Hartford, Conn., October 11, 2007—The Ryan Gordon/Hartford Wolf Pack Community Scholars Fund at Trinity College, a generous gift to Hartford children who want to learn to play ice hockey, was announced during the season opening Hartford Wolf Pack hockey game at the Hartford Civic Center Coliseum on Saturday, October 6. The fund honors the memory of Ryan Gordon, a teenage hockey fan who died in 2006 after battling a life-threatening illness for several years. The fund’s goal is to realize Ryan’s wish to help others achieve their hockey dreams.
Nineteen-year-old Ryan Gordon decided shortly before his death in March 2006 that part of the funds set aside for his college education should help others. Ryan’s parents worked with the Wolf Pack Community Foundation and Trinity College to establish the Ryan Gordon/Hartford Wolf Pack Community Scholars Fund at Trinity.
The Fund will be a permanent endowment to support “Learn to Play Hockey” for Hartford children at Trinity’s Albert Creighton Williams ’64 Rink at the Koeppel Community Sports Center. Last year Trinity opened the Koeppel Community Sports Center featuring the state-of-the-art 200-foot by 90-foot rink that has already been used by more than 1,000 Hartford children who receive Learn to Skate instruction with assistance from members of Trinity’s hockey teams and figure skating club. Information about the Koeppel Center is available at: /StudentLife/athletics/CSC/.
Admired for his strength and courage while battling his illness, Ryan’s love of hockey led him to interview Wolf Pack players for his school newspaper. As he dreamt of becoming a hockey play-by-play announcer, Ryan inspired Wolf Pack team members, coaching staff and many others. In a letter to the Hartford Wolf Pack, Ryan wrote, “This past fall I began college at the University of Central Florida in Orlando with a major in Broadcast Journalism. My illness forced me to return home, and I am left with some college savings, a part of which I am using for the Wolf Pack Community Foundation. While I know I will not live to see my own dream become a reality, I hope that this donation will enable others to realize theirs.”
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