Bobcats Visit Local Schools with a Valuable Message
BISMARCK, ND – The Bismarck Bobcats have been busy in November, not only with some big divisional games on the ice, but also with visits to local schools for their Healthy Habits program to talk to elementary school children about the importance of an active, healthy lifestyle and to speak out against bullying.
2015 marks the 12th year the Bobcats have been making appearances at schools around the capital region to present Healthy Habits.
“When we started Healthy Habits in 2004, long before I was even with the team, it started with the message of being active and eating right,” explained Bobcats head coach and general manager Layne Sedevie, who first joined the club as an assistant coach for the 2009-10 campaign, “but it has evolved to also include a very important anti-bullying aspect. Our organization wants to do its part all the time of making Bismarck-Mandan a great place for our kids to grow and learn.”
At each appearance, Bobcat players each speak to multiple physical education classes, take questions from students and then participate in games with the school kids.
“Being able to talk to these kids and tell them about how to stay healthy, be active and stand up to bullying is really important and something that we, as players, take seriously,” stated third-year center Alex Strand, “because we are guys that they can look up to, and they know it hasn’t been that long since we were in their shoes.
“Not only that, but all these kids we get to talk to are smart and funny and are just a lot of fun to interact with.”
Over the past eleven seasons, the Bobcats have been able to spread their positive message to over 10,000 local children.
Healthy Habits has been running so long that the youngest players on the Bobcats—1998 birthyears David Fessenden, Nick Alexander, Jared Resseguie and Solag Bakich—were in second grade themselves when it first began.
The Bobcats are on the road this weekend for a pair of critical divisional contests against the Austin Bruins on Friday and Saturday at Riverside Arena.
Friday’s rivalry tilt will be broadcast live locally on SuperTalk 1270, KLXX-AM, the radio home of Bobcat Hockey, and worldwide online at NAHL.FASTHockey.com—the official web television partner of the North American Hockey League—with pregame coverage starting at 6:35pm.
Season tickets are still on sale for the 2015-16 season at a pro-rated price; if you want to beat the rush of over 40,000 fans for this year, now is the time! Call 222-3300 to reserve your seats today.