As I drive around my neighbourhood, so many houses have hockey sticks out on the porch. It started when TSN Radio Broadcaster Brian Munz shared a text from his friend that showed a hockey stick outside the front door of his house with the caption, “Leaving it out on the porch tonight. The boys might need it… wherever they are.” And suddenly people around the world felt that they could honour the young Humboldt Broncos hockey players who were killed in the horrific bus crash by putting their sticks out too.
A small yet symbolic gesture that travelled around the world. From hockey families coast to coast to Canadian servicemen fighting for our freedom in Iraq, hockey sticks leaned on the wall outside the door.
It shows how much this accident has touched families everywhere. How fragile life is. And how it can change in a heartbeat.
May we keep the Humboldt Broncos in our thoughts and prayers and live each day with the passion and commitment shown by those young hockey players. And leave your stick out on the porch tonight.