SEASON IN REVIEW - PART 1 - FLAMES RAISE OVER $50,000 FOR COMMUNITY

The Adirondack Flames finished quite the season, where they stormed the Glens Falls community and painted the town in the image of their parent club, the Calgary Flames. Although the AHL team stayed at the Glens Falls Civic Center for just one season, the Flames planted roots within the community for the successor, the Adirondack Thunder, to become even more deeply involved in the local community.

Today begins our 2014-15 “Season In Review” series, as we first take a look at the special events held at Adirondack Flames games this season.

The Flames partnered with several powerful organizations throughout the community and, in total, raised over $50,000 for local charities in the Adirondacks, in addition to food, coats and teddy bears during various in game promotions. The Flames ran four major “fundraisers” during the season, including three specialty jersey nights and a 30-day fundraising campaign between January and February, in addition to three nights centered around item donations.

The Flames kicked off the month of November with a month long “Coat Drive”, sponsored by the Tri-County United Way. The Flames offered two free flex tickets to anyone who donated a coat at one of their six November home games and over the course of the month, the organization raised over 500 coats. The coats were donated to the Adirondack Vets House, the Moreau Community Center and the Family Service Association of Glens Falls.

The first of the themed jerseys were worn on Military Appreciation Night on November 22. The team wore “snow camp” jerseys, with all proceeds going towards the Wounded Warriors Project. The Flames raised over $16,000 towards the project through the post-game sales of the jerseys, capitalized by David Wolf’s sweater, which sold for $1,750, one of the highest bids in memory at the Civic Center.

Military Appreciation Night also recognized several veterans from the local community from a variety of different branches of service with an arena wide PA recognition during the second period. Scott Martel and Larry Bulman of Steamfitters and Pipefitters 773 dropped the ceremonial first puck, after a national anthem that featured the Glens Falls VFW Color Guard and a large American flag held over the ice by Adirondack Flames Youth Hockey players.

The Flames ran two food drives during the course of the season, on November 21 as the Flames hosted Syracuse and December 5 when Texas came to town. The Flames offered anyone who brought a non-perishable food item a free flex ticket to any future home game, and the drive raised nearly 1,000 total non-perishable food items, which were donated to the Open Door in Glens Falls and the local chapter the Salvation Army.

Later in December, as the Flames hosted the Utica Comets, they ran the annual Teddy Bear Toss to benefit the Salvation Army of Glens Falls. The Teddy Bear Toss involved fans throwing their bears onto the ice after the Flames’ first goal, which occurred late in the second period as David Wolf got the Flames on the board. 677 stuffed animals rained down from the Civic Center stands, with each of them going to the Salvation Army, who helped give over 500 children a toy for the holidays.

Pink in the Rink Night, presented by Glens Falls Hospital, came next as the Flames sold out the Civic Center and raised money and awareness for Breast Cancer. The Flames donated $14,509.22 to the C.R. Wood Breast Cancer Center at Glens Falls Hospital, generated through jersey sales and ticket donations. The Flames donated $3 from each ticket purchased through a special online platform.

17 breast cancer survivors were honored during the jersey auction. Partnering with Glens Falls Hospital to reach out to survivors throughout the area, the local women each walked out with a player as they auctioned off their jersey.

The Flames partnered with the Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Group during January and February as they ran their “Amanda’s House Campaign,” a project to restore Amanda’s House, an extension of Glens Falls Hospital. The Flames combined with Bare Bones Furniture and the Ronald McDonald House in Albany to raise over $10,000 towards the Amanda’s House project, which composed over 40 percent of the leadership group’s overall goal of $25,000.

The Flames received a generous contribution from corporate partner Bare Bones Furniture, who contributed six twin beds, frames and box springs, and office furnishings, all to be used in Amanda’s House, valued at $3,000. On “Amanda’s House Night”, held at the Glens Falls Civic Center on January 24, the Flames raised over $1,000 towards the campaign through their 50/50 from that evening and a silent auction during the game. The team also donated one dollar from every ticket sold through a special online campaign, for a total of $1,093 donated that evening.

Additionally, the Flames donated 100 Flex Tickets to the ARCC Leadership Group which were sold at their discretion, with 100 percent of the proceeds going towards the project. The Leadership Group sold all 100 tickets for a total of $1,400. The campaign ended with $288 from the in-game 50/50 on February 6 against the Utica Comets and $150 in additional donations made up the final donation total of $5,921. The Flames then received a generous campaign match from the Ronald McDonald House in Albany, NY. Ronald McDonald House agreed to match $5,000 of the Flames’ donation, pushing the total amount to over $10,000.

The Flames concluded their themed jersey season on “Autism Awareness Night” on Sunday April 12, as they hosted the Lake Erie Monsters. The Flames wore special, Autism Awareness themed jerseys, which were auctioned off on eBay after the conclusion of the game. The jerseys raised over $9,000, all of which was donated to the Upstate New York Autism Alliance, a non-profit organization that aims to make a real difference in the lives of children affected by Autism and other childhood developmental disabilities who reside in local communities.

The Flames plan to continue each of the above initiatives for the 2015-16 season as the Adirondack Thunder arrive in Glens Falls, in addition to adding new measures of giving back to the local community. The “Season In Review” series will continue on Friday with Part 2, which will review the Flames' community appearances.