Page 35 - 01B_CL7_MAR20.indd

Super
Chicago Police hockey team has achieved legendary status through nearly 30 years of relentless fundraising and promoting fraternalism
n BY MITCHELL KRUGEL
Legendary hockey teams always seem to have a “Do you believe in miracles?” moment. For the Chicago Police Stars, the defining feat came a few weeks after the loss of Chicago Police Commander Paul Bauer in 2018.
The Stars had traveled to Nashville to play for the annual Heroes Cup, a tour- nament gathering the best police and fire hockey teams from across the coun- try and even Canada. The tournament champion would be able to donate pro- ceeds to its charity of choice, and the Stars had designated any funds they could raise for the Bauer family.
Emotions were already running high after the Nashville Predators Founda- tion, the fundraising arm of the city’s NHL team, had presented the Stars with a Bauer jersey emblazoned with “Never Forget” on the back. The Stars made it to the championship game against the
highly touted St. Louis Fire club.
Belying their favored preparation, the Stars decided not to go out the night be- fore the game. They went to bed early, and in the game’s waning moments, they were leading by a goal. St. Louis pulled its goalie and hit the Stars with a mad rush. With a few seconds remaining, the Stars’ Joe Barrera, a detective in Area North, covered the loose puck in the corner
with his skate and held on for dear life. Do you believe in memories? Yes.
“It was a game we were ready for men-
tally more than any other game we have ever played,” Barrera recalled. “We were playing for something so important, and after the final whistle we took a breath. That is the moment that sticks out most in my mind.”
Great moments are born from great opportunity, and the Stars, who are sponsored by the Chicago FOP, have been creating memorable moments for
nearly 30 years. Since its inception as the Chicago Police Bullets in the early 1990s, the organization has raised more than $1 million for charities, including the Honor Flight, the 100 Club of Chicago, Wound- ed Warriors and most recently the Ray Pfeifer Foundation, which is dedicated to helping police and fire personnel who responded to the attacks on 9/11.
The Stars have grown to more than 120 players filling five teams, including one that skates in an over-50 league in Bensenville. They have forged a cama- raderie unlike perhaps any other in the Department and a pride and recognition that has been a hallmark for all Chicago Police Officers.
Lodge 7 Trustee Bill Dougherty is one of the team founders, and as he ap- proaches the end of his final season, at 60 years old, he considered what has kept him coming back. “Well, it might be
CONTINUED ON PAGE 36
CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ MARCH 2020 35