Hockey is Healing

Roland started watching the Los Angeles Kings hockey club in 1989, and he never stopped watching until the Eaton Fire destroyed his home in Altadena, California in January, 2025. Over those 36 years, he collected LA Kings memorabilia, jackets and jerseys. He is a true blue fan and has seen his team win two Stanley Cup Championships. But the fire that burned through Altadena also made it difficult to watch games, to be reminded of how much he had lost.

Roland and his mother Alice have been at their Altadena home for nearly 50 years. Alice had 6 dwarf fruit trees in the yard and their greatest struggle was how they were going to rebuild their home. That’s when they found HCRN.

During one of their first meetings with the HCRN team, Roland discovered that Mark Cox, VP of Operations, had a sizeable hockey jersey collection hanging up in his office. He was surprised and had a little conversation about the current season. He later discovered that Kevin Cox, CEO and Founder, and Travis Cox, volunteer recruiter, were huge fans of an east coast team. From then on, each time Roland was able to make it to one of our Family Night meals, the three of them would talk about the Kings and how they were playing leading into the 2026 Playoffs. It was during this time, that Roland finally felt he could watch games again.

Family Night is such a special night where we bring our homeowners and volunteers together to share a meal and share what the week and recovery has been like for them. At a June Family Night, Roland shared a very special moment. Mark had given him a commemorative puck from the LA Kings recognizing the accomplishments of a player during his final season playing for the team. Roland said, “Thank you. I can’t stop saying thank you. You took the time to give this to me. It means a lot, because it’s not like ‘Oh it’s a puck.’ It’s the person behind the puck and that’s what I’m more grateful for.”

We are so grateful for Roland and Alice for allowing HCRN to be a part of their lives and to help them return home. The work of building is so important because people need a home to live in, but the fellowship we can build with them along the way is so much more important. We want Alice and Roland to not just recover materially, but emotionally and spiritually, as well.

Thank you, Roland. We can’t wait for you to see your home rebuilt.

If you would like to be a part of seeing families like Alice and Roland return home in Altadena, you can donate here or email [email protected] for more information on volunteering opportunities.