30th annual Miners for Cancer hockey tournament donates $30K

Miners for Cancer’s 30th annual hockey tournament has raised another $30,000, pushing its three-decade total to more than $1.63 million.

The Allan Epps Memorial Hockey Tournament once again launched its 30th annual Miners for Cancer campaign, with members of the mining community trading their steel toes for hockey skates in support of the Northern Ontario Families of Children with Cancer.

For participants, the event blends charitable giving with meaningful community connection. Jordan Desilets of the Technica Mining Team highlighted the dual appeal.

“We love to give back. Miners for Cancer is a great organization. It’s a great charity, great fundraiser and, you know, the camaraderie, all the different sites, people you don’t get to see, you know, year-round or every day… and hockey’s just a great time,” said Desilets.

The sentiment was echoed by Parker Tilbury from the TDL Tech Team.

“It’s really special to be able to come out here and have a good time and also support a good cause,” he said.

Three-Decades of Support

The tournament’s impact is substantial and enduring. Over the past three decades, the event has now donated a total of $1.63 million, with this year’s contribution adding $30,000 to that historic sum. Co-founder Wayne Tonelli outlined the organization’s foundational goal.

“Our mandate was to contribute back to the community, basically, and support cancer patients (and) cancer care,” said Tonelli.

Essential support for families in need

Representatives from the beneficiary organization emphasized the critical importance of this sustained partnership. Candy Beatty of NOFCC expressed profound gratitude.

“We cannot do the work that we do without Miners for Cancer and organizations like this that continuously support and work with their hearts and support volunteering, doing whatever they do, they help us,” she said

Overwhelming community participation

The demand to participate underscores the event’s deep resonance within the mining community. Chris Barr, who registered the Cote Gold team, noted the enthusiastic response.

“We jumped on the opportunity and the interest from everybody on site was overwhelming. It was almost too overwhelming to be able to have just one team, but there was only one spot available,” he said.

“As far as the charity is concerned here, it’s just an absolute pleasure to be able to take part.”

Kenna Withers, one of the event’s organizers, captured the essence of the weekend, simply saying “We bring our community together. We are a mining town and it gives us the amazing opportunity to celebrate, have a great, fun weekend and raise money for an amazing cause.”