Media Advisory: NHL players Georges Laraque & Dan Hamhuis to visit children's
hospital in Haiti as part of "Hockey for Haiti" initiative

...Significant announcement to be made

TORONTO, June 2 /CNW/ -

    
    When:
    Wednesday, June 9 at 10:00 a.m. (Haiti time)/11:00 a.m. EDT (Eastern
    Daylight Time)

    Where:
    Grace Children's Hospital
    No. 38 Delmas 31
    Port au Prince, Haiti
    

What:

NHL players visit Grace Children's Hospital, Haiti's leading pediatric hospital for the treatment of tuberculosis. Devastated by the earthquake, the hospital is now operating an outpatient clinic from tents in the yard.

The National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) and World Vision Canada will make a significant announcement on the "Hockey for Haiti" initiative and how it is helping to rebuild Grace Children's Hospital. They will also provide an update on the NHLPA's online auction of 140 Olympic hockey jerseys worn by NHL players from 12 countries.

"Hockey for Haiti" is a joint initiative between Haitian-Canadian NHL veteran Georges Laraque, the National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) and World Vision Canada to raise funds for Haiti earthquake relief.

    
    Who:
    Georges Laraque, NHL veteran
    Dan Hamhuis, Nashville Predators
    Devin Smith, Chairman, NHLPA Goals & Dreams
    Jonathan Weatherdon, Director, Communications, NHLPA
    Dr. John Yates, Grace Children's Hospital
    Isabelle Depelteau, World Vision Canada
    

World Vision is a Christian relief, development and advocacy organization dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice. We serve all people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity or gender. World Vision has been working in Haiti for more than 30 years and since the January earthquake we have reached more than 1.8 million children and families with food, water, medical supplies, clothing and shelter.

The National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA), established in 1967, is a labour organization whose members are the players in the National Hockey League (NHL). The NHLPA works on behalf of the players in varied disciplines such as labour relations, product licensing, marketing, international hockey and community relations, all in furtherance of its efforts to promote its members and the game of hockey. In 1999, the NHLPA launched the Goals & Dreams fund as a way for the players to give something back to the game they love. Over the past 10 years, more than 40,000 deserving children in 22 countries have benefited from the players' donations of hockey equipment. Goals & Dreams has donated more than $18-million to grassroots hockey programs, making it the largest program of its kind. For more information on the NHLPA, please visit www.nhlpa.com.

For further information: media RSVP, interview requests, photos and b-roll footage, contact: Britt Hamilton (World Vision Canada) - [phone] (ext. 3973), cell: [phone], [email protected]; Andrew Wolfe (NHLPA) - [phone], cell: [phone], [email protected]; Jonathan Weatherdon (NHLPA) - [phone], cell: [phone], [email protected]