Sagkeeng family asks for help so son can pursue dream of pro-hockey career

A Sagkeeng First Nations family is appealing to the public to raise money for their 15-year-old son to go to continue his schooling at an elite hockey school.

John Spence has already held raffles, a bike-a-thon and other fundraising efforts to pay for his son Preston's $26,000-per-year tuition at Pilot Mound Hockey Academy.

Preston wants to be a professional hockey player and has already been scouted by two Western Hockey League teams.

"Especially all the exposure those guys get that go through [Pilot Mound Hockey Academy] – that was very appealing for us as parents," he said. "They travel quite a bit, through the States. They went to Germany already, and they're going to Calgary."

Spence said it means a lot that their son, who is aboriginal, is getting the opportunity to go to a school that lets him get an education and focus on hockey, but the price tag is beyond what the family can afford.

"Even as parents, it's hard for us to come up with that kind of money," said Spence.

Spence biked 220 kilometres from Winnipeg to Seymourville this week and raised close to $3,000.

Other fundraising efforts have brought that total up to $7,000 – still far short of their goal.

"As a human being, I thought it was something to try for – just to do that distance," said Spence.

"I wish there was more things we could tap into to have an opportunity for our aboriginal youth to pursue their dreams like that," He said.

The family has a GoFundMe page going to help cover the rest of the tuition and is working on events like socials to raise the remaining cash.