Carolina Hurricanes donate $50,000, pledge more to help rebuild Asheville rink

Tropical Storm Helen wreaked havoc at Asheville’s Carrir Park, including destroying the rink where the Asheville Hockey League has helped introduce roller hockey to many Western North Carolina residents for years.

Now, a $50,000 donation from the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes — with the promise of more — is expected to help get young people back into the sport.

“The Carolina Hurricanes have been so generous to step up and support us, mainly because they see a need for youth programs,” Jay Curwen, treasurer of the Asheville Hockey League, told the Citizen Times. “If kids in Western North Carolina are skating and interested in the game, that creates potentially more players and more fans.”

On October 28, the Hurricanes announced a $50,000 bond. The team also said its foundation will donate another $25,000 when the Asheville Hockey League The Go Fund Me page has reached $25,000.

That means support for the Hurricanes and the hockey community could add up to $100,000, said Carven, whose league has helped grow hockey in Western North Carolina for more than two decades.

According to the organization’s website, this donation marks the first funds to support the Hurricanes Foundation as part of the “Raise $1 Million” raffle program. The Hurricanes hope to donate at least $1 million to Hurricane Helen relief projects in Western North Carolina and have already raised nearly $350,000 for relief efforts during an Oct. 2 preseason game. Western North Carolina Relief Online Auction and Win the $1 Million Lottery.

“Word of the rink in Asheville quickly reached us through the tight-knit youth hockey community in North Carolina,” Doug Whorf, president of the Carolina Hurricanes, said on the team’s website. “We are proud to help the 1,800 members of the Asheville Hockey League build a new, even better home rink and get back to the game we all love.”

The rink was located in Carrier Park, which was damaged in last month’s storm. On Wednesday, you could see work crews cleaning the park.

While the money helps, Curwen said it probably won’t be able to cover everything.

“It will be very important and will help,” he said. “But really what he’s going to do is provide that bridge with a lifeline.”

That would include buying time for youth at the Greenville, S.C., rink, because getting kids into skating quickly brings “normalcy, and rest is an important part of recovery, especially for young athletes,” Curwen said.

Curwen said the league is working with the city to help restore the rink — if possible.

“It’s an ongoing question,” he said. “The recreational assets that they have (are) probably not the highest priority at this point. I think it will come to that, but there are (are) people without homes, businesses that are suffering and all that. There is indeed great desolation. “

Esteban Parra is a guest reporter for The News Journal in Wilmington, Delaware. Parra is helping Citizen Times reporters cover the aftermath of Tropical Storm Helen. Send tips or story ideas to [email protected].

This article originally appeared on the Asheville Citizen Times: Helen’s recovery: Carolina Hurricanes donate $50,000 to Asheville rink