Hockey Challenge raises $200,000 for Ronald McDonald House Charities

For the Reporter

The Seattle Thunderbirds’ 18th annual Hockey Challenge last Saturday at the ShoWare Center raised $200,000 for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Western Washington & Alaska (RMHC).

The Challenge has raised $4.9 million for the RMHC in 18 years.

Sponsored hockey teams raised money to play in the Challenge. All proceeds from the Challenge directly support operations of the Seattle Ronald McDonald House, which provides a “home-away-from-home” for children and their families receiving medical treatment at Seattle Children’s Hospital, making each day a little easier. Last year the Seattle Ronald McDonald House provided 28,475 nights of housing and services to 448 families.

There were seven games played during the Challenge on Saturday. The first five games were played by seven teams from various divisions at Microsoft two women’s teams made up of local recreational league players and one team made up of T-Birds office staff, off-ice officials and Challenge team captain selections.

The T-Birds vs. Everett Silvertips game followed the five Challenge games on Saturday, and the event was capped off by the Celebrity All-Star Game featuring several former T-Birds.

“This year, we raised more than our initial goal thanks to the generosity of everyone involved in Hockey Challenge 2016. We are so grateful to the Seattle Thunderbirds, the teams who participated, and our local sponsors, who have helped us raise funds for the more than 400 families who stay with us a year,” said Vanessa Kirk Briley, co-director of development at RMHC. “Hockey Challenge is such an important fundraiser for us since it helps us to subsidize housing and programs for those who need it most. Every year we are amazed by the players and fans who come out to show their love for families who need a home-away-from-home while their child recovers from a serious illness.”

“The Challenge is such an important annual event for us. It’s great to see that we are almost at $5 million dollars raised for RMHC. This number could not have been reached without such a great commitment from the Challenge teams and our alumni who take part in the All-Star game,” said Colin Campbell, T-Birds vice president. “The hard work of all our volunteers and staff to make this event so much fun for those taking part is greatly appreciated.”