Remarks at the 37th Mayors’ Dinner by Rob and Michele Way
Published June 2026
The success of Hockey Helps the Homeless in Waterloo Region is driven by an incredible local committee—deeply passionate, generous with their time, and committed to this work. Their work and heavy lifting translates into supporting 6 local charity partners who collectively work hard to support those experiencing homelessness in our community.
A quick question. Raise your hand if you watched the Women’s, Men’s or Paralympic Gold Medal Olympic hockey games. Look around this room – so many of us are rooted in the game and invested in the outcome.
Hockey is deeply woven into the fabric of our country, our towns, our homes.
At Hockey Helps, we say, “It’s bigger than the game!” It is a powerful tool for bringing more people into the work of supporting those experiencing homelessness.
Hockey Helps the Homeless runs Pro-Am hockey events from coast to coast. Last year alone, 21 events across Canada invested more than $5 million into frontline homelessness programs. Right here in Waterloo Region, our own event invested $352,000 locally, and over $2.9 million in 12 years.
And those numbers aren’t abstract. They’re meals served, beds provided, counselling sessions delivered, addiction supports accessed, youth finding stability and families staying together.
Just as important as the dollars raised, is how we do it.
Because Hockey Helps isn’t just a fundraiser – it’s a tool for education & inclusion.
It combines the love of a game, with support for those less fortunate. It creates a means for participation. It gives people permission and a reason to step in.
Let me paint a picture of what participating with Hockey Helps feels like.
For most players it begins long before they hit the ice. They reach out to friends, families, colleagues and clients. They ask for financial pledges and share the Hockey Helps story. Something important happens: they are given a tool, an opportunity and an invitation to engage others and they move from passive supporters to active ambassadors.
On actual game day, the pro experience begins. From greeters carrying your bag, a jersey with your name bar and all the support of hosts, trainers, food and most importantly a chance to share the ice with an NHL alumni or Olympic athlete. And in this hockey world you feel part of an amazing team surrounded by the knowledge that you are making a difference.
Before the whistle of the first game, a charity partner, with the players on bended knee, tells of the importance of the work supporting those who are homeless. And how this tournament is more than a hockey game. You’re reminded that every dollar connects directly to real people, right here in our Region.
As John Neufeld would say, I once thought the difference between me being housed and those experiencing homelessness is as far apart as the length of this ice surface, but now I know it’s only as wide as this blueline.
By the end of three exciting games, you’re exhausted—but it’s the good kind. The kind that comes from effort, connection and purpose.
You leave with great memories, knowing you were included in something that truly matters and makes a real difference.
That’s the magic of Hockey Helps the Homeless.
Yes, it’s about playing hockey like a pro for a day. More importantly, it’s about giving people a tool and an invitation to act, using something they already love doing, to help those less fortunate.
Behind every statistic is a person. Someone’s child. Someone’s parent. Someone who never imagined this would be their story. I remember one of our team captains sharing with me that he had found a way to help his brother, because his family had lost the ability to do that, when they lost him to the streets. He told me he learned how the charity partners were helping him and that by simply playing hockey, he had found a way to support him. He had found a way in.
Our charity partners are doing extraordinary work, often under immense pressure. When we invest in homelessness programs, we’re not just funding emergency responses—we’re investing in prevention, stability, dignity and pathways forward. We’re investing in people.
That’s why Hockey Helps the Homeless fits so well with how we think about giving back.
We believe in inclusion through multiplication. We believe in exponential giving, one person’s support growing to a network of support.
When one person gives, that’s good. When that person is given a tool to invite five others, that’s better. When hundreds of players are empowered to fundraise—engaging their networks, their workplaces, their families—the impact multiplies. It’s truly the power of collective giving.
Hockey becomes the hook. Community becomes the force. Inclusion becomes the engine.
Most people care. They care about our neighbours and those less fortunate. They care about dignity and opportunity. But many won’t act—physically or financially—unless they’re invited. Not because they don’t care. But because life is busy. Because they’re waiting for a way in or maybe they don’t know how to find that way in. Hockey Helps provide a doorway in.
When we first became involved with Hockey Helps in our Region, 13 years ago, as volunteers, I’ll admit, I didn’t know much about those experiencing homelessness or the work of our charity partners. I had thoughts that many of you might have or had: there’s jobs out there, they just need to go get one; just stop taking the drugs; just get off the street. But I learned very quickly through getting involved, listening, getting to know folks and seeing first hand that no one wakes up and chooses to live on the streets; that stories of trauma, injury, death and financial insecurity happen and change lives in an instant, as quickly as skating over that blue line. And that’s when I knew that giving of our time and skills to help put on our Hockey Helps events was a way of giving back to our community.
Hockey Helps the Homeless recently did a unique outreach in Nunavut, an Inuit community with very limited resources. With 22 NHL alumni including Jordin Tootoo and Joe Thorton we brought the first ever Northern NHL Alumni tournament to their community. Through corporate sponsorships, we were able to leave in excess of $275,000 for our most northern Canadian neighbours where food and housing insecurity is a constant reality.
Tonight, we leave you with this direct call to action, because Rob and I are always looking for ways to get folks involved: if you’re in a position to sponsor, refer a player or support a frontline organization, please do!
Invite someone onto your team—whether that’s a hockey roster, a fundraising campaign, a board, a volunteer initiative, or an idea that hasn’t even been launched yet. Ask them. Encourage them. Give them a reason to say yes.
Because every time you include one more person, you expand the circle of care, you grow support exponentially—and strengthen the community we all share.
That’s what Hockey Helps the Homeless shows us is possible: when passion meets purpose, when sport meets service, and when inclusion meets opportunity.
Let’s keep inviting. Let’s keep engaging. Let’s keep including. And let’s keep multiplying the difference we make, together.
Because in the end, inclusion isn’t just a principle—it’s the most powerful tool we have.
Rob and Michele Way live, work and have raised their family in Waterloo Region, building deep roots in both the business and nonprofit communities. For decades, Rob and Michele have dedicated significant volunteer time and financial support to help advance the missions of The United Way, The Sunshine Foundation, and KidsAbility among many groups they have supported.
Hockey Helps the Homeless is a not-for-profit hockey charity with over 20,000 donors, 3,000 players, and 1,000 volunteers that participate annually, and together, we “play with purpose”. All net proceeds stay local in the city they are raised in, and support our 60+ local homeless support agencies across Canada. Since 1996, HHTH has granted over $33 million to shutout homelessness. The next Waterloo Region Tournament will be held on Friday, October 30th, 2026 at RIM Park.
