Homebase is back: NHL stars will hit the diamond in Kelowna this summer

Once again, we are happy to report on another popular event returning after two years off due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This time around it’s the Gorges-Comeau Homebase Charity All-Star Game and Slo-Pitch Tournament.

After a two-year hiatus, it returns to Elks Stadium and the Mission Sports Fields on Friday, June 24 and Saturday, June 25.

It will be an action-packed two days that will begin with an all-star game featuring a number of NHL stars at Elks Stadium on Friday night.

Josh Gorges and Blake Comeau will both captain a celebrity team full of active and retired NHL players, along with local celebrities, that will square off in a “truly hilarious” game of softball.

You can expect plenty of Kelowna’s ‘boys of summer’ to be involved, like Carey Price, Shea Weber, Brendan Gallagher, Luke Schenn and others.

Those two teams will then be joined by a few other local squads on Saturday as the event shifts to the Mission Sports Field for an all-day tournament.

While this will be a fun weekend for many in the Okanagan sunshine, the main focus for the event is to raise money for charity.

This year’s cause, mental health care, hits close to home for many of the current and retired NHLers involved and Gorges explains that mental health challenges “do not discriminate.”

“As athletes, fathers and just regular guys faced with the pressures of life, we too have found ourselves struggling at times,” says the tournament co-host and former Kelowna Rocket.

“For me, it’s incredibly meaningful to be able to host this event to raise much-needed funds to support mental health care right here in my home community.”

All proceeds from Homebase’s highly-anticipated return will support the KGH Foundation’s ‘We See You’ campaign, which launched this month to support the needs of local mental health care providers.

“We are thrilled to bring Homebase back and provide an opportunity for folks of all ages and stages to come out and have a whole lot of fun, while also doing something really worthwhile for our community,” says Chandel Schmidt, senior director of philanthropic programs for the KGH Foundation.

Erica Whiteley, branch manager at Raymond James Ltd. in Kelowna, which is the event’s main sponsor, added that being a part of the event is important because mental health care is for everyone.

“We all have the capacity to make a difference. All it takes is stepping up to the plate,” she explains, adding with a smile that batting practice has already begun for Team Raymond James.

Any organization interested in getting involved in Homebase as a sponsor can contact the KGH Foundation, while team registration and ticket sales will likely begin in April.