James Chirico, a Yonkers resident, honors student and junior at Iona Prep High School, has created a hockey equipment drive to benefit special needs players who want to play hockey, but who cannot afford to purchase the gear. James has been collecting gently used and outgrown hockey equipment including sticks, gloves, pads, skates and pucks, (but not helmets) for a non-profit organization called the New York Raptors, a special needs hockey team in Westchester.
To enlist the support of the community for his project, James contacted local Westchester businesses asking to use their locations as drop off points to help this worthy cause. James’s equipment drive is currently running during hockey season with drop off locations listed below:
Drop Off Locations:
-Pure Hockey, 310 Main Street, New Rochelle, NY
-xHockey Products Pro Shop, located at the Westchester Skating Academy, 91 Fairview Park Drive, Elmsford, NY
To date, James has collected between 300 – 400 pieces of donated equipment with a goal of collecting over 500 pieces before his equipment drive ends in mid to late February. James is storing the used hockey equipment in his basement (see attached photo) and is labeling all pieces indicating if they are sized for children or adults.
The NY Raptors is an organization that focuses on helping young people with special needs through the teamwork and physical and mental skills needed for ice hockey. James says, “I chose to work with the NY Raptors not only because I like hockey and volunteer as a coach and a referee for them, but because I have two younger special needs cousins who I am close to. Being a hockey player, this project means a lot to me and I know I’ll be helping a lot of families whose children want to play hockey, but don’t have the necessary means.”
James has been playing hockey for several years and he is a member of the Vipers Midget Minor team and Varsity player for Iona Prep. Community service has always been important to James and as a kid growing up playing hockey when he attended St. Anthony’s and now Iona Prep, the sport has been very important in teaching him the value of teamwork. As James says, “By donating, you’ll be giving this gear a second life, and you’ll be giving the players at the NY Raptors a chance to enjoy the sport.”