Last Updated on Sunday, 27 May 2012 18:31
When it comes to making a difference, St. Thomas Academy senior A.J. Reid has used his role as an athlete to achieve something bigger than winning a game
By Andrew Vitalis
Let’s Play Hockey
When it’s all said and done, he’ll go down as one of the greatest assets the St. ThomasAcademy boys’ hockey team has ever had, and it has nothing to do with goals, assists or points. His name is A.J. Reid.
Don’t get me wrong, the senior forward certainly holds his own on the ice, but when it comes to making a difference, Reid has used his role as an athlete to achieve something bigger than a game; something far more important. In a day and age where the term “role model” is tossed around more than a puck on the power play, Reid fits the definition to a T.
It all started with an idea.
He remembers almost the exact moment when the light bulb went on. Reid, then a junior, was looking for service hours that would fit his graduation requirements. Looking back on it, it’s amazing how a simple idea can change everything.
“I remember talking to my mom and she told me about a backpack project that a local church tried to do,” Reid said. “We came up the idea to adopt a local school and provide school supplies to them.”
Ironically, although he was told the concept was great, Reid was informed that the project he had in mind would not satisfy his service hours requirement. True to form, instead of scrapping the concept and going with something else, Reid decided to do it anyway.
That idea, now called Teens For Change (T4C), has exploded into a full-fledged mission. One year later, Reid’s vision has led him to adopting a school (Elizabeth Hall Elementary school), developing care packages for the military and even establishing a Board of Directors.
The fact that a high school senior can pull this off amazes most everyone who learns about the project; that is until you have a chance to talk to Reid in person. After just a few moments you quickly understand how this project has been so successful.
“Education is the key to the future,” Reid said. “It’s what makes you succeed in life. I wanted to do something to help kids who aren’t as fortunate in life as I have been. Just being able to go to St. Thomas Academy, to get a great education and get a great opportunity to succeed, that’s something not a lot of people have. I appreciate the fact that I’ve been blessed that way and I see it as an opportunity to give back to those kids who haven’t been afforded what I’ve been afforded.
“My grandparents came from very little. My grandpa put himself through medical school by selling milk from dairy cows. My grandma left home to go to college with $25 in her pocket. Now she has a Ph.D. in second language acquisition and has taught people from around the world. They have shown me you can accomplish anything, you just need some help along the way.”
That’s exactly why Reid, along with everyone else involved in making the project work, decided to adopt a school. Specifically, they decided to adopt Elizabeth Hall Elementary school. Located in North Minneapolis near Broadway Avenue, most who attend Elizabeth live in poverty. To put things into perspective, it’s estimated that 89 percent of the students depend on lunch assistance programs just to eat.
For Reid it was a no-brainer.
After pairing up with Bennice Young, principal at Elizabeth, and Jesse Wyatt, a senior on the Visitation/St. Paul Academy girls’ hockey team, the Teens For Change project embarked on their first mission – raise $20,000 (400 back packs), aimed at helping every single student. The backpacks, full of school supplies, are set to be handed out to the students this August. The endeavor is fittingly called, “Backpacks for a promising future.”
Far from done, Reid recruited his St. Thomas hockey teammates and paired them with the Visitation/SPA hockey team and the fifth grade class at the Elizabeth Elementary school with a goal of raising an additional $5,000 for military care packages. The care packages, consisting of miscellaneous items, were mailed out to soldiers overseas for Valentine’s Day. Each package also contained a letter of thanks.
“A.J. is a person who understands that people look up to him,” Tom Vannelli, St. ThomasAcademy co-head coach, said. “A.J. has taken things to another level and has really made a difference. With everything going on, he’s been willing to do whatever it takes to make this work and that’s been really impressive to watch.”
His parents, Alan and Jacki Reid, couldn’t agree more.
“He’s gotten a lot of help and support from his mother,” Alan Reid, a former University ofMinnesota and NFL football player, said. “What he’s been able to do is really a tribute to him. You try and instill in your kids lessons of life and what it takes to be successful, but you’re not always sure they are listening. With A.J., we are pretty amazed with some of his ideas and how he’s decided to make a difference. I think it’s his way of showing gratitude and thanks for where he’s come from.”
Gratitude. Thanks. Service. They are all words that most high school seniors, even adults, have never been able to fully understand.
A.J. Reid is NOT one of them. Those characteristics are just as obvious to onlookers as his speed on the ice or touch around the net. A senior captain for the top-ranked team in Class A, Reid continues to excel on the ice (18-28--46) and will most likely play for the Omaha Lancers of the USHL next season.
As impressive as that may be, it’s his resume off the ice that grabs your attention, and that’s perfectly fine with him.
“Hockey will fade away one of these days, but a project like this has a lasting impact,” Reid said. “It not only gives me a chance to help my life, but help others. It makes me feel really good as a person. I’m really happy to be able to do something that makes a difference in someone else’s life. This project has changed my life. It’s one of the best things that has happened to me.”
Undoubtedly, the same can be said by those who have met and worked with Reid on the project. In a day and age where sports fans and sponsors are constantly searching for the next role model to emulate, one need look no further than St. Thomas Academy and A.J. Reid.
His efforts have even rubbed off on his younger sister, Arianna, a girls’ hockey player at Lakeville South. Arianna will take over the project next year after A.J. leaves for juniors.
“As long as he can stay on course, stay on the path he’s on, the sky is really the limit. Hockey is hockey, but I’m talking about life,” Alan Reid said. “He’s always gravitated towards a leadership role. He has great qualities which are going to help him be successful in whatever he decides to do.”
Tom Vannelli put it another way.
“A.J. is very unique. He’s about as tenacious and hard-working of a player on the ice you will ever see. You combine that with his other attributes and he has the whole package. We are going to hear a lot more about A.J. after hockey that’s for sure.”
You can count on it.
The “Teens For Change” project is still $6,000 short of its goal. You can donate by logging on to their website www.teens4change.org. There is also a drop box at the St. Thomas Ice Arena where you can drop off school supplies/backpacks for the project.
