Several hundred of the middle school students gathered at their new rink Monday morning for a formal ribbon cutting ceremony, as Ducks TV host Kent French and Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Aaron Teats, along with Wild Wing, joined school and district officials in dedicating the space. Members of the school's two Anaheim Ducks i3 Roller Hockey League teams were on hand to play the first of many street hockey scrimmages.
A long-time, invested participant in the Anaheim Ducks S.C.O.R.E. (Scholastic Curriculum of Recreation & Education) Program, McFadden Intermediate has been a partner school with the Ducks for more than five years and hosts an annual street hockey tournament that has grown from two to eight teams, all from the Santa Ana Unified School District.
Additionally, the school's participation in the Anaheim Ducks i3 Roller Hockey League is up from one team last year in their first season to two teams this season, due to overwhelming interest from the students. McFadden math and technology teacher, Christopher Yusi, heads up the school's hockey program and has enjoyed partnering with the Ducks to bring his love for hockey to his students.
"This is my 21st year teaching, and the generosity of the Ducks is just remarkable," said Yusi, who also coaches the school's two roller hockey teams. "It is an expensive sport to get started with, and the Ducks have handled the vast majority of expenses from moment one. To look at where we are now is just incredible. It's all been the Ducks' initiative from beginning to end."