Maddy's Hockey Fundraiser

My name is Madelyn Raschdorf and I am sending this letter to request your financial support respectfully. I am proud and excited to announce that I have earned a position on the Vancouver Island Seals, BCEHL female AAA hockey team for the 2022/23 season. For regular season games, our team will travel by bus throughout BC. We will attend several showcases including Pittsburgh, Winnipeg, Nashville, Brampton and Vancouver. I am reaching out today to formally request support to assist in offsetting the cost of fees & travel.

Here is a brief history of my hockey career: I started at age 9 playing forward at the PeeWee level when Saanich Minor Hockey set forth a single all-female team. In the beginning, I spent more time eating ice than skating on it. By my 3rd year of Rec hockey, my development began to accelerate as a center forward. With a nose for the net, a solid physical presence and a strong hockey sense, I became the leading points & goal scorer for my team. As I outgrew the recreation level, we struggled to find higher levels of opportunity and quickly realized there were few options for girls to advance in hockey. At that time, I secured a spot on the Monarchs spring team. For my 4th year, I was one of 4 players permitted to duel card to a recreational coed team where I worked hard to gain the respect of my teammates and was assigned the title of Alternate Captain. That year my teams combined won 5 gold medals and 2 silver medals. The following year, 2018/19, I secured a roster spot with the South Island Royals Bantam AA female team. As a rookie on the team, I wholeheartedly committed to playing as a Defenseman to fill a much-needed role on the team. This experience made me a more rounded player and gave me an invaluable perspective for future battles as a center forward. We won gold at Wickfest in Calgary. For the next 3 years I played centre forward for the South Island Reign AA team, winning Gold at Wickfest a 2nd time. This past season I stepped up as Alternate Captain for my team and led in both points and goals. In addition, I was an active AP for the Seals, where I began developing relationships with the players and the coaches.

Throughout my years as an athlete, I have become very aware of the brutally small space available to female athletes. In addition, high-level sports can be incredibly costly and often out of reach for the average family. I strive to be a strong advocate and example of what girls can do and to help pave the way to a broader spectrum of opportunities, support and accessibility for girls in hockey and all sports. For 4 seasons, I have volunteered as a Junior Coach with the NHL 1st Shift program, a tremendous initiative introducing girls to hockey, providing new players with all-new Bauer gear and loads of on-ice experience at no cost. This summer, I became a coaching assistant with Edges on Ice, coaching summer camps and will continue to coach year-round power skating.

My future hockey goals are to continue to develop in every part of my game and to secure a Div 1 Roster spot on a female University team. I plan to Coach female hockey at all levels and continue to advocate for girls in sports and financial accessibility to high-level sports for all youth. In addition, I further strive to achieve academic scholarships and am pursuing a degree in Science and, ultimately, medicine.

Thank you for taking time to read my letter and consider my request. As I work towards my goals and dreams, your support means the world to me.

To donate your refundable bottles & cans, please deposit to the Glanford, Quadra or Queens Ave Depot account: Maddy's Hockey Fundraiser or email or call me and I will arrange to pick them up from you. If you know of any individual, business or organization who may be interested in providing assistance, please send me their contact information and feel free to share this letter and the link to my Go-Fund-Me page.

My sincerest thanks,

Madelyn Raschdorf