With Christmas almost upon us, it is hard not to think about the Kiwanis/Cambria Hockey Festival. In its 23rd year, it remains one of the top holiday tournaments in the area.
Taking place the week after Christmas, the Kiwanis hockey festival has been a staple in Rochester for families to go watch hockey during the holiday season at Graham Arena.
The tournament gives the Rochester high schools an opportunity to compete against top-level competition from outside the area with Century, John Marshall, Mayo and Lourdes high schools all competing.
This year's festival features blue and gold brackets for the varsity and junior varsity levels with 24 high school teams from Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin expected. Last year's champions, Rochester Mayo and Verona, Wis. return to defend their titles. Rochester Century and Lourdes have also won the tournament in recent years.
Not only is the festival great for our area teams and fans but a great benefit to the overall community, generating over $240,000 in estimated economic impact. With nearly 500 hotel room nights occupied with teams and fans from out of town, local businesses tend to benefit.
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As with any quality event, it takes a great group of dedicated people to make it happen. This year Kiwanis has joined forces with Cambria USA to make the event possible. Cambria, Kiwanis and many local sponsors join forces to cover all expenses for ice rental, medical services, referees, announcers and scorekeepers.
The Rochester Kiwanis Clubs have always taken pride in running a top-quality event and have always been generous with the proceeds from the event going back into the community to help local youth and community projects.
When asked about this year's festival, director Bill Kalmes stated "We are excited about the new partnership with Cambria, they've come on board quickly and really gotten involved in the event. We've also added two quality programs (Appleton, Wis., and Chanhassen) to the field this year, so we're looking forward to some exciting games."
So if you are around Rochester for the holidays, stop out to Graham Arena and check out one of the top holiday sporting events in the area.
The tournament runs from Dec. 28-30 with the championship games taking place at 5:45 on the 30th.
For more information on the tournament and to find the tournament schedule visit www.kiwanisrochester.org/hockey or follow the event at @KiwanisHckyFest on twitter.
