'A very proud project': Ringette athletes hit the ice to fight mental health stigma
Hundreds of athletes hit the ice Saturday to raise money for a new mental health initiative.
The third-annual Ring it on for Mental Health ringette tournament brought together 22 teams at the Rivière Qui Barre Arena to have fun and fight the stigma around mental health.
The charity tournament was founded by Morgan Weisgerber and Kamryn Toal after the death of their teammate Erin Lukas in 2021.
"She battled for a long time with depression, and unfortunately she lost," Weisgerber said. "So we wanted to put something on in memory of her, in honour of her, to remember her for who she was – a fun loving person."
Money raised through registration fees, a raffle and donations will go toward a new pilot program to provide mental health resources for ringette players across Alberta.
The group is hoping to raise $20,000 by the end of April.
This year, for the first time, the event featured a Friday banquet, where keynote speakers touched on topics including mental and physical wellness.
"All the support that we had year one was family and friends," Toal said. "But this year, it was like everyone who spoke at the banquet reached out to us."
"People heard about it and loved what we were doing," she continued. "It was never anticipated that it would get this big, so we're very happy with the progress that we've made, it's a very proud project for us."
Weisgerber said she struggles with her own mental health, and it's been wonderful to have the event grow and have so many more people sharing their stories.
"Everyone has mental health and the more we bring awareness to it, the better we're going to be as a society," she added.
The tournament runs until 9 p.m. Saturday night.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Galen McDougall
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Signs of Alzheimer’s were everywhere. Then his brain improved
Blood biomarkers of telltale signs of early Alzheimer’s disease in the brain of his patient, 55-year-old entrepreneur Simon Nicholls, had all but disappeared in a mere 14 months.
Box tree moths have infested Ontario and experts say more are coming. Here's what to do to protect your garden
An invasive moth species is on the rise in Canada and, if you've planted a certain shrub, it could stand to ruin your garden.
VIA Rail service delayed for hours due to suspicious package investigation in Kingston, Ont.
VIA Rail service resumed in the Kingston, Ont. area late Saturday afternoon, after a suspicious package investigation halted train service for more than four hours over the Victoria Day long weekend.
$500K-worth of elvers seized at Toronto airport
Fishery and border service officers seized more than 100 kilograms of unauthorized elvers at the Toronto Pearson International Airport on Wednesday.
His SUV was stolen on Montreal's South Shore. Then he got a $156 parking ticket
A couple is frustrated after their SUV was stolen from Montreal's South Shore in March and they received a parking ticket for the same vehicle last week.
Banking mogul suing government after intelligence leaks leave him shut out of Canadian economy
Chinese Canadian banking mogul Shenglin Xian has launched a $300 million lawsuit against the federal government. It’s a means to find the source of intelligence leaks which Xian says has cost him his livelihood.
Usyk beats Fury by split decision, becomes undisputed heavyweight champion
Oleksandr Usyk defeated Tyson Fury by split decision to become the first undisputed heavyweight boxing champion in 24 years.
Jesus is their saviour, Trump is their candidate. Ex-president's backers say he shares faith, values
As Donald Trump increasingly infuses his campaign with Christian trappings while coasting to a third Republican presidential nomination, his support is as strong as ever among evangelicals and other conservative Christians.
B.C. pipeline company argues its 'haulers' are not trucks, for tax purposes
A contractor working on the Coastal GasLink pipeline has been denied more than $333,000 worth of tax rebates because pieces of machinery it purchased – and claimed were not trucks – were deemed sufficiently truck-like in B.C. Supreme Court.