“The work done by the David Z Foundation and the students at Brooke Grove was amazing,” said Monumental Sports & Entertainment chief partnerships officer Patrick Duffy. “It was incredible to see how music and Capitals hockey inspired creativity and learning. Watching the kids bring it all to life in the video was truly something special.”
Paulie Z added, “I’m extremely proud because any time you win or get recognized for anything, even if it’s just a gold star in school, it’s a great feeling. In this case, the Anthem Award is a very highly respected international award. It’s not just a local thing, so there is an even higher level of pride.”
He and the students came together to create a theme song celebrating the organization’s historicseason.
“The idea was to combine the love of hockey from the kids and teachers with the history of the Caps,” said Paulie Z. “That was interesting for me because I usually do academic or socially conscious topics, so this was something unique to write a song about.”
After a handful of brainstorming and practice sessions, the group filmed the song’s music video for the song at Brooke Grove and MedStar Capitals Iceplex.
“To be at that amazing professional ice rink and film in that environment was super special,” said Paulie Z. “This was very unique not only for me, but for the kids too. It was really cool.”
Brooke Grove principal Travis Payne added, “It was an amazingly unique opportunity for our students and school community. In school, we don’t have these rich opportunities to connect school instruction with real world applications.”
The video also included a cameo from Capitals alumnus Peter Bondra.
“That was an amazing project to be a part of,” said Bondra. “I had such a fun time and am really happy for the group that their work was recognized.”
Paulie Z added, “It was great having Peter in the video. He was awesome to work with and was very into it. The kids had a lot of fun with him.”
Along with being a memory that will last a lifetime for the kids, Paulie Z believes that their experience was extremely impactful and will serve them as long as the memory will.
“I know what it meant to them because I’ve been doing this for a long time and have worked with thousands of kids,” he said. “It gave them a feeling of empowerment. The fact that they got to write the song from scratch, be really involved for the entire process and win an award, they received a level of empowerment that leads to self-confidence and a healthy mindset.”
He added, “It’s not meant for them to go on to be a professional singer or musician. It’s about the self-esteem that they get from seeing something through from start to finish. At the surface, they like seeing themselves on YouTube and being at the ice rink, but I can tell you from doing thisfor as long as I have been that the real impact is laying the foundation and planting the seed of empowerment that will stay with them for the rest of their lives.”
