Pittsburgh Airport Aviators

On January 8, 2012, the Pittsburgh Aviators PeeWee 2 team hosted the kids from Pressley Ridge School for the Deaf.  The Aviator team sold raffle tickets for a Sports Extravaganza package that included tickets to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Penguins and Pitt Basketball.  The team donated 25% of their fundraiser to Pressley Ridge, Pittsburgh, PA.  Each player on the team also filled a shoebox with toys to be donated to the school.

Instead of just sending a check to Pressley Ridge, the team wanted to make the day extra special, so they invited kids from the School for the Deaf to attend a hockey game at the Airport Ice Arena.  Prior to the game, the Pressley Ridge students went back to the locker room to meet the players and they were each presented with an Aviators jersey.  Wearing their new jerseys, the kids from Pressley Ridge went to watch the game between the Aviators and Cambria.  After the game, the Aviator players welcomed their guests to a Fun Skate on the ice.  The interactions between the two groups were incredible.  The communication barrier did not stop anyone from having a good time.  Each group had something to teach, from skating, to hockey skills, to communicating with sign language.  After the skating session both groups went to Qdoba Restaurant in Settler's Ridge and enjoyed lunch together. 

It was an amazing day for the hockey players, the students from the School for the Deaf and the adults.  Everyone walked away with a memory and a lesson learned.