The Saint John Vito's hockey team participated our Bridging Cultural Diversity Training through a Zoom meeting on June 14th, 2020. This workshop is offered to any of business who wish to gain a better understanding of the importance of inclusiveness, communication and teamwork in their professional and personal lives.
Li Song and Sheri McAulay, as speakers, shared that so many people in our community feel excluded and disrespected, and that is completely unacceptable. Kelly VanBuskirk (Q.C., Ph.D, C.Arb. (P.C.); Partner, Professional Corporation Inc.), as representative of the team, said, "As leaders in the community, each one of you has a chance to have a positive influence on others. The legendary Texas football coach, G.A. Moore, Jr., said that he approached everyone with the understanding that they would see him as either a 'plus' or a 'minus' in their lives, and he tried to be a plus. We can all do the same , especially with people who have suffered discrimination based on race, sex, sexual orientation, religion and disability.
In my view, we have a lot of work to do as an organization to improve the way that each one of us views the world, and if we can create an ongoing relationship with PRUDE, we will be able to make ourselves better.
For all of the Vito’s players, it will be important to remember that our players not only represent Saint John and southern New Brunswick but they also represent the game of hockey and themselves as individuals. How each of us behaves influences the way that we are thought of as people and as representatives of our community and our sport."
The feedback from Kelly encourages PRUDE to continue to deliver our education and do our best for the community of Saint John.
“The Saint John Vito’s Under 18 AAA hockey players, coaches and administrators were truly impressed and impacted by PRUDE Saint John Inc.’s Cultural Diversity Workshop. Historically, hockey hasn’t been a very diverse sport, and that’s a problem. PRUDE’s training program was an engaging and educational way to rethink the way that we treat each other. For team sport athletes, being respectful, tolerant and cooperative with people of all races, genders, religions and backgrounds is essential – not only as players, but more importantly as members of our community.” – Kelly VanBuskirk, Saint John Vito’s Under -18 AAA Hockey Program.
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