Grand Junction roared Sunday night as Colorado Mesa University’s hockey team turned the rink pink once more, packing the arena to capacity for the ninth annual Pink the Rink game. Thousands showed up, hearts heavy and hopes high, to support local cancer patients in a tradition that keeps growing bigger, louder, and more meaningful every year.
A Tradition That Started Small and Became Everything
Nine years ago, CMU head coach Tim Winegard wanted to do something that mattered more than wins and losses. He launched Pink the Rink to honor families touched by cancer and to give his players perspective beyond the scoreboard.
The event has exploded since then.
What began as a single game with pink tape on sticks now includes weeks of fundraisers, limited-edition pink jerseys auctioned off, special merchandise, and community kickoff parties. Every dollar stays local, helping cancer patients right here in Grand Junction with medical bills, transportation, lodging, and other crushing expenses that insurance doesn’t cover.
Last year alone, the event shattered its own record by raising $36,000 in one night. Organizers believe this year’s total will push the nine-year cumulative past $250,000 when final numbers come in.
Sold-Out Crowd Proves the Community Shows Up When It Matters
Tickets vanished weeks ago. By game time Sunday, every seat was full, the parking lot overflowing, and the energy electric.
Fans wore pink shirts, pink hats, pink face paint. Survivors waved signs that read “Because of you, I’m still here.” Families who lost loved ones stood shoulder to shoulder with those still fighting.
“It’s bigger than hockey now,” Coach Winegard told me after the game, voice cracking just a little. “This is about reminding every person in that building that they’re not alone.”
Team captain Ethan Gotchey, who grew up in Colorado and knows how tight this community is, said the support hits different.
“The stands are always loud for us, but Pink the Rink night? It’s on another level,” Gotchey said. “People are here for something way more important than the score. We feel that. We play for that.”
And play they did. The Mavericks battled hard from the opening face-off, refusing to let the cause soften their edge. Competitive fire burned just as bright under the pink lights.
Real Money, Real Help, Real Lives Changed
Every jersey auctioned, every T-shirt sold, every raffle ticket bought goes straight to local cancer patients through the CMU Foundation.
That money pays for gas cards so families can make the long drive to treatment. It covers hotel stays when someone has to be near the hospital for weeks. It buys groceries when a parent can’t work because chemo has them too sick to stand.
One local survivor, who asked not to be named, told me last year’s funds helped her keep the lights on while she went through radiation. “I never thought a hockey game would save my family,” she said. “But it did.”
That’s the part that keeps everyone coming back.
The Night Belongs to the Fighters and the Survivors
Between periods, the Jumbotron showed photos of local warriors: kids who beat leukemia, moms battling breast cancer, grandpas still swinging a stick at pickup games after beating prostate cancer.
The crowd gave standing ovations that shook the building.
When the final buzzer sounded, win or lose, no one rushed for the exits. Players skated to center ice, sticks raised, while fans chanted “thank you” until voices gave out.
That moment, more than any goal or save, is what Pink the Rink is really about.
This tradition isn’t slowing down. It’s growing because cancer keeps coming, and Grand Junction keeps answering.
If you missed the game but still want to help, donations are open right now through the CMU Foundation website. Every dollar counts. Every share matters.
Because some nights, the most important victory isn’t on the scoreboard. It’s in the fight we all choose to join together.
What did Pink the Rink mean to you this year? Drop your thoughts, your stories, your survivor shoutouts in the comments below. Let’s keep this conversation going.
