Since 2009, the Congressional Hockey Challenge has raised over $1 million for charities including the Fort Dupont Ice Hockey Club in Washington, DC, Capital Beltway Warriors Hockey Program, USA Warriors Hockey, the Tampa Warriors annual “22 hours of Hockey” event, and the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association. New to the 2024 game, the game is proud to support the NHL Foundation!
Learn more about our featured charities:
NHL Foundation
The NHL Foundation supports organizations that drive healthy and vibrant communities by leveraging the power of hockey. By doing so, the foundation aims to make a positive social impact and foster environments that are more diverse, inclusive, safe, and welcoming, where hockey can play a vital role.
A portion of the proceeds from this year’s Congressional Hockey Challenge will support the creation of an innovative new grant specifically aimed at empowering young girls to engage with hockey. This new girls hockey grant is dedicated to ensuring that girls from all backgrounds have the chance to experience and participate in hockey.
Fort DuPont Ice Hockey Club
Founded in 1978 by Neal Henderson, the Fort DuPont Ice Hockey Club is an NHL-sponsored, award-winning 501(c)(3) charitable organization providing local and inner-city youth with the opportunity to participate in organized ice hockey. The Fort DuPont Ice Hockey Club is the official hockey program at the Fort DuPont Ice Arena serving children of all age groups. Participants have a wide range of experience in skating and game play and ages range from eight to seventeen. The program teaches young people discipline through athletics and coaching and helps establish self-esteem, a sense of purpose, and offers an incentive to excel academically. The benefits of organized sports extend far beyond the rink: the girls and boys who join the Fort DuPont Ice Hockey Club learn life skills. As these children grow, they will become better citizens and will learn to give respect and anticipate respect. Children participating in the Fort DuPont Ice Hockey Club have a 100 percent high school graduation rate, and over 90 percent continue to higher education
USA Warriors Ice Hockey Program
The USA Warriors Ice Hockey Program has been organized to operate exclusively for charitable and educational purposes for those wounded in defense of the United States, and in conjunction with the USA Hockey Disabled Hockey Program. The Program’s mission is to organize and administer an ice hockey program that provides a recreational, therapeutic experience and education. Some of the programs purposes include encouraging the formation of “USA Warrior Hockey Programs” locally and nationally; working with and training individuals who have incurred physical disabilities during service to the United States to participate in the sport of ice hockey in an environment that is adapted to the level of ability of the athletes; integrating people with disabilities with people without disabilities in order to promote awareness of challenges and to encourage teambuilding. Further, the program uses the game of hockey to assist individuals with disabilities in developing self-confidence, adjusting to their new lifestyle, rehabilitation, self-reliance, concentration, and to assist in helping participants back into mainstream lifestyles they were accustomed to prior to their disability, that will help the individual be more successful both within and outside a hockey environment; educate and encourage the general public about disability sports and USA Warriors Ice Hockey in particular and to promote societal awareness of the sacrifices participants made in defense of our nation.
Tampa Warriors Hockey Heals
The Tampa Warriors are a team comprised of almost 80 disabled veterans that use hockey as a healthy escape that provides veterans the type of camaraderie they’ve been missing since their years of service.
Their Hockey Heals event is a 22 consecutive hour hockey game on March 21-22 against local teams in hopes to raise money and awareness for the 22 daily Veteran suicides epidemic and our Warrior program.