Next week, the Andrea Henderson Memorial Fund will host the final Leap Towards a Cure hockey tournament and community festival at The Gardens Ice House, with a goal of surpassing $200,000 in total donations for cancer research.
The event started in 2010 as a tribute to Andrea ‘Froggy’ Henderson, an art teacher at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Md., who passed away from breast cancer that year. Mrs. Henderson was a highly respected teacher, influencing countless students, including comedian Martin Lawrence (Read more about this inThe Washington Post). Mrs. Henderson sponsored the hockey team at Roosevelt.
“When Jason Harab [ERHS ’04] and myself began to put together this tournament, it was imperative that we make it an event for the entire community,” said Abram Fox [ERHS ’01], a tournament rec league hockey player. “While Froggy was a huge supporter of the Roosevelt hockey team, she would also proudly proclaim her complete lack of knowledge of all things hockey. She made our team possible because she knew she was dealing with students with enough passion and focus to make it worthwhile, not because she had any personal stake in the sport.”
Proceeds benefit pediatric oncology at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, via the Andrea Henderson Memorial Fund. The event has raised over $165,000 so far.
The tournament will be held Aug. 1-4 at The Gardens Ice House, in Laurel, Md., featuring several teams of multiple levels in a round robin tournament. It will include a free community festival, food, arts and crafts for kids, an open skate, and other festivities.
Past events have included former NHL players, such as Craig Laughlin , Gord Lane, Alan Hangsleben and Gary Rissling, and members of the USA Warriors hockey team, and Olympic gold medalist and NWHL player Haley Skarupa. The tournament has been featured in several local hockey blogs and media outlets.
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Here is Caps Outsider’s coverage of past events:
Fourth Annual Leap Towards a Cure Hockey Tournament and Festival
Former Eleanor Roosevelt Teacher to Be Honored in Laurel Tournament
