The Hartford Wolf Pack, American Hockey League Affiliate of the New York Rangers, has been a dedicated community champion since coming to Hartford in 1997. At that time, the Hartford Wolf Pack Community Foundation, Inc. was formed as a 501C IRS charitable organization to coordinate and manage the community relations and fundraising efforts of the club. To date, the Foundation has raised over $900,000 dollars for charitable causes and our hockey players have devoted tens of thousands of hours to community endeavors.

As the Pack take to the ice for their special 10th Anniversary season of playing in Hartford, below are some accomplishments of the Hartford Wolf Pack Community Foundation over the years and fun facts about the “off ice” contributions the players and staff have made to the community.

  • Over the years, 58,188 pucks have been purchased through the “Chuck A Puck” promotion at Wolf Pack home games, raising $58,188 for the Hartford Wolf Pack Community Foundation. Most of these monies have been donated to “Better Beginnings” Neo Natal unit at Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center.
  • $21,911 has been raised from the sale of $1 raffle tickets at Wolf Pack home games over the years, all of which has benefited the Wolf Pack Community Foundation.
  • The Golf For Kids Tournament has been held since 2000 to benefit Children’s Home of Cromwell and over the past five years, has raised a total of $79,400 for the home.
  • The Golf For Kids Tournament held at TPC in Cromwell in 2003 raised the most money ($24,000) – this is also where the most damage was done! Our former Captain Ken Gernander hit a house on the first tee and on the very same tee, Fedor Tyutin won the “Plop Shot” award with a tee shot of only 50 yards!
  • The Tip A Player Charitable Dinner, in which Wolf Pack players serve as waiters & attendees “tip” them to do some outrageous activity, began in the ‘03-’04 season and has raised a total of $114,195 over the past three years, evolving and growing with each season. After holding the popular event at Coach’s Sports Bar and Grille in Hartford for two years, Tip A Player was moved to the Hartford Civic Center arena and exhibition hall during the 2005-06 season. With extra room to work with at the Pack’s home, a family-friendly Sports Carnival was added to the event, which sold out at 700 people and raised and a record-breaking $59,0000, more then doubling the previous year’s total.
  • Over the past three seasons, some Wolf Pack players have gone to great lengths to win the most tips during the Tip A Player fundraiser----Phil Osaer jumped up on the bar at the ’04 Tip A Player dinner and sang “I’m a little teapot” while Chad Wiseman crooned a romantic song to a patron. Jason LaBarbara holds the record for the all-time highest paid waiter over the years, although rumor has it that some “trading” and “stealing” aided his win!
  • Casino Night, a favorite of Wolf Pack fans and players, was held for five years from 1998 to 2002 until Attorney General Richard Blumenthal’s ruling of no gambling for non-profit events. Over the five years that it was held, $345,396.75 was raised to benefit the Hematology/ Oncology Department at CT Children’s Medical Center. During Casino Night, some players ended up bidding on items that their wives were ready to kill them for, such as purchasing round trip tickets to California! “Puck bucks” were used as funny money and the gambling tables, along with dealers and pit bosses, were brought from Foxwoods Resort Casino for a high-class, professionally-run event that was enjoyed by all.
  • At the annual Bowl-A-Thon, Wolf Pack players bowl with Special Olympians at AMF Lanes in East Hartford to raise money for Special Olympics – Eastern CT. This popular event has raised $119,000 over the past five years and has seen Pack players display some pretty unorthodox bowling moves -- including two hands between the legs, backwards and on their knees! AMF Lanes generously donates the use of 52 lanes for each of two sessions and also throws in the bowling shoes -- which have included a size 15 for the Pack’s Steve McIntyre! The Special Olympians always walk away the big winners – not only with their bowling scores but with the special friendships and bonds they form with the players that endure.
  • In 2001, 96.5 WTIC FM approached the Wolf Pack Community Foundation with their idea of creating an Acoustic Cafe CD to benefit the Foundation, with the experts at WTIC handling the taping, licensing and other related tasks and the Wolf Pack marketing the albums. The promotion has been so successful that we are currently in the process of creating Acoustic CD Vol. VI and have raised a total of $95,887 from the sale of the previous five CDs. Artists such as John Mayer, Alanis Morissette, Duran Duran, Train and Sheryl Crow have appeared on the CDs.
  • Our Wolf Pack Kids Club has been a huge success since its implementation in 1997. We average 700 members per year who purchase a $10.00 season-long membership that entitles them to reduced ticket prices. Additionally, they receive a membership card that they get stamped at each home game they attend to be part of a raffle at the end of the year. Throughout the season, Kids Club members receive an exclusive set of Wolf Pack Player cards, 3 issues of PawPrints, a Kids Club duffel bag and t shirt, a birthday greeting from the team and the opportunity to attend Kids Club Day at the Hartford Civic Center. This highly popular event features an open, narrated Wolf Pack practice in which Kids Club Members get to meet the Wolf Pack Players, win great prizes and pick up their exclusive set of player cards and get players’ autographs! Brigham’s is the Title Sponsor and AIG Auto Insurance is the Associated Sponsor.
  • The Hartford Wolf Pack Community Foundation oversees management of the proceeds raised from Chuck A Puck and the Acoustic CD promotions. The Board meets quarterly to review grant applications from the many non-profit organizations that submit their requests. Those that fit the Community Foundation’s mission statement “to help fund charitable and non-profit endeavors that offer support to inner-city youth, amateur sport, and promote the health, education and well being of Connecticut’s children” are considered and voted upon.

    Some of the groups that have received grants over the years include:
    “Chariots of Hope” Sled Hockey team, Riverfront Rowing program for high school youth, Channel 3 Country Kids Camp, Camp Courant, Lea’s Leukemia Foundation, Covenant for Care Day Camp Scholarship, CT Rivers Council Boy Scouts of America, DiLoreta Magnet School Playscape, Moreland School/CCMC Art project, Connecticut Youth Leadership Project, Inc., YWCA Early Learning Center, Time for Life Summer Program, Hospital for Special Care Cruisers Track and Field team, Foodshare of Greater Hartford, Operation Fuel, American Red Cross, Hartt String Project at University of Hartford, Hartford Public Schools Robotics team, and many more.
  • The Hartford Wolf Pack Community Foundation receives donation requests every day. The Foundation reviews and responds to each request and identifies those that align with the Community Foundation’s mission. The Foundation then purchases Wolf Pack items for autographing from the Pack Shop. Every two months, these items are taken to a Pack practice for the entire team to sign them so they can be donated to various non-profit fundraisers.
Last year alone, the following was donated: almost 700 coupons for Wolf pack game tickets, 20 luxury suites for Wolf Pack games, 200 seats for large auctions, 15 replica jerseys autographed by the team, 20 team-autographed Wolf Pack hats, 30 tee shirts, 40 locker room signs, 60 pennants, 40 small plastic hockey sticks and 30 goalie masks.

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