By Stephan Haefliger Strategic Partnership Coordinator – GlaKam Hockey Foundation
Minnesota Wild’s Gabby Billing and Wayne Petersen with GlaKam Hockey Foundation Founders James Kamau and Jane Kamau-Scott at the 2025 Minnesota Wild Equipment Drive where purpose met passion and hockey found new horizons.
There are moments in sports that remind us that it’s not always about the scoreboard, the stats, the medals, or the fame and fanfare, but the spirit that connects players, fans, and communities. The 2025 Minnesota Wild Equipment Drive was one of those moments. Beneath the banners, between the piles of pads, sticks, and skates, something powerful was happening: a bridge was being built between two worlds; one from Minnesota’s frozen rinks to Africa’s rising ice dreams.
“Laughter and purpose in motion: James and Jane share a lighthearted moment with Gabby during the equipment drive. Behind the smiles, a shared mission: bringing the joy of hockey to new frontiers.”
Community Action: Henry joined volunteers and staff at the drive, where community spirit met purpose. Together, they sorted, packed, and prepared gear, each piece bound for a new beginning thousands of miles away.
A Shared Vision for Global Hockey
This year’s Minnesota Wild Equipment Drive, held in partnership with Let’s Play Hockey, Minnesota Hockey, and supported by the Minnesota Wild Foundation, showcased what true collaboration in the sport looks like. Together, these organizations rallied the hockey community to collect, sort, and prepare hundreds of pieces of gently used equipment for a second life, not just in local rinks, but around the world.
For the GlaKam Hockey Foundation, participation was more than a collection of equipment. It was a bridge to the next frontier of the game. It represented how community-driven programs at the NHL level can extend their reach across continents, empowering young athletes from Cairo to Cape Town, Nairobi to Accra, and any other city where GlaKam is seeing hockey take root and grow.
But GlaKam’s vision goes far beyond equipment drives. The Foundation is strategically positioning itself as both the epicenter and the conduit where Africa’s cultural renaissance, booming youth population, and the $620 billion global sports economy converge. At this dynamic crossroads, hockey becomes more than a game; it becomes a cultural bridge and an emerging market, channeling opportunity, tourism, and enterprise across borders.
By fusing sport, community development, and global partnerships, GlaKam is pioneering a new model for how the game expands; creating access pathways for youth while drawing investors, brands, and leagues into an ecosystem that is as socially impactful as it is economically promising.
At the heart of it all stands a shared belief: that access to the game shouldn’t depend on geography. Hockey’s circle of inclusion is just getting wider, proving that when the right partners come together, the game itself becomes a force for global good. Through this unified effort, the Minnesota Wild, Let’s Play Hockey, Minnesota Hockey, Two Men and a Truck, and the GlaKam Hockey Foundation are showing the world that hockey’s greatest arena is the human connection it inspires.
Ready for a second life not just in local rinks, but across the globe where the love of hockey is growing. Every stick spells opportunity, while every helmet protects a new dream taking shape.
Revolutionizing Access, One Stick at a Time
For GlaKam Hockey Foundation, this was more than a drive. It was a movement in motion. The donated gear will outfit hundreds of youth players across Africa’s emerging hockey nations, where GlaKam is helping sow the seeds of the continent’s first multi-country hockey circuit. Each helmet, glove, and jersey will carry a story of generosity, teamwork, and how a game can unite cultures across oceans.
This collaboration with the Wild marks a new chapter in the NHL’s broader global impact story: a recognition that the future of hockey is as diverse, dynamic, and borderless as the people who believe in it. The Minnesota Wild didn’t just give gear; they gave momentum to a revolution in how the world sees hockey.
Amari donned his first skates at the event; across oceans, many are dreaming and GlaKam is paving the way. From St. Paul to Nairobi, the next chapter of hockey’s story begins.
From Minnesota to Nairobi: The Ripple Effect
Soon, GlaKam will share photos and impact stories from the equipment’s arrival and distribution scenes of joy that began in St. Paul and will unfold across African rinks and makeshift training centers. And as the journey continues, this partnership stands as a testament to what happens when NHL organizations and grassroots changemakers come together with shared purpose.
Because when the Wild and GlaKam team up, ice unleashes a force that proves that even in torrid Africa, hope can burn brighter in the thaw than the sun itself. The result isn’t just charity, it’s legacy. It’s proof that hockey can be a global language of hope, courage, and community and that the next great chapter of the game might just be written on African ice.
From Minnesota to the Motherland. The journey begins here.
Piled high with dreams, every helmet, stick, and glove in this bin represents hope on its way to new rinks across Africa.
Join the Movement
Every donated stick, glove, and jersey helps write the next chapter of hockey’s global story. Support our mission to empower youth, unite cultures, and build communities — one rink at a time.
👉 Donate Now: https://www.glakamhockeyfoundation.org/donate-now
📧 Partner With Us: info@glakamhockeyfoundation.org
Stephan Haefliger
Strategic Partnership Coordinator – GlaKam Hockey Foundation
Stephan writes on topical issues and stories that highlight GlaKam’s mission to grow hockey, build community, and create opportunities across continents.
Empowering Youth. Uniting Cultures. Building Communities – One Rink at a Time.
