A hockey game with a larger purpose than wins or losses took centre stage at Rotary Place in Orillia Thursday night.
The Lakehead University and Georgian College women’s hockey teams faced off in the fifth annual Frost Cup to mark the beginning of the new semester and the Bell Let’s Talk campaign.
Bell Let’s Talk is a program to promote awareness of and raise funds for mental health initiatives.
Bianca Low Kuf, the VP of Health and Wellness at Georgian College Orillia, said she loves the annual hockey game because it builds school spirit and gets the conversation for Bell Let’s Talk started around campus. This year Low Kuf wants to see the conversation start to go in a different direction.
“I want to see people talking more about all the stigmas around mental health,” Low Kuf said.
“A lot of times we talk about anxiety and depression because it is a part of our everyday language. But you don’t hear people talking about schizophrenia or bi-polar disorder, I would like to see that conversation open up more.,“ said Low Kuf ,stressing the importance of acknowledging the lesser recognized avenues of mental health.
Elana Weber, the athletics and wellness coordinator of Lakehead University in Orillia, also emphasized the importance of the Frost Cup in beginning the conversation about mental health around campus.
She also thinks the annual event provides a great opportunity for the women on the ice.
“This is great opportunity for our students to showcase women in sport,” Weber said.
Despite the event being mostly about building school spirit and spreading awareness for a cause that hits home for a lot of students, the Frost cup is still something students from both schools strive hard for.
“The Lakehead girls lost in this game last year 2-1, so they really want to bring the Frost Cup back to our campus this time around,” Weber said.
Lakehead did just that, defeating Georgian 1-0 after winning a shootout thriller