COVID-19 (3/18 Update: Shelter in Place)

Updated March 18, 2020

Dear League Members,

Due to the recent “Shelter in Place” order issued by Bay Area county officials, we are suspending use of the remainder of ice slots for the Winter 2019-2020 season. For more information on the mandate, please refer to this helpful article:

Sheltering in Place: What You Need to Know

We support everyone doing their part to flatten the curve. Please stay safe and healthy. We will keep you informed of any updates as they become available.

Regards,

NCWHL Board


Updated March 13, 2020

Dear NCWHL,

After careful consideration, we’ve decided to cancel the remainder of our winter season. We feel obligated to do our part in implementing social distancing and not placing skaters at unnecessary risk. Avoiding a crowded locker room will help us achieve this goal.

Through March 21, 2020, we will cancel remaining games, the pre-evals skill clinic (originally scheduled March 17), and the Leaguewide Scrimmage (originally scheduled March 21). We plan to push evaluation sessions back by 2 weeks. We’ll work on an updated schedule and share with you all soon.

Ice the Next 2 Weeks
As we have purchased ice through the 21st, if you are a skater registered this season, you are welcome to use in a non-official capacity as a stick and shoot or pick up scrimmage. We will not have any scorekeepers or referees at these sessions. These will be skate at your own risk events.

Ice Oasis (both San Mateo and Redwood City locations) is looking to modify their schedule for the next week or 2 to implement robust cleaning procedures every 2 hours. If our ice slots get moved, we will notify you.

Our Ask to Protect our Community
We all have a responsibility to look out for each other and to stay away from the rinks if sick or exhibiting ANY symptoms. From the WHO website: Stay at home if you begin to feel unwell, even with mild symptoms such as headache and slight runny nose, until you recover.

If you are confirmed to have COVID-19 or if you’re suspected to have it, and you have recently participated in an NCWHL event, or if you are at the rink in the next couple of weeks with other league skaters, please email ncwhl.main@gmail.com. We recognize the sensitivity around this and will ensure your privacy. It’s important for us to notify others to limit the possible exposure to our community. Your identity will be held private as we  communicate in broad terms such as “a X division skater” or “a participant at X ice slot.” Thank you for your cooperation with this.

Next Season
Evals start next Sunday, but are postponed, as well as the start of the next season. It is our plan and hope to offer a full-length summer season as soon as that makes sense. We will update once we have more information.

General Meeting
The General Meeting (April 11) has been canceled for now. We will evaluate alternatives such as a video meeting/written update. We look forward to scheduling a face-to-face meeting and social event with everyone in the near future! As a not for profit, we have an obligation to hold an annual meeting and elections. Elections for all Board positions, which usually take place at the General Meeting may need to be held online, so look for that to come in your email.

As we continue to get more information, the League will relay updates via email, Facebook and the Weekly newsletter.

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Best regards,
Whitney Kirschbrown on behalf of NCWHL Board


March 8, 2020

Dear All,

Our League will be continuing to hold games, practices, and soon, placement sessions in San Mateo and Redwood City. In response to the coronavirus/COVID19 outbreak, we recommend that we follow guidances put forth by the CDC and WHO, as well as adhere to a list of recommendations from USA Hockey, which can be found here: https://www.usahockey.com/playersafety.

Beyond not showing up to the rink when you’re sick, and practicing good hygiene such as frequent hand-washing, some ‘hockey specific’ practices that should be followed for the foreseeable future include:

  • Handshake lines after games should include fist bumps with gloves on
  • Use individual water bottles; do not share them
  • Towels should not be shared in any way

If you don’t feel comfortable participating in a game or practice, please notify your captains of your absence. Thanks for helping ensure the NCWHL community remains safe and healthy!

