The HEROS program (Hockey Education Reaching Out Society) is an initiative that launched in Vancouver, Canada in 2000 and has since expanded across the country. HEROS has engaged over 7200 boys and girls in 20 programs in 9 cities. HEROS is a program that helps children achieve their goals on the ice and assist with their dreams off the ice.
Nick is one of those children, and this is his story. A story of resiliency, dedication and success.
Nick grew up on the downtown Eastside of Vancouver. An inner city neighbourhood that is known for its high rates of homelessness, drug trade, poverty, and crime. The downtown Eastside of Vancouver is the poorest postal code in Canada. Premier Christy Clark states that currently only about 32 percent of Indigenous inner city students in Vancouver graduate high school.
Nick was one of those kids. A very young man with huge potential, Nick achieved this dream with the support of his new HEROS family.
Nick was raised by a single mother and, while still a young man, helped raise his younger nephew. He came to the HEROS program when he was 12 years old. With much support from teachers, mentors and HEROS volunteers, Nick became the first member of his family to graduate from high school.
HEROS was a stepping stone to future endeavours. It taught me a lot about myself. It gave me a lot of the skills that I needed in life that I wouldn’t have learned otherwise. – Nick
Nick has recently completed his Kinesiology degree with a GPA of 3.3 and is writing his LSAT in September on the road to law school. His goal is to get into a University close to home so he can be near his mom and nephew.
Hockey should be for everyone and so should the right to pursuing human potential. It’s programs like HEROS that bridge the gap between challenges and success.
Click here to learn more about how you can be a hero for a HERO.