BIPOC Hockey Donations

My name is Erik Jamison-Ekeling and I grew up in Circle Pines, Minnesota and played hockey all the way through high school. If you have a minute, I would appreciate you taking the time to read this post:


I have been trying to figure out what I can do to further the social justice / Black Lives Matter  movement, especially in my hometown of Circle Pines. This city, and the surrounding areas, have huge white populations and very little BIPOC populations. These conditions don’t breed diversity or inclusivity and are not representative of the current demographic state of America. In these areas, Hockey is one of the most popular sports (if not the most) and the diversity in the sport alone is even worse than the cities in which it’s played. 


Hockey is the sport with the most barriers to entry. Whether it’s the high costs of ice/equipment/maintenance, the time commitments, the traveling, or what have you, the list goes on and on. I am aware of the massive amounts of privilege that I have as a white man from the suburbs who played hockey growing up, and we even have a skate sharpener at home. It would be beyond ignorant, selfish, and harmful to not acknowledge those facts or to not use my resources to help those who aren’t as privileged / don’t have the same resources that I do. 


I started thinking of ways that I could help that tie into racial justice and hockey. I’ve been thinking lately that giving gear to BIPOC players/families or offering skate sharpening for free would be the way to go. I am planning on taking some extra gear that I have, asking people that I’ve played with if they’ve got extra that they’d be willing to donate, and then finding BIPOC families who could use the gear. My thinking is that any way that I could help get people into the game, make it more inclusive, that I want to do that. Even if they’re not interested in playing, I think at least giving them the opportunity to say, “no, I don’t like this sport as much as other ones,” after being exposed to hockey is a good step.


I am not sure what the youth hockey schedule situation is and whether there will be one this fall or not, but I am ready to start making strides towards positive change ASAP. I am going to start reaching out to as many people as I can in the community to see if they would be willing to give me their old gear (helmets, skates, sticks, gloves, LITERALLY ANYTHING), so that I could find BIPOC families who may have kids interested in trying/playing hockey and provide them with whatever they need to get their kids on the ice. As I mentioned before, I would also be happy to provide free skate sharpening to those families and players because the repeat cost of sharpening skates is insane.


I have already helped three young boys get fully equipped with skates, shin pads, socks, breezers, shoulder pads, elbow pads, helmets, and some gloves (didn’t have enough small sizes yet) and their mother is planning on spreading the word. With that said, there are expenses, besides gear, that come from playing hockey (tournaments, registration, etc.) and I think that being able to raise money for families to cover those costs would be a huge help. I have reached out to a bunch of people in the hockey community and for those whose parents have given their old stuff away already, they have been eager to help or spread the word in any way they can. This is another outlet to help and one that could make a substantial difference in the BIPOC hockey community.


This quote from Matt Dumba of the Minnesota Wild really stuck with me:


“Hockey is a great game, but it could be a whole lot greater. And it starts with all of us.”


Please share this to get the word out! 


If you have any questions, gear you’d be willing to donate, funds you’d want to donate, contacts, etc. PLEASE do not hesitate to contact me:


Cell: [phone redacted]

Email: [email redacted]


Thanks for taking the time to read this and sharing!