IceHogs Community Fund Awards $100,000 in Grants to Rockford Area Organizations
Published on August 14, 2025 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Rockford IceHogs News Release
The Rockford IceHogs Community Fund will award $100,000 in grants to support nine Rockford area organizations and 10 unique programs for the 2025-26 grant cycle. Five of this year's grants are renewals supported by the IceHogs Community Fund last year, while five are new recipients.
Supporting youth sports programs with an emphasis on growing the game of hockey continues to be an area of focus for the IceHogs Community Fund as four of this year's grants support hockey programs in the Rockford region. Three of the hockey-related grants are renewals and include $10,000 to Rockford Park District Street Hockey (Junior StreetHogs) to support outreach to over 10,000 youth via community events and after school programs, $5,000 to Rockford Park District Buddy Hockey to support RPD's floor hockey program for persons with disabilities, and $20,000 to Rockford Hockey Club to reduce fees for 8U players and to help RHC continue outreach for a girls' hockey program, while subsidizing fees for female participants.
One of the five new grants this year is a $15,000 award to the Good Shepherd YMCA to support the launch of an NHL Street Hockey program that will introduce youth from underserved neighborhoods to hockey in a fun, safe, and cost-free environment.
This year's additional recipients and award amounts include:
Discovery Center ($10,000) to provide no-cost access to up to five Discovery Center Family Nights for underserved children and their families to experience the museum and engage in playful learning
Fatherhood Encouragement Project ($5,000) to provide no-cost access to participants in the organization's Future Collegiate Stars Youth Basketball League
Nikolas Ritschel Foundation (Nik's Wish) ($10,000) to fund a wish to one 18-24 year-old from Winnebago or Boone County who is battling cancer and has met all criteria and applied for a wish through Nik's Wish
Rockford Area Arts Council ($15,000) to provide no-cost access to students attending the Arts Council's Spark! summer arts programs
Rockford Phoenix Cheerleading ($5,000) to fund equipment and uniform costs and bring costs down for athletes participating in competitive cheerleading
One additional grant award is pending approval and will be announced at a later date.
Over the last four years, the IceHogs Community Fund has awarded $412,000 in grants to Rockford area nonprofit organizations.
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- Equipment Sale and GM Chat Set for Thursday - Bakersfield Condors
- IceHogs Community Fund Awards $100,000 in Grants to Rockford Area Organizations - Rockford IceHogs
- Panthers Agree to Terms with Mike Benning - Charlotte Checkers
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