LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON - Brenda Moreau remembers her first Moosehide Mammas practice led by coach Owen Rowe.

Rowe told all of the players that he didn't care if or how they skated or if they'd ever held a stick in their hand, but he could promise one thing.

Owen Rowe plans to donate the $10,000 that comes with the RBC Local Hockey Leaders award to Fort Simpson Minor Hockey. - Roxanna Thompson/NNSL photo

"By the time we are done with this you are going to love this game," Moreau remembers Rowe saying.

That night Rowe pushed the players hard, too hard Moreau thought as she skating aching off the ice. Rowe's promise, however, held true.

"The next day I got up and I was pumped," said Moreau.

That was four years ago and Moreau, who's now the president of the Moosehide Mammas, has played hockey every year since. It's stories like this one that have led to the national recognition of Rowe's volunteer efforts.

In April, a group of Fort Simpson residents headed by Moreau and Chris Hewitt nominated Rowe for the RBC Local Hockey Leaders Program. It was Rowe's third nomination and the third time proved to be the charm.

Rowe was speechless when he got a call on Sunday morning informing him he had been chosen for the national award.

He was "more in awe than anything," said Rowe. "It's very well appreciated by myself."

Now in its seventh year, the RBC Local Hockey Leaders Program gives communities a way to recognize those who give so much to local hockey, said Katie Hammill, a spokesperson for the program.

"It shines a spotlight on the unsung heroes of Canada's game," Hammill said.

Thirteen awards are given out every year, one for each jurisdiction across Canada. Rowe is the winner for Hockey North, a area that includes the Yukon, Nunavut and the NWT.

Local Hockey Leaders recipients receive $10,000 for a registered hockey cause in their community, a signed Team Canada jersey and a banner recognizing their achievements.

As one of the winners, Rowe will also be flown to Toronto on June 16 for a ceremony where a record of his achievement will be included in a permanent display at the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Rowe plans to donate the $10,000 to Fort Simpson Minor Hockey. He said he will meet with the executive to see how the funds can best be used.

Rowe's nomination form, which ran 16 pages and included letters of support from local leaders and business people as well as comments from players, made an impression with the panel of judges. It was probably the longest ever received, said Hammill.

"He is truly a renaissance man in terms of his volunteer efforts in Fort Simpson," she said.

Rowe has shown an ongoing dedication and commitment to hockey, which is something the panel looks for, Hammill said.

Rowe's hockey volunteer efforts go farther back than his supporters knew. In 1977, minor hockey in Berwyn, Alta. needed a coach and 17-year-old Rowe decided to lend a hand. It didn't matter that the players were only a few years younger than he was.

"I'd wanted to coach for a long time and I have," Rowe said.

Rowe continued coaching for two years, but was drawn by work. In 1985, he began coaching again, this time minor hockey and minor softball in Inuvik. He continued coaching hockey when he moved to Fort Simpson in 1988.

Rowe grew up playing hockey in Hay River, where both his mother and the larger community supported him.

"Basically what I do it for is to give back what I got," Rowe said about his volunteerism.

After 25 years, Rowe said he still gets a lot of pleasure out of coaching and watching minor, women and men's hockey. He's willing to coach anyone who is interested in coming out. The more players there are, the stronger the hockey programs will be, he said.

"To me teaching the new ones is more rewarding than the ones you've taught for a few years," he said.

Rowe said he likes seeing the smile new players have as they accomplish things on the ice they didn't think they could do. Rowe also admits to a love of the game.

Chris Hewitt, who wrote part of the nomination, considers Rowe a role model because of the dedication he shows for hockey. The award was well deserved, Hewitt said.

"Owen is one of those leaders who is out there encouraging," said Hewitt. "He's very patient and he's passionate about the game."

In addition to coaching minor hockey, the Moosehide Mammas, and serving as coach and captain for the men's rec league, Rowe is an organizer, motivator and a financial supporter of hockey initiatives, Hewitt said.

"We're proud of Owen Rowe, we're also proud of Fort Simpson," said Hewitt.

"He has definitely put Fort Simpson on the map in the North and now he's done it nationally and he's in the Hockey Hall of Fame."