Hockey program for kids shares ‘best part of being Canadian’ with diverse, newcomer families

A program is teaching children to skate and learn about hockey. Many of the kids are from families who only moved to Canada recently.

Run entirely by volunteers, the First Shift program – through Scotiabank’s “Grow the Game” initiative at Winnipeg’s hockey for all centre – has taught nearly 60 children how to skate. And it’s gotten their parents involved in wanting to learn, too.

“Honestly (it’s) to give all the opportunities that we didn’t have and to get them to just experience something that is going to stay with them forever. Once you fall in love with hockey, you’re a hockey fan for life,” Grow the Game ambassador Ganni Maan told CityNews.

“It’s a Canadian tradition,” added fellow ambassador Ron Cantiveros. “A lot of participants are new Canadians that have never played hockey, let alone watched a hockey game.”

When Fan Yang first heard of the First Shift program, she signed her son Calvin up right away. She says Calvin loves to be on the ice.

“I think it’s a great program. My kids love to come here,” said Yang.

“Hockey is national sport here. He can make friends and he can build his character. I always want him to join team sports. We noticed the opportunity, so we joined.”

Yang and the rest of her family – her husband and in-laws – say they’re happy to spend all day at the rink to watch Calvin skate.

“It’s visible that the demographics of Canada are changing,” said Maan. “We’re seeing more and more people from diverse backgrounds coming to Canada and of course enjoy the best part of being Canadian, which is hockey.”

Avey and Bobby Brar’s son Aneil is learning to skate through First Shift.

“He’s built a lot of great team skills and also learned a lot of skills that he normally wouldn’t have, and it’s very impressive for a five-year-old,” said Avey.

The Brars, a Canadian-born Punjabi family, consider time at the rink for First Shift as family bonding time. The family wants to keep Aneil excited and is going to sign him up for Second Shift, which begins in June.

“I started when I was 30 so I was a late starter,” said Bobby. “I just wanted to get my son exposed as early as possible.”

The family feels hockey is for everyone.

“The biggest thing that stood out to me is seeing a lot of girls on the ice,” said Avey. “That’s something that I have not seen a lot of. Usually when you’re watching it on TV, you mostly see men play hockey in the NHL so seeing a lot of girls getting on the rink and learning to skate (and) learning different type of hockey skills is really, really great.”

Maan, who grew up in the 1980s and ‘90s, says there were no community initiatives to support diverse families in taking up the sport. Now, he says, there’s a big push for sports to be more welcoming and inclusive.

“The goal of this program is to take that ideology of just being a part of the game and to put it onto the ice now. To create these access points for kids, it’s so important,” said Maan, who added playing street hockey with friends as a kid is among his most cherished memories.

Sonny and Jinky Puache, a Filipino family, embraced Canada’s hockey culture when they enrolled their daughter Alexandra in First Shift. Now they come to the rink to support her.

“She’s proud that she learned something, she’s proud that she’s falling less and less,” said Sonny, who immigrated from the Philippines 10 years ago before meeting Jinky in Canada.

Sonny hopes more Filipino families take up the sport.

“Come on guys, try it. You have to try it,” he said. “Don’t be scared, don’t be afraid to try new things. Even though… it’s not our tradition to play hockey, we only watch it, but please try it. Take it one day at a time.”

Maan says regardless of someone’s background, being on the ice is about being part of a larger hockey community.

“I think sometimes we kind of segregate into, ‘oh I’m Filipino, I’m South Asian, I’m Chinese,’” he said. “The truth is, we’re all Canadian and the best thing that binds us together, that brings us all together, is sports. And hockey is the one sport that does it like no other.”

Cantiveros admits it might not always be love at first sight, but an appreciation for the sport develops quickly with skill.

“When (the kids) first got onto the ice, they were crying,” he recalled one family’s situation. “‘I can’t do this. Mom, dad, get me out of this program.’ After six sessions of being on ice, they’re excited and eager to stay on the ice. Sometimes we can’t pull them off.”

And watching their kids have fun on the ice sometimes inspires the parents to lace up a pair of skates as well.

That’s what’s happening with Sonny and Jinky, who are joining a skating class for adults so they can join Alexandra on the ice.

“She’s encouraging me and her mom to learn as well. At least to ice skate,” said Sonny.

It’s the same for Avey Brar, who doesn’t know how to skate – yet.

“Being here, seeing my son getting excited for hockey and learning to skate, it’s kind of giving me encouragement that I can do this too,” she said.

“Can’t wait for the (outdoor rinks) to open so we can get out there and get skating,” added her husband Bobby.

Grow the Game ambassadors Maan and Cantiveros say the program is indeed designed for families.

“Because the parents don’t know how to skate, they’re enrolling themselves in adult skating programs so they can enjoy being on the ice with their kids,” said Cantiveros, who learned to skate at the age of eight or nine after arriving in Canada.

“The biggest appreciation I have for this program are both the parents and the kids are interested in moving up to whatever the next opportunities.”

Maan says all the kids and their families will be celebrating graduation to the new Second Shift program. He hopes more families consider joining the community they’ve created, and find a love for hockey too.