By Randy Zarnke
Published January 29, 2008
Fairbanks Daily News Miner
For a community like Fairbanks with an Army base as a next-door neighbor, the word “billet” usually comes up in a military context. However, that isn’t the only way in which the word can be used.
The billet process has played a key role historically in youth hockey and more recently in Junior hockey in Fairbanks.
In the hockey world, billeting refers to the system in which players from other communities are housed with local families throughout the duration of their stay in town.
Prior to about 1980, players on youth hockey teams often stayed with local families when playing in out-of-town tournaments. Some of those former players have clearer memories of the friendships that resulted from those billet arrangements than they do of the outcome of the games played in the tournaments.
In more recent years, most youth hockey teams now stay in commercial facilities while traveling. On the other hand, the billet system has been an important component of Junior hockey for decades and remains so today.
There are many perspectives to consider when evaluating the Junior hockey billet system. Certainly, the two most involved entities are the visiting player and the local host family. These are the people who must live under the same roof.
In addition, the players’ parents obviously have a personal interest in the process, as does the coaching staff of the hockey team.
The group with the most at stake is the host family. Taking in a stranger could disrupt their lives. On the other hand, there is a major potential upside.
If there are children in the family, they will have an opportunity to interact with a young man who will hopefully be a positive influence on their future. Another angle is the family whose own children have left home. Housing a hockey player helps to ease the transition for those who fear living in a half-empty house.
The Kibbee family
Ruby and Steve have been part of the Ice Dogs housing program for eight years, almost since its inception.
“When our kids got older and were planning to move out of the house, we weren’t ready to be ‘empty nesters,’” Ruby said. “We started with one player. After a couple of years, we moved up to two, and then three. This year, we have four.
“Most folks would panic with that many kids in the house, but it works just fine for us,” she added. “We’ve converted the lower floor of our house into an area for them.”
She said she enjoys cooking for her house guests.
“Most of them are big eaters,” Ruby said. “We try to eat supper together as often as possible. That makes it interesting for me and I think that the players enjoy it, too. We have our time together and our time apart.”
There’s a mutual sharing of the household chores.
“We have a small wood-burning stove that I like to use in the evenings and the players always make sure that I have enough firewood,” she said. “In return, I do chores for them too. For example, I often do their laundry.”
She also said she transports players to and from the airport for road trips.
All of the host families take part in an orientation program with coach and general manager Rob Proffitt.
“Coach Proffitt advised folks against becoming emotionally attached,” Ruby said. “That’s one of the few places where he and I disagree. I couldn’t do this if there wasn’t some emotional attachment.
“I feel that it is not only normal, but almost necessary,” she added. “You have to open up your home and your heart.”
Players also are encouraged to take part-time jobs.
“Almost all of the boys who have stayed with us have worked in the community,” Ruby said. “I think that arrangement is beneficial, too. It keeps them busy and helps them meet other people.”
The Fisher family
The Fisher family has been hosting players for the past couple of years. Kris and Tom felt that it would be good for their kids to be exposed to people from outside their immediate family. The fact that the Fishers are a ‘hockey family’ made it natural for them to host hockey players.
After talking to Proffitt, the Fishers decided to give the program a try.
“The Ice Dogs program provides a set of rules for the players,” Tom said. “We add a few other rules which are specific to our home and our family, such as cleaning their rooms once per week.
“Our goal is to provide a stable, supportive home environment for the players,” he continued. “That allows them to focus strictly on their hockey.”
The players become mentors for the Fisher children.
“My son is a goalie and he has really benefited from working with some of the players who have stayed with us,” Tom said.
Players become part of the family, playing board games in the evening, taking the kids to movies and going out for pizza or burgers.
“I firmly believe that they appreciate the family atmosphere,” Tom said, noting that other players on the team often visit their home.
“We also host gatherings of other players at our home, mostly on an informal basis. They come over to watch movies or play games. It’s fun for us to get to know the other players in this manner.”
Tom often employs players at his business — Aaron Plumbing.
After the first year, Kris said she wasn’t sure if her children wanted them to host players in the future.
“We sought their input and they were very enthusiastic,” Kris said. “We were a little surprised, but it showed us how much they enjoyed having the players living with us.”
There can be some trying times.
“They manage to ‘test’ some of the rules and test our patience from time to time, but overall they are great kids,” Kris said.
She also said it’s hard not to get attached to the players.
“It’s hard for everyone when they leave in the spring,” Kris said. “We keep reminding ourselves that we are doing this to help the players and the Ice Dogs program.”
Mother and son
Mike Marquette has played hockey nearly his entire life, including his entire youth hockey career in Fairbanks. He’s currently playing for the Milwaukee School of Engineering, an NCAA Division III program in Wisconsin.
Mike spent a couple of years with the Dubuque Thunderbirds, a Junior “B” program in Iowa that also uses the billeting system.
“It’s not a perfect system, but it works pretty well,” Marquette said. “For the first few weeks, I felt a little awkward. The host families are generally very nice and helpful to visiting players. You just have to be flexible and make it work.”
Meg Nordale is Mike’s Mother. The year that Mike finished of Junior hockey, one of his former teammates came to Fairbanks to play for the Ice Dogs.
The player’s initial family didn’t work out, so Marquette talked with his mother and she agreed to take the player in.
“My approach was to serve as a support system for the players who stayed with me,” Nordale said. “I had open lines of communication with their parents. That made things work smoothly for everyone.
“I offered a little bit of discipline and a little bit of advice,” She added. “Probably the single thing that the players heard from me most often was, ‘Call your Mom!!’”
Nordale encouraged others to participate in the program.
“I found it very rewarding,” she said. “Whatever amount of work you put into it, you get back ten-fold.
“In addition, I recommend it for anyone whose kids are leaving home,” she added. “It served as a good transition for me.”
Bradish experience
Corinne Bradish grew up in an active Fairbanks family. She met husband Lee at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, where they played on the respective basketball teams. Their two sons grew up involved in sports and eventually gravitated to hockey.
Corinne learned about the billeting system when her son Derek played Junior hockey Outside for three years.
“We learned a lot from that experience,” she said. “We were certainly grateful that a family would open their house to help our son pursue his hockey dream. At the same time, we worried about him. These kids are going through a stressful time in their lives. Without mom and dad around, they occasionally need somebody to prop them up.”
When Derek decided to play for the Ice Dogs this season, Corinne added two more players to the list that would be staying in her home.
“I met the parents of our two players when the team played in an early-season tournament in Minneapolis,” she said. “They had the same questions for me that I had when Derek was living with other families. I actually got more feedback from Derek’s host families than I got directly from him.”
Host families receive a stipend from the Ice Dogs, but it doesn’t cover all the costs.
“Between the extra food, drinks, and utilities it is costing us a little bit to have these two guys staying with us,” Cork said. “In addition, we bumped up the insurance coverage on our vehicles.”
There are several other host families in close proximity to the Bradish household.
“They gather at one house or another for a couple hours in the evening to watch TV or play video games,” Corinne said. “In addition, with several players in close proximity, they can always make arrangements for a ride to and from practice. All of those little things help to build team unity.”
Coaches try to match players with families as best they can, but there are always details that need to be worked out.
“We eat a lot of salmon, halibut and moose, so I had to ask the players if they liked that sort of thing,” Corinne said. “Luckily, they both do.”
Corinne said it has been a rewarding experience.
“It’s been fun for us to have that youthful energy in the house,” she said. At the same time, it has been rewarding at a deeper level.”
Lee Bradish came to Fairbanks on a basketball scholarship and decided to stay. Now one of the players is picking his brain because he wants to stay here as well.
“In that sense, you become a ‘