Best Regards,
Whitney Kirschbrown
NCWHL President

NCWHL Donates $12,000 to BAYS

A Message from our Community Outreach Coordinator:

On Sunday, July 14, a group of representatives from Bay Area Young Survivors (BAYS) came to accept the check for the money we raised through the NCWHL Invitational in June. Through raffles, donations, and bidding, we were able to raise $6,000 to donate to BAYS. In the days leading up to check delivery, an NCWHL skater reached out to me to regarding having their company match our donation. She and another league member helped complete the match and because of this unbelievably generous offer, we were able to double our donation to $12,000! Thank you, Shelby & Sally!

We surprised BAYS members with this news on Sunday, and needless to say, they were overwhelmed. The funds were earmarked to help send several of their Mets in the City group (those diagnosed with terminal metastatic cancer) to a healing retreat at one of our state parks. It’s an opportunity for them to get out of hospitals, houses, and care facilities. Through our donation, and subsequent match, they will now be able to send the whole group to this retreat.

I want to take a moment to recognize the undeniable collective impact our league has and how, together, we are able to do something amazing. I’m looking forward to continuing our outreach work and providing the league with more ways to give back and be a force for good in our communities.

– Eula
ncwhl.community@gmail.com


 

NCWHL Banner @ Ice Oasis SM

The NCWHL banner at Ice Oasis San Mateo was installed after the Friday night game on June 14, 2019. Installation began close to midnight as a group of skaters stayed after to watch.

IMG_1958Each panel measures 4 feet wide and 6 feet high. It was printed and installed by our friends at SF Sign City. Installation took just under 2 hours.


 

NCWHL Visits Girls Garage

The Girls Garage invited NCWHL out this past weekend for a tour of their space and taught screen printing to League members who participated. As you may recall, the NCWHL held a donation drive for Girls Garage over the 2018 holiday season. Many of our League members were eager to help out and did so with monetary and supply donations. We invited the Girls Garage founders to come out to our General Meeting in April 2019 and share their inspirational stories. Check out their website for more info about the incredible programs they offer to empower young Bay Area girls and see how you can help. We are looking forward to working with this amazing organization again in the future!

About Girls Garage >


 

Invitational News: Raffle/Auction Update!

Sign Up to Play

There’s still time to sign up to play as a free agent in the first ever NCWHL Invitational Tournament on June 21-23. The tentative schedule has games running from 6pm Friday night to 6pm Sunday. The registration link can be found here: https://ncwhl.com/ncwhl-invitational-2019/ We are especially in need of BLUE skaters and are accepting tournament buddies, so bring a friend!

Even if you can’t play, please plan on dropping by on Saturday to participate in our raffle/auction or volunteering for the event. Contact Eula at ncwhl.invitational@gmail.com to help or with any other questions.


Raffle/Auction Update

image1One of the amazing auction items we have is a game used stick signed by Team USA’s Kelli Stack. This stick saw action during the 2014 Sochi Olympics. It includes a personalized message supporting women’s hockey. A huge thank you to Terri Yu for this incredible donation!

unnamedOne of our raffle baskets has the jersey & pucks below (Thank you to Terri Yu for these donations, as well!):

  • Calgary Inferno (CWHL) “You Can Play” game-worn jersey, worn and signed by#20 Kennedy Brown
  • Metropolitan Riveters (NWHL) game puck, signed by #28 Amanda Kessel, 2014 and 2018 Team USA Olympian
  • Boston Pride (NWHL) puck, signed by #22 Haley Skarupa, 2018 Team USA Olympian
  • Boston Pride (NWHL) puck, signed by #16 Amanda Pelkey, 2018 Team USA Olympian

Need Donations For More Baskets

We’d love to make a few more baskets! Here’s where you can help.
We currently have the following themes:

  • USA Hockey
  • Hamilton
  • Spa
  • Cards Against Humanity
  • NCWHL
  • Ghostwood Brewery

If you can help by donating items for the following themes, you would be helping us raise even more money for BAYS!

  • Movies (Tickets, popcorn, DVDs, Candy, etc.)
  • Coffee (Coffee Beans, Mugs, Coasters, French Press, etc.)
  • Wine (Bottles of Wine, Glasses, Stoppers, Corks, Wine Charms, etc.)

Feel free to direct any questions to Eula at ncwhl.invitational@gmail.com