You see this amazing structure behind me that we're so proud of and so excited to present to the military kids and military families that we support.”

Shane Hudella

The crowd gathered under a bright morning sky, bundled against a late fall chill, but warmed by pride in a project that has taken years of hope, planning, and stubborn Minnesota grit. The United Heroes League cut the ribbon on its new outdoor rink and facility, located at 15211 Ravenna Trail, a space designed to give military kids a home for hockey that feels every bit as real and respected as the sport they love.
Shane Hudella, the driving force behind the effort, stepped up first. He looked out at the families, the partners, and most of all the kids, who waited patiently in their team gear.
“You see this amazing structure behind me that we're so proud of and so excited to present to the military kids and military families that we support,” Hudella said. The crowd turned to take in the building, a sharp contrast from the temporary setup that used to stand here. Hudella did not sugarcoat that past. “We had tents for locker rooms, we had no running water, and we had port a pots, and that was it. So, we're all hearty Minnesotans, but a port a pot in January just isn't ideal, right?”
That line earned a round of laughter, but it also drew a clear picture of why this new rink matters. The old conditions were enough to make games possible, but not comfortable. The new facility, built with professional quality gear and designed with real locker rooms, reflects something deeper. These families, Hudella said, deserve more than make do spaces while they shoulder the unique weight of military life.
“A lot of people don't think about it, but it's really these kiddos on my left, when mom and dad go away to serve their country, that oftentimes wonder, how come mom or dad aren't here?” he said. “It's the holidays. How come they're not at my birthday? How come they're not at my big game?” The rink, he added, is one way to give them a sense of belonging and a place to feel celebrated. He promised that the locker room experience for the kids that day “rivals the Minnesota Wild locker room.”
The new rink also arrives at the perfect time. Hastings will host Hockey Day Minnesota 2026, the twentieth anniversary of the statewide tradition that blends community pride, outdoor hockey, and wall to wall festivities. Hudella said they expect “100,000 people visiting our campus over the course of eight days of programming” and called it “an incredible experience” that the United Heroes League is proud to share with Hastings.
To get here, the organization needed partners, and Hudella welcomed several of them to the microphone. First was Ann Behrendt, CEO of Doran Companies, which led the construction. She remembered touring the grounds years ago, when it was still only a vision. “I walked this site with Shane, what a couple years ago, when it was nothing,” she said. She also shared a moment of inspiration from a recent event where she heard former President George W. Bush speak. “What he saw again and again that he said is uniquely American, is an incredible drive to help at a local level,” she recalled. She said this project is exactly that kind of local commitment, sparked by “a visionary leader, Shane's idea and dream and drive.”
Next came Hastings Mayor Mary Fasbender, who spoke with enthusiasm about both the rink and the upcoming Hockey Day celebration. She opened with the reminder that the event also honored Veterans Day, saying it was her “great honor and heartfelt joy” to welcome everyone. She offered a thoughtful reflection on the weight carried by military families whose lives often revolve around deployments, separations, and constant change.
“United Hero League supports military kids and their families in overcoming those obstacles through sports,” she said, adding that the programs “provide family the opportunity to reconnect, grow and together, strengthen family connections.”
She also described what the new locker rooms will become for young players, saying, “There will be high fives in between period pep talks. It will experience tears of joy of a winning game and tears of sadness of a losing game.” The phrase that came to her was familiar and fitting. “If these walls could talk,” she said, the crowd smiling at the image.
Corporate partners then took turns offering congratulations and stories of their own. Twin Cities Orthopedics, the title sponsor for Hockey Day 2026, was represented by marketing director Meghan Hodgden.
“It’s a true privilege to be here with you today,” she said, adding that the United Heroes League and TCO share a belief in “the power of sports to unite people.”
Her remarks were followed by Pella’s Mark Brandenhoff, who greeted the crowd with an energetic “Good morning hockey fans.” He shared memories of outdoor rink life in Bloomington, complete with early mornings, frostbitten cheeks, and the unmistakable sound of a puck hitting a post. The nostalgia was not just for effect. He said he believes this facility will create the same kind of lasting memories for military families.
“Our purpose at Pella is to improve people's view of the world and the place in it,” he said, noting that the mission of the United Heroes League fits perfectly with that idea.
More partners followed, including APX’s Wes Jivovec, who highlighted the role hockey can play in shaping young people. He spoke of the ideals his group values, including “dedication, diligence, integrity, collaboration and resilience,” and encouraged kids to draw inspiration from the veteran community.
Finally, Pat Regan of Minnesota Coaches stepped up with a mix of humor, gratitude, and a personal story from decades earlier when, at seven years old, he fell through the ice at Silver Lake. Heroes pulled him out that day, he said, which made standing at this celebration feel all the more meaningful.
“Who knew I'd be standing here 60 years later to celebrate this phenomenal sport and these phenomenal heroes in such a phenomenal place?” he said.
After all the speeches, Hudella returned to the microphone, thanked the partners again, and invited everyone to gather for the ribbon cutting. The kids, who had waited patiently through stories, applause, and memories stretching back half a century, perked up. Their turn was coming. The rink was ready. The ice waited.
The ribbon finally fell, the applause rose, and the celebration moved into the full schedule that organizers had prepared for the Veterans Jamboree. The day had been planned with a steady rhythm in mind. Gates were set to open at 9 in the morning with locker room tours, followed by a 10 o’clock ribbon cutting, an 11 o’clock military kids hockey clinic, the annual Veterans Game midafternoon, and youth hockey matchups between Hastings, New Prague, and Hopkins later on.
But Minnesota delivered a twist that even seasoned rink builders could not avoid. The temperature climbed and held in the sixties, a beautiful forecast for a fall Saturday, but a headache for anyone responsible for keeping a painted sheet of ice intact. Hudella had seen it coming earlier in the week. As of Monday, November 10, he already had his eyes locked on the forecast.
“There is a fine line we have to walk regarding the ice,” he said at the time. “We need the weather to be a little colder to safely make ice.”
By the time the Jamboree arrived, the prediction had held. What would normally feel like a gift for families strolling an outdoor event became a technical problem for the brand-new rink. The chilling system could not overcome the warm sun, and the subsurface needed special protection. Hudella explained earlier that “there is actually a complex painting and decorating process that takes place prior to the flooding of the rink.” This year, the process included the Hockey Day Minnesota logos, created in Canada on permeable cloth. They were not just decorative, but symbolic of the milestone year ahead. If the ice softened, those logos were at risk of stretching, tearing, or freezing into bubbles that could not be repaired.
Decorating a rink is far more involved than most fans realize, and far more expensive. The painting must be preserved, protected, and sealed under a proper base layer before flooding. Without that foundation, every pass of a skate blade becomes a potential gouge through hours of delicate work. Hudella had said a decision on flooding would need to be made close to event time, and he meant it. The team waited as long as they could, checked the system, monitored the surface, and weighed the cost of moving forward.
In the end, the answer was simple. The ice could not go down. It was too risky, too warm, and too costly to the artwork and to the preparations already underway for Hockey Day Minnesota 2026. The hockey portion of the event shifted, but the spirit stayed intact.
The military kids’ clinic, instead of skating drills on fresh ice, transformed into a street style session with dryland training gear. What could have felt like a letdown turned into a lively scene. Young players ran drills with sticks and rubber balls, shouted advice to one another, and adapted with the easy flexibility that kids seem to master better than adults. Coaches traded skates for sneakers, and the focus stayed the same. Confidence, teamwork, and joy matter whether a puck is flying across ice or skimming across pavement.
The families lining the boards did not seem to mind. The setup felt more relaxed, more open, and easier for the littlest players to jump in. It was appreciated that the clinic continued as promised, even when the weather refused to cooperate. The goal, as always with United Heroes League events, was to make military kids feel seen, supported, and celebrated. A warm day did not change that.
The warm weather could not cool the momentum that surrounded the new structure itself. Tours continued as planned in the morning, giving families a chance to peek into the professional grade locker rooms, touch the new benches, and take in the space that had been built with so much intention. Visitors paused often to admire the details, thinking of the games ahead, the celebrations, and the hours of practice that would shape the next generation of players.
Though the hockey could not unfold exactly as scheduled, the Jamboree still became a day filled with movement, noise, and gratitude. Volunteers guided families around the grounds. Kids carted floor hockey sticks and gear bags across the pavement. Parents snapped photos in front of the new building. Veterans received thanks from every corner of the event, and many found themselves surrounded by young players eager to hear a story or two.
By late afternoon, the sun still sat warm above the facility, another reminder of the unusual November stretch. The organizers packed up the dryland equipment with the confidence that colder days were coming. They knew the ice would be ready soon enough. The concrete would be painted, the logos sealed, and the rink would freeze into the kind of crisp, fast surface that outdoor hockey fans dream of.
For now, the Jamboree had given military families a day to gather, explore, and celebrate a place built for them. The games would come later. The ice would come with time. But the message had already landed. The United Heroes League had created a home for these kids, and even on a warm November day, it already felt like one.