COUNTDOWN: 4 Months To Go

In four short months, the ceremonial pucks will drop in the 2nd Annual Make CF History Charity Classic Hockey Tournament! And the Organizing Committee has been hard at work getting ready for the big weekend... 

The schedule for the weekend's events is taking shape, and there will be a lot to look forward to from the public, player and sponsor perspective.  As usual the adult amateur hockey tournament will serve as the centerpiece of the weekend's events.

From the Player's Perspective

Registration is now open through April 30th! This year we have set up our 2nd annual tournament to host a wider variety and more teams than we did last year, with four divisions this year:

• Men’s Experienced – For teams comprised of experienced level players who may have Junior A, B, C, NCAA Division I and III College, Non-Varsity College (ACHA), Midget Major, Prep or Varsity High School playing experience. Teams may be comparable to traditional low "A", "B" or high "C" level adult house league teams. 
• Men’s Intermediate – For team comprised of less experienced adult players who may have high school, competitive midget or Junior C playing experience, or limited youth playing experience with several years playing as an adult. These teams may be comparable to traditional “C” or “D” level adult house league teams. 
• Women’s Open – An open division for women 18 years of age or older. All experience levels are welcome, and our goal is to have as much parity among the teams as possible. Per the official roster form, please indicate the highest level of playing experience based on your strongest player. 
• Battle of the Badges (Reserved) – The “Battle of the Badges” division is an invitation-only division reserved for teams consisting of firefighters and police officers.

And as always, our primary task-at-hand is creating and preserving the best experience for the players. To that end, we are working diligently on securing all of the great perks for our players to ensure they are taken care of:

• Complimentary food and beverages
• Game jerseys and socks
• Awards and prizes
• The Skills Competition
• And more...

From the Public Perspective

There will something for everyone throughout the weekend, in addition to coming out to watch your favorite amateur hockey players!

Just a few of the things we have in store on Saturday June 9th:

• Silent and live auction
• Stick-and-puck for kids with Columbus Blue Jackets mascot "Stinger" (TBD)
• Kids' charity game
• Autograph session with CBJ players (TBD)

 And, we have added a very exciting component to the weekend - a kids' charity game (ages 6-8)!  Like our adult amateur players, the kids will each get a game jersey and socks, and have a great time playing for a great cause!  With many details yet to be determined, the first 30 skaters and 2 goalies to raise at least $75 for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation will get to play in the game.  And the child that raises the most money will receive a tournament jersey autographed by the Columbus Blue Jackets.  Stay tuned, more to come on this one!

From the Sponsor's Perspective

As with last year, we have many great sponsorship opportunities available.  We know securing sponsorship dollars is the most difficult task at hand, and therefore we have added several additional opportunities and several exciting marketing, branding and exposure elements for our sponsors.

• Presenting Sponsor - Exclusive opportunity to be the event's title sponsor!
• Play-Maker Sponsor - Six opportunities available!
• Franchise Sponsor - 16 opportunities available to sponsor a team!
• Supporting Sponsor - Unlimited opportunities to support the event with a donation of goods, services, auction items or cash donations.
• "Goals for a Cure" - Make a pledge per goal scored!

Be sure to follow us on Twitter (@MakeCFHistory), on Facebook and of course our event website.

We are looking forward to another great weekend, playing a great sport for a great cause - and we hope to see you all there!!

Planning for 2012 Make CF History Charity Classic underway, goal to top 'magnificent' 2011 event

The second annual Make CF History Charity Classic Hockey Tournament (and more!) is set for June 8th - 10th, 2012.  And while that may seem like a ways off, it will be here before we know it.  And with that in mind, planning for the 2012 Make CF History Charity Classic Hockey Tournament has begun.  

The Organizing Committee will meet for the first time since the inaugural event Wednesday November 2nd to officially kick-off our planning efforts.  And on the heels of a very successful inaugural event in 2011, our goal will be to top last year's event...not by a little - by a lot!

The inaugural event was..."magnificent"

Our ultimate measure of success will always be determined from the player's perspective, feedback from whom following the inaugural event was very positive.  "One of the best tourney’s I have ever played in.", said one player.  And on all accounts, our inaugural event was, well...simply put..."magnificent":

How do we top that?

Not easily, but certainly the inaugural event has established a foundation for us to build upon (I hope you watched the video above). And as with the inaugural event, our focus will continue to be on the player's experience - and in 2012, we will want more of them!  With 6 teams in the inaugural event, our goal for 2012 is to host 16 teams, including a women's division as well as a "Battle of the Badges" division for teams consisting of firefighters and policemen. And as we did last year, we will be reaching out to teams across the greater mid-west region to invite them in from out of town to join us. 

As for our fund raising goals (which are secondary to the player's experience), we will be looking to more than double our funding raising achievement of last year.  The inaugural event raised close to $11,000 (against a goal of $10,000) for CF, and therefore we will be striving to raise $25,000 in 2012.

Additionally, this year our organizing committee will be led by the Central Ohio Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.  Their support has been tremendous, and now our partnership is even stronger! 

Thanks to the CF Foundation, the event's official website has taken on new a looks, with new features and functionality:

www.centralohioevents.com/hockey

Teams will be able to register online, and companies wishing to support the event as sponsors will be able to do so online as well. 

And after that?

The goal of the Make CF History campaign is to raise one million dollars for the CF Foundation.  The Make CF History Charity Classic will be our flagship event for achieving this goal.  In the years to come, we envision pursuing world records (http://longestgame4cf.com/), as well as expanding this event to more teams and more rinks such that the central Ohio community will know that each year during the first weekend in June it is "CF Hockey Weekend" in Columbus.

Stay tuned...