The occasion was referred to as a “day of hope.”
Hope for what’s to come, hope for an improved community and hope for the lives that will be better off because of the generosity that never ceases in these parts.
As representatives from 190 different nonprofit organizations stepped forward to collect their Helper Grant from the Nashville Predators Foundation on Monday morning at Bridgestone Arena, that feeling was reciprocated again and again.
And if there’s been one constant over the past 26 years the Preds franchise has called Middle Tennessee home, the charitable arm never fails to make an impact that goes far beyond wins and losses.
On this day, every dollar matters, and every check collected by a smiling face equates to a victory.
In fact, a record $850,791 was distributed on Monday, the largest one-time donation in the Foundation’s history, a bar that is raised each and every year.
A portion of the funds went to Angel Heart Farm, an organization that serves children and their families and helps them to beat cancer using Equine Assisted Therapy in conjunction with their medical treatment.
“We just truly love our team, we love our city…and being able to write a grant is a big deal, and then being able to get one is an even bigger deal,” Angel Heart Farm Founder and Director Tracy Kujawa said. “We serve children and their families beating cancer. We don't say battling, we say beating, because we don't battle, we kick its butt. We really love what we do, and it's just an honor."
Another allotment went to Youth Encouragement Services, a group that provides before and after-school programming for low income communities in South Nashville - a safe space that allows children to simply be themselves.
“It’s an amazing day,” Youth Encouragement Services Executive Director Viva Price said. “It really feels like a family reunion because the Preds pull in people from all over the nonprofit sphere and really allow us to connect and just take a moment to celebrate. Also, it feels good to be honored and to be acknowledged for the work that you're doing as an organization.”
The Preds Foundation knows the difference those efforts make throughout Middle Tennessee are worth celebrating, and it’s why they do this in the first place - because playing hockey is only part of the equation.
The Helper Grants program, named in honor of former Nashville Predators Senior Vice President of Communications and Development, Gerry Helper, recognizes his efforts as the Foundation’s Chairman of the Board and a career with the Preds that began from the franchise’s inception.
Today, the man with the perfect surname for a moment such as this can only marvel at what the grant distribution ceremony has become from the days when most people in town had never even seen a hockey game.
“I don't think any of us envisioned when we started this what it could become,” Helper said. “This is a celebration, but it's also a great day of hope, because these organizations put a lot into their application on how they would either grow a program that's already in place or start something new. And today's hope is now to present them with their check and then watch over the next six to 12 months as they put that money to use. They really do the hero’s work in the community.”
Over the course of a hockey season and then some, the Preds Foundation hosts a myriad of events to raise money from the Smashville faithful to support this day. And when it’s all said and done, the grant distribution is not only a culmination of all of that fundraising, but it’s also the start of something greater for each of the nonprofits.
So, why do this?
For one, the appreciation and gratitude shown by those who receive the grants is more than worth all of the hard work it takes to get to this point, but the impact and ability for a professional sports franchise to do good in the community is virtually limitless.
Hence why all of this matters so much.
“A pro sports franchise has great opportunity, but it has a great obligation,” Helper said. “It has so many lights shining on it throughout the year, through games and all these other things, but that’s also the responsibility - to use it for good and to do things that, quite honestly, other organizations can't do… There are many great companies within this community, but they don't have the ability to do those things that we can do, and we should never take that lightly - the impact we can make on one person, one group, one at a time, through grants.”
So, after each of the recipients came forward to receive their check, had their photo taken with Preds forward Colton Sissons, and stepped back out into the world with a renewed sense of inspiration, the real work began.
It’ll come in the form of an ATV for Angel Heart Farm, a vehicle that will allow visitors and employees alike to make their journeys and tasks much more efficient and enjoyable. For Youth Encouragement Services, the grant will provide lighting at a playground that will give children the opportunity to keep playing after the sun goes down, a simple upgrade that makes a monumental difference.
Not every day in this sector is easy, but a moment like the Helper Grant presentation provides a reminder people do care, and helping others matters. Just ask those who are making Nashville a better place for all of us, especially those who need that reminder most.
And before long, one day of hope can transform into a lifetime of adoration for the hockey team that calls Tennessee home.
“On a day like today, it’s so gratifying to know that every day you’re in the trenches and you’re in the middle of the struggle, being able to look up and see that there are other people that are coming alongside with you, and there is hope,” Price said. “Because we’re all in this together.”
“It’s not just a check to us,” Kujawa said. “It's that we feel like we're part of something bigger. We love serving our community. I was raised to serve others, serve God, and so that's what I feel like you all do.”
