Richfield Discussions
Kennedy - Richfield Q & A
Q&A for Families Playing on Teams Not Hosted by Their Home Association (e.g., Richfield kids playing on Kennedy hosted teams)
Q. Do we need a waiver?
A. Yes, District 6 requires that any kid playing outside of his or her home association must get a waiver to play for another association, even where the two associations have a cooperative agreement like Kennedy and Richfield. After evaluations are complete and the rosters are set, Kennedy and Richfield will exchange waivers for Kennedy and Richfield kids playing on teams hosted by the other association.
Q. What happens to the initial payment I made to my home association when I registered?
A. The $40 USA Hockey fee and $150 Registration/Eval fee have been applied. Any additional balance showing on your account will be transferred from your home association to the association hosting your team, and will be applied against your hockey bills.
Q. Do I send my payments to my home association during the season?
A. No, after October 15th you will receive hockey bills from the association hosting your team and will make payments to that association.
A. You can take part in fundraising programs offered by your home association or the association hosting your team.
Q. Am I required to meet my home association's volunteer requirement?
A. No, you will be required to meet the volunteer requirement of the association hosting your team. Both associations require families to submit a volunteer deposit – for Kennedy $150 and for Richfield $250. Those deposits will be returned after your family meets the volunteer hour requirement of the association hosting your team – for Kennedy 10 hours per family and for Richfield 20 hours per family.
Q. Will all of my team's practices and games be at BIG, if I am playing on a Kennedy hosted team?
A. No, Kennedy and Richfield are doing a combined ice draw. That means all of the teams hosted by both associations will have ice at both BIG and Richfield.
on the Terms of a Cooperative Relationship
There is no question that District 6 is the toughest district in Minnesota Hockey. Its also no secret that Kennedy and Richfield are the smallest associations in District 6. Our small size presents real challenges when it comes to placing skaters at the appropriate level (A, B or C) to maximize hockey development and team success. At Kennedy that has sometimes been a problem. At Richfield the problem is acute.
With that in mind, subcommittees from the Kennedy and Richfield associations began meeting in February to discuss the challenges faced by each association and the terms of a cooperative agreement for the 2011-2012 season. Through that process, the subcommittees came up with a format that would provide for player sharing at all traveling levels. More specifically, Kennedy and Richfield kids would go through clinics together in September and evals in October, and would be placed in A, B or C pools. "A" teams would be hosted by Kennedy. If a pool is sufficiently large to provide enough skaters for two or more teams at the B or C levels, the Richfield kids would be rostered on one of the teams along with some Kennedy kids and that team would be hosted by Richfield. Please note : the subcommittees agreed that we would go forward with this format on a one-year trial basis. At the end of the year, we will review how this arrangement worked and decide whether to continue working together or go our separate ways.
Richfield's Board approved the format proposed by the two subcommittees at its meeting on Monday, June 13, and the Kennedy Board unanimously voted to approve the format at its meeting on Thursday, June 16. In coming weeks, the Kennedy and Richfield subcommittees will continue to meet to work out details concerning certain policies and requirements for families with skaters playing on a team hosted by the other association - e.g., volunteer policies, fundraising opportunities, jersey expense, payment options, and more. We will schedule an All-Association meeting for mid- to late- July to provide detailed information to parents about the proposed cooperation agreement, and to answer questions and listen to concerns.
This is an exciting opportunity to improve the developmental opportunities for Kennedy skaters, while also giving kids from Richfield a place to play association hockey. We know there will be questions and concerns, but we believe the benefits of moving forward with a cooperation agreement with Richfield outweigh the negatives. As always, parents should feel free to contact Kennedy Board members, our VP Joe Vodovnik or me to discuss any concerns and ask any questions.
John Hauge
KHBC President
Kennedy Commitee
John Hauge (Vice President and U14, Squirt and Mite Parent) (612-963-0260; email jchauge@q.com)
Joe Vodovnik (Coaches Select and Pee Wee and Mite Parent) (612-817-1519; email jvodovnik@yahoo.com)
Mike Zielinski (BAHA President and Bantam Parent) (612-618-6866; email mikeazielinski@comcast.net)
Mark Arendt (Squirt Parent) (612-369-2631; email mark@innovativemediasystems.com)
Dan Obermeyer (Bantam and PeeWee Parent/Tournaments & Team Manager-all around Kennedy guy) 612-518-8744
Over the last few years, Kennedy has partnered with the folks at Richfield to share players in certain instances where our numbers just weren’t working out. This season, we had some Richfield kids play on our Peewee teams, and one of our Kennedy skaters played on a Richfield Bantam team. The arrangement this season has been viewed as successful by both associations.
The KHBC board has created a subcommittee to take a look at how we can work with Richfield to identify partnership opportunities earlier in the process. In the past, we’ve been less proactive, which has meant some scrambling at the beginning of the season. It’s also created some uneasiness for families and players entering tryouts without a clear understanding of how many teams or what levels will be offered. Our hope is that if there are partnership opportunities, we can communicate our plan well in advance of the season and help manage expectations for players and families.
It should be noted that neither Kennedy nor Richfield is looking for a merger or permanent agreement. Richfield is firmly intent on rebuilding their program, while at Kennedy, we feel like our rebuilding process is well under way. We believe our brand is strong and will proceed carefully to protect the equity in the Kennedy Hockey identity. Any agreement would be designed to secure the long-term success of the two independent programs.
The committee met with a similar group from Richfield for the first time this week. The intent of this first meeting was not to reach an agreement, but instead to better understand the issues, concerns and hopes of both associations. As part of this process, the Board believes it is critical that all Kennedy association members have an opportunity to ask their questions and voice their concerns about the level and form of cooperation between the two associations.
With that in mind, we are asking all members who do have questions or concerns about these discussions and the future relationship of the Kennedy and Richfield associations to contact one of the committee members with those questions and concerns.
