A `Minnesota tradition: VFW enters 48th year as sponsor of youth hockey program

VFW has a history sponsoring youth sports programs. One of the most well-known is Minnesota's 47-well-year-old youth hockey tournament. It is a tradition that has borne Olympic athletes. Twelve members of the gold-medal winning 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team got their start in VFW hockey. And in 1984, 14 of the 20 Minnesotans in the National Hockey League were former VFW youth players.

Held annually in March, the hockey tournament takes place in a different Minnesota city each year. Each of VFW's nine disrtricts sponsors a team, and the host city also enters a team representing its local Post. There are approximately 15-20 athletes per bantam team, all 13 to 15 years in age,

Don Berg, state hockey chairman since 1985, notes the spirit of the tournament: "The competition is quite keen because we take our hockey seriously up here. It's kind of become a Minnesota tradition."

Berg said although it's undoubtedly a competitive three days, there's still a lot of fun to be had. On the first night, a big dinner is held, giving these young players a boost of energy before the games begin.

"Parents are really getting into this, too," Berg said. "Hotels sell out fast in the host town. My boys played hockey when they were younger, so I just love this."

The 2003 tournament will be held March 21-23 in Warroad, the most northern point in Minnesota.