Centennials looking for billet families
By Colin Oswin - Merritt Herald
Published: July 22, 2008 6:00 PM
With hockey season fast approaching, the Merritt Centennials have put out the call for billet families in the community.
The hockey club has secured housing for 10 Cents players in the fall, split between eight billet families. Team president Brian Wiebe says the Centennials are expecting 23 players by the time the season starts, and the club needs more families to step forward and volunteer.
“These are people that, in a lot of instances, haven’t lived away from home ever,” he says. “They’re not cut off [from their families], but having people that care about you in an unfamiliar place makes the whole experience better.”
Billet families receive a monthly stipend to help cover the costs of housing a player. Everyone in the household will be provided with season passes for Centennials games. Billet families will also receive discounts on purchases from Merritt’s M&M Meat Shop, and Wiebe says the hockey club is looking into other savings opportunities in the community.
Centennials billet co-ordinator Melody Johnson, who took over the position from Betty Doberstein this year, says families who open their houses for players are a big part of the hockey team. She says billet families provide the backbone of a player’s stay in Merritt.
“These young men have parents, but we are another support system for them,” she says. “It’s not like you’re raising these kids, but certainly you want to involve them with your family.”
Johnson says billeting is great for small families with younger children. Often, players paired with younger kids will develop a mentoring relationship, with the Cents stars joining pick-up hockey games and other fun sports. She says children also love getting to spend time with players on the local team.
“It is huge, and I’ve seen it time and again with billet families,” she says. “Even if the boys go out and play a little bit of road hockey with them it means the world.”
For more information on
billeting Centennials players,
contact Johnson at (250) 378-6703.
