It seems strange, that I haven’t posted here in Months, caught up in the flurry of returning from the States, tumbling back into School and Hockey. It seems in stark contrast that my last post was in memorial of the amazingness that was Brendan Burke and here is my application essay to the internship in his honour. I do not think I will get it, in large part due to the fact I am both outside the realm of what they’re looking for I’d imagine, and that I am still 6 months shy of graduation. Trying never hurt though,
Hockey Life (or something like it)..
Sasky Stewart
It’s an unusual thing, to find a girl so in love with hockey, so passionate and dedicated to the most untypical of her nation’s sport down here in the most unlikely of hockey countries. Or so I’m told. I’ve never really felt it was unusual because to me, hockey is an extension of my being, who I am and what I do.
Hockey is not a sport I fell in love with and have dedicated so much of my life so far too because it was what was expected of me or because it is what everyone else did. Hockey is a sport I fell in love with because from the moment I first saw it, first stepped foot in a rink and heard the noise of skates, I had no other choice. I do not come from a hockey family or a town that even had an ice rink. I did not spend nights watching the Redwings only to get up before dawn, dragged out of bed by parents for practice. This makes no difference as over the past years hockey has become so much a part of me that it has shaped the person I am today.
To the sport of hockey I owe a lot. It has made me strong and determined. It has taught me the value of hard work and that nothing is a bar to by success, not my size, my gender or my nationality, if I am willing to dedicate myself to the pursuit of my goals. It has taught me to find the strength needed to pull myself up every time I fall, how to be a team mate and at the same time how to lead those around me.
I could list my achievements in the hockey world, what I have done but a resume does not capture who I am as a person or how I got to where I am today. Since I first fell in love with the sport, I have dedicated myself to it, through play (as a member of the National Women’s League) and through work. When the opportunity arose I jumped at the chance to join the Board of the AIHL, not only to gain further experience in the management of the sport I love but as it presented a chance to walk the talk and make a meaningful contribution to the sport that means so much. I’ve worn many hats in the name of hockey from events co-ordinator to marketing and communications director, development leader to social media guru and even branching out to goalie coach, boards repair and first aid officer (my ability to repair facial wounds is actually getting quite good) and I have taken each of these on board with the same dedication and passion that I live my entire life with.
I’ve never been a small thinker, at 5 wanting to be prime minister and at 15 a judge. For the last while however, I’ve had my sights set on being the first female Commissioner of the NHL. These aren’t small goals and despite being small I’ve never aimed for anything less than the biggest dreams I could think of. That’s why when I wanted to learn more about developing and running hockey I set my sights on an NHL internship. After devising a promotional method and package and approached every single team until Ted Leonsis of the Capitals brought me on board. Less than a year later and with summer break once again approaching and faced with the not to appealing prospect of 3 months sitting around, I turned to the WHL this time for an internship which would help me learn and grow as a hockey professional.
I admit, I am unsure of my eligibility for this internship due to my location outside the USA. What I have learnt however, is that much akin to the Gretzky attitude on shot taking, 100% of the chances you don’t take you don’t get. This is a chance I will always take.
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I would like to start off by commenting that as a young, female hockey-person, I find this blog empowering (not to mention highly informative as well). You are genuinely passionate about hockey, and it certainly shows.
Having heard about the Brendan Burke internship and also having heard about your accomplishments in the realm of hockey, I truly hope that you get it! As far as you being from outside the U.S., that’s probably to your advantage (beyond the fact the app doesn’t detail ineligibility for those outside the US); you have that global perspective on hockey that most candidates may not have.
Again, I truly appreciate what you have demonstrated in terms of working to break into the administrative world of hockey as a female and non-North American. It was amazing when Sherry Ross, for example, became the first female to cover full play-by-play for an NHL game. It sure is awesome being a witness of females finding their way into different niches in hockey.
And it seems obligatory that I comment on the inspiration that is Brendan Burke. The unpredictable Team USA Olympic performance was for him.