Dek hockey rink off Route 51 in Westmoreland County wants everyone to feel welcome
BELLE VERNON, Pa. (KDKA) — A small dek hockey rink off Route 51 in Westmoreland County has a special motto: "Hockey is for everyone."
Dek hockey is Drew Temoshenka's game. He's got the gear, the shot and his personal cheering section.
"So many things he couldn't do that he can do now," said Angel Temoshenka, Drew's mother.
Drew is autistic, mostly non-verbal, and was not always picked for the team in the past.
"Now he has self-confidence," Angel said. "He says, 'I can play hockey.'"
He learned how because Hockey is for Everyone, the weekly practices at Bills Dek Hockey in Belle Vernon. People of all ages, needs and abilities do drills. And more importantly, they get to do something they could not do before.
"You constantly come up with a reason as to why they can't," Angel said. "So whenever somebody in the community says I recognize that and I want to help these kids, you have an angel."
"When we first started this, we only had a few kids, " Hockey is for Everyone organizer Neil Morris said. "We didn't care how many we had signed up because we knew we were making a difference in those three of four kids' lives."
Angel said what makes that difference may seem insignificant to some but to her son, it is a breakaway to acceptance.
"They may not be able to hit that winning goal or the basket that wins the game," Angel said. "But they can still be a part of feeling like they're a team and they belong."
On July 22, there is a free-to-play session at the dek hockey rink at 10:30 a.m. Call 724-379-3325 with any questions.
