DTBL is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organiza-tion created by sol-diers with the spirit of keeping hockey alive for the children of our nation’s mili-tary heroes.

Our mission at DTBL is ensuring the chil-dren of military mem-bers are afforded every opportunity to participate in the game of hockey.

We accomplish this by providing free equipment for mili-tary kids, hockey

camps, special events, and financial assis-tance for registration fees and other costs associated with hockey.

In order to achieve our mission, DTBL has teamed up with the following incredible sponsors and partners:

• Herb Brooks

Foundation

• Minnesota Wild

• NHLPA

• MN Made Hockey

• Trilage Hockey

WELCOME TO DEFENDING THE BLUE LINE

UPCOMING EVENTS

DTBL QUARTERLY

JULY 4TH, 2010 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1

DEFENDING THE BLUE LINE

TO ALL SERVICE MEM-

BERS PAST AND PRESENT

AND TO ALL AMERICANS

ACROSS THE COUNTRY

AND AROUND THE

GLOBE , DTBL WOULD

LIKE TO WISH YOU A

VERY HAPPY INDEPEND-

ENCE DAY .

REGARDLESS OF YOUR

LOCATION ON THE

GLOBE , HAVE A SAFE

AND HAPPY 4TH OF

JULY WEEKEND.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY

FROM DTBL!

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

FOUNDER’S

FORUM

2

FEATURED

PARTNER

3

FEATURED

PLAYERS

3

FEATURED

PRODUCT

4

HOW TO HELP 4

CONTACT DTBL 4

SPECIAL MESSAGE

FROM DTBL

• 14 JUNE - 12 AUGUST D1 Development Camp: 18 kids participating at the Schwan’s Super Rink in Blaine, MN. Herb Brooks Foundation providing major support for this ongoing event.

• 18-22 JULY Military Might Camp: 50 kids participating with support from the Waterloo Blackhawks and Herb Brooks Foundation. This is a live in camp in which all food, lodging, hockey, and activities such as tubing are provided for participants.

• 23-24 JULY Herbie’s Heroes Camp: 100 kids participating in training camp. Events include an All-Star game featuring former NHL players and celebrities vs. Minnesota Military All-Star team.

DTBL Supports All Branches of the

Military

• Let’s Play Hockey

• MN Hockey

• WSI

• Brent Burns, MN Wild

• George Parros, Anheim Ducks

)

FOUNDER’S FORUM

PAGE 2 DEFENDING THE BLUE L INE

By Shane Hudella

Since starting my career with the military in 1988, I have encountered thousands of great people who have always amazed me with their dedication to this country’s freedoms, and their willingness to sacrifice for the good of others. The sacrifices that our service members are making today, with the frequency of deployments since 9/11, are as great as ever. I often think though, that the deployments are even harder on the families left behind by these great warriors. Our military is trained to deal with the stress, the mission, and all of the facets that accompany military service. Their spouses, loved ones, and children, are not. With this in mind, myself and a group of fellow Active Duty National Guardsmen from Minnesota came together to start Defending The Blue Line.

With 4 beautiful boys (and a very patient wife) at home, I understand the costs related to keeping kids participating in hockey programs. I also realize, that if I were to deploy again, keeping the kids active in hockey year round is a great way to give them an outlet for some of the emotions they would be dealing with, as well as keeping them connected to a group of other kids while I was away. Defending The Blue Line is the conduit to help military families that may be struggling with the logistics or financial means to keep those kids in skates.

We have made tremendous strides in our first year, and I am very thankful for the outpouring of support from the many great organizations and individuals that have helped us along. Looking back on the past 12 months we have helped (thanks to Brent & Susan Burns) send over 500 military family members to a MN Wild game, secured 100 sets of brand new hockey equipment that we are now handing out (thanks to George Parros and the NHLPA), issued several cash grants to needy families (thanks to financial partners such as the MN Wild and Trilage), and our newest initiative, sending 200 kids to hockey camp this summer (thanks to Butch Johnson, the Herb Brooks Foundation, and MN Made Hockey).

As we continue to grow and expand, I am even more excited about what lies ahead in the coming years. We are already working on expansion planning to be able to help service members and their families on a larger scale. Your continued support of our organization is truly appreciated, not only by the staff at DTBL, but also by the kids and families of those folks wearing a flag on their shoulder to defend freedom every day. I would like to extend a special thanks to our all-volunteer corporate staff, advisory board, board of directors, and especially the corporate sponsors that make our mission possible. The best is yet to come.

)

PAGE 3 DEFENDING THE BLUE L INE

Featured Partner

The Herb Brooks Foundations has a very simple mission: “Grow the base of hockey; give kids a positive hockey experience and an opportunity to learn life lessons.” Simple, not easy. Honoring the memory of the 1980 Miracle on Ice team, and that of the legendary Herb Brooks is a monumental task. We here at DTBL are proud to have entered into a long term partnership with HBF in order to fulfill both organizations’ missions. The two groups have worked together on multiple occasions already, sending 200 kids to summer hockey camps through this summer. HBF is directly responsible for sending 190 of those 200 to camp. We look forward to working with the Herb Brooks Foundation on many more events as both groups continue to grow the game we all love.

Featured PLayers

Brent Burns’ support for military families is well known by anyone and everyone around him. He and his wife purchased a suite at the Xcel Energy Center for the entire 2009-10 NHL season and donated it to DTBL. This very generous donation allowed over 500 members of the military family to attend a Minnesota Wild game. DTBL Would like to thank Brent and Susan Burns for the strong support of our mission, and for their undying support of the service men and women of both the United States and Canadian military. It is difficult to imagine a more supportive partner to have than the Burns’.

George Parros of the Anaheim Ducks is known as an enforcer on the ice. Off the ice, Parros uses that same intensity in his support of military members. Parros helps in many ways, including visiting troops around the US such as his visit to Ft. Irwin in 2009, and helping to donate 100 full sets of equipment to DTBL. Thank you George for your support of both our mission, and your support of service members everywhere.

)

ABOUT US:

Defending the Blue Line is a 501(c)(3) organization created by soldiers with the spirit of keeping hockey alive for the

children of our nation’s military heroes.

All donations are tax deductable.

TO DONATE:

Via PayPal at:

http://www.defendingtheblueline.com/Private-Donations.html

Or you can mail your check to:

Defending the Blue Line

1206 N. Frontage Road, Suite B

Hastings, MN 55033

1206 N. Frontage Road, Suite B Hastings, MN 55033

Phone: 651-253-6737

shane@defendingtheblueline.com chris@defendingtheblueline.com

DEFENDING THE BLUE LINE

FEATURED PRODUCT

DEFENDINGTHEBLUEL INE

.COM

This issue’s featured product is the Defending the Blue Line digital camouflage hockey stick from Trilage. It is available for purchase via DefendingtheBlueLine.com/merchandise.html for only $85 for a youth stick, and $125 for an adult stick. The stick is a high quality, one piece composite with multiple flex ratings and blades available.

All proceeds from the sale of the digital camouflage stick go directly to DTBL. Thank you to Trilage for donating the sticks. Please visit their website at www.Trilage.com

Our Valued Sponsors and Partners

Now on Facebook!

Twitter @DeftheBlueLine

DTBL Quarterly Produced by Bryan Reynolds, staff journalist. For publication inquires please contact: bryan@defendingtheblueline.com

FOR OUR NATION’S

HEROES