The Pittsburgh Penguins used its position in the city, its brand platforms and its community relationships to support the local community in the aftermath of the tragic Tree Of Life synagogue shooting through an integrated support programme running under the support movement hashtag #StrongerThanHate.
The NHL team used its local network, its brand platform and its community ties to help make a difference and contribute to the community cause through a range of initiatives.
Initially, the team announcement a $50,000 commitment through its Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation, with a $25,000 donation to the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and a fund established by the City of Pittsburgh Department of Safety to benefit police officers wounded during the attack.
The franchise also established a blood drive based in its home stadium – the PPG Paints Arena. Indeed, 48 hours after the shooting, 254 people has donated blood through the scheme and many more had already made future appointments.
Update from yesterday's blood drive: So many people stopped by that we had to make appointments for future dates in order for everyone to donate.@VitalantPA collected 254 units, enough to save or directly impact 762 local lives.
Thank you, Pittsburgh. You are incredible. pic.twitter.com/WmFMZXL0xt
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 30, 2018
On 30 October, the Penguins held their first home game (against the New York Islanders) after the tragedy which saw the team honour the victims and help raise further donations through a set of events.
Pre-game there was an 11-second silence to honour the 11 victims and a video highlighting the heart and soul of Pittsburgh sports fans and their ability to unite as one.
We stand together.#StrongerThanHate pic.twitter.com/EU6G2iotIZ
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 30, 2018
This was followed by a ceremonial puck drop in the arena with three of the wounded officers.
We're honored to have Officer Mike Smidga, Chief Scott Schuber, and Officer Anthony Burke join us for tonight's ceremonial puck drop.
Thank you. pic.twitter.com/Rxlv8EBCxy
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 30, 2018
“When all of us heard the news, we took it personally. Everyone was thinking, ‘What can I do to help?’ It was our responsibility to use our unique platform for the greater good of the community,” recalled Penguins communications VP Tom McMillan.
“There were a lot of internal emails, texts and phone calls going around in the 24-hour period following the shooting as to what we should do. We had an away game the Saturday of the shooting. So, we immediately announced a commitment of $50,000 through the Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation. We then turned our focus on what we can do going forward.”
The players themselves also got involved as they wore special ‘Stronger Than Hate’ jersey patches for the game.
#StrongerThanHate pic.twitter.com/rgm5NCP6U0
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 30, 2018
“Our biggest priority was making sure we did this in a respectful way,” said McMillan. “When we came up with the patch design, we ran it past Jewish Federation, as well as local rabbis in town to make sure that they approved.”
These game-worn jerseys were then all autographed by players and auctioned off (via an initiative that run up to 13 November) to raise further funds for the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and The Pittsburgh Public Safety Department.
The Penguins' game-worn #StrongerThanHate jerseys are up for auction.
All proceeds from the auction will benefit @JewishFedPGH and a fund established by the @PghPublicSafety to benefit police officers wounded during the attack.
Bid here: https://t.co/43KzCgQxIA pic.twitter.com/7NwGLMKVAt
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) October 31, 2018
Demand for the special patches was very high so the team also began selling them individually, while further sums were raised via fan donations, plus other in-game auctions, raffle contributions (both in Pittsburgh and around the NHL)
Amazing Story: Last night’s 50/50 raffle winner, a #Caps Season Ticket Member, chose to waive their prize so @MSEFndn could donate the total $38,570 jackpot raised to @JewishFedPGH to benefit victims and families of the Tree of Life Synagogue in Squirrel Hill. #StrongerThanHate https://t.co/OhVSLqOvTT
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) November 8, 2018
and a special text-to-donate program.
Hatred cannot weaken a city of steel.#StrongerThanHate patches are on sale now. All proceeds will go to @JewishFedPGH to benefit victims and families of the Tree of Life Synagogue.
Full details: https://t.co/MQQfXtjP9y
Order yours: https://t.co/g4qoPXXW0M pic.twitter.com/GTfz0vw9C3— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) November 3, 2018
In total, the Penguins had donated around half a million dollars since the shooting.
Over the past week and a half, Pittsburgh has come together in the wake of tragedy. Earlier today, $348,705 was donated to @JewishFedPGH.
Additional funds will be donated, as the #StrongerThanHate jersey auction and patch sale are ongoing.
Details: https://t.co/Ypm58spJ3Z pic.twitter.com/WgAJhmd6LW
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) November 8, 2018
Comment:
Pittsburgh is known across the USA as a sports city and this community commitment from the NHL side shows that sports can play its own small support role and help communities begin to recover.
We admire the Penguin’s team’s work and its commitment and it reminds us that while sometimes sports teams seem like international commercial franchises, at other times they are still a core pillar off their local communities.
As the Penguins are proving, sports team have powerful platforms to provide support, raise funds and bring people together.
“Coming out of a tragedy, you want to help restore a sense of normalcy,” added McMillan.
“We wanted to make sure we did this the right way. While there were a lot of things going on very quickly, you could get a sense of people wanting to contribute. We were fortunate to use our platform to lend a hand.”
Links:
Pittsburgh Penguins
https://www.facebook.com/penguins/
https://www.instagram.com/Penguins/
Leave a comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.