find out if they like hockey enough to continue.

It should always be possible for somebody who happens to be between 7 and 15 years of age (yes, we’ll happily bend those rules) to show up without any equipment or money and leave with a smile and an idea how the game of hockey is played.

grow_the_game_webDHD understands hockey is not an inexpensive sport and that the economic circumstances of local families might not allow them to participate unless the event is free. We will provide all the equipment necessary to safely play hockey and pledge to provide a safe and stress free environment for kids to learn the game.

We hope to grow the game of hockey in Arizona and believe that providing an energy outlet in this fashion for our kids will benefit the community.

Please register for our mailing list to stay informed about future events as we help build youth hockey in Arizona.

 

Glendale Bonsall Park Painting

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crease_paintingOn Saturday, December 7, Desert Hockey Development (DHD) volunteers began repainting the inline hockey rink in Glendale’s Bonsall Park. Click here for the DHD Facebook page.

The rink needs some TLC in preparation for an upcoming series of FREE youth hockey clinics at Bonsall Park.

Starting in early 2014, Desert Hockey Development will be offering introductory, intermediate and advanced street (ball) hockey and inline hockey clinics. The goal of these clinics is primarily for kids to have a lot of fun, get some exercise, learn the sport and find out if they like hockey enough to continue.

It should always be possible for somebody who happens to be between 7 and 15 years of age (yes, we’ll happily bend those rules) to show up without any equipment or money and leave with a smile and an idea how the game of hockey is played.

DHD understands hockey is not an inexpensive sport and that the economic circumstances of local families might not allow them to participate unless the event is free. We will provide all the equipment necessary to safely play hockey and pledge to provide a safe and stress free environment for kids to learn the game.

We hope to grow the game of hockey in Arizona and believe that providing an energy outlet in this fashion for our kids will benefit the community.

Please register for our mailing list to stay informed about future events as we help build youth hockey in Arizona.

Developing A Partnership With Glendale

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Desert Hockey Development (DHD) and the City of Glendale are working to develop a working relationship that will grow over the years.

On Friday, November 8, three DHD board members attended a very encouraging working meeting at Glendale City Hall hosted by Glendale Councilmember Norma Alvarez. Bonsall Park, where DHD has held several events, is within CM Alvarez’s district.

DHD and Glendale hope to work together to improve the condition of the inline skating court (we aren’t calling it a rink for now) at Bonsall Park. Our plan is to repaint the existing lines on the court prior to our inaugural December 7 “mostly kids” event.

Going forward, we hope to be able to jointly develop and build programs to offer the sport of hockey to as many kids as possible without requiring an investment.

Glendale and DHD recognize the need for free programs for kids in Glendale regardless of their economic status. Our organization hopes to be able to completely remove investment barriers from keeping anyone from becoming involved in hockey. We feel that a solid, symbiotic partnership with the City of Glendale is in all of our best interests and will provide a lot of progress for an extremely minimal investment.

The board members of DHD hope to see the sport that we love flourish here in Arizona and we’re overjoyed to be able to assist Glendale with their revival of an underutilized asset.