The community of Tumbler Ridge, B.C., has been named as one of two finalists for the title of Kraft Hockeyville.
The winning community will receive $250,000 in rink upgrades and the opportunity to host an NHL preseason game.
Theresa Nevills, a retired Royal Canadian Air Force veteran who lives on Vancouver Island, nominated Tumbler Ridge for the competition after learning the town’s hockey rink had become a gathering place for residents in the face of unimaginable tragedy.
On Feb. 10, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar shot and killed her mother and stepbrother in the family home and then drove to the high school where she shot and killed five students and a staff member before turning the gun on herself.
With the community still reeling from the impact of the shooting, many view the opportunity to win the annual contest as a welcome distraction.
“Everybody is behind us, and it’s so great for our youth and our children and the community as a whole to see the support,” Mayor Darryl Krakowa told CTV News earlier this month, when Tumbler Ridge was first nominated. “It’s coming in many forms that you don’t realize.”
Taber, Alta. is the other finalist and people will have the opportunity to cast online ballots beginning April 3.
If Tumbler Ridge is successful, it plans to use the prize money to upgrade accessible seating and the sound system in the arena.
The runner up still gets $100,000 for rink upgrades, and both communities have already qualified for $10,000 in brand new hockey equipment.