Who was Paul Bennett?
Paul was a Hockey Coach in Cloverdale from 2013 to 2018. Paul passed away suddenly and tragically on June 23, 2018. Our hockey family was shocked and saddened by this loss.
Paul loved the game of hockey and played on a number of men’s hockey teams. As well, Paul coached his sons in ice hockey, ball hockey, and even helped out with his older son’s soccer team. Paul was also a key member of our First Shift coaching team, introducing kids to the game of hockey for the very first time.
A beloved member of our Colts Family who lit up any room he was in, Paul was always ready to help the most nervous new skater get out there to build their confidence and love of the game.
Paul was dedicated to investing in the development of the young boys and girls of Cloverdale MHA, and to say Paul touched the lives of many would be an understatement.
Our community rallied together to honour Paul and support his immediate and extended family during the tragedy and the weeks to follow, but we couldn’t stop there. We had to do more.
After consultation with both his immediate family and our members, we put in place the following initiatives to recognize the contributions and spirit of Paul:
1> Our Atom C tournament is renamed the Paul Bennett Atom C Blast Tournament. This is a tournament focused on fun and to celebrate the love of the game of hockey.
2> ‘PB’ helmet stickers are available to be worn in honour of Paul. Donations are optionally collected, but anyone is welcome to wear a sticker in his honour.
3> A Paul Bennett ‘Love of Hockey’ Bursary has been established
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This bursary is intended to cover the registration costs for a new-to-hockey player registering for the first time with CMHA. Ideally this will be awarded to a Cloverdale MHA catchment player who attended the First Shift program from the preceding year.
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Funds will be collected throughout the year towards this bursary through tournaments, sticker donations, and other private donations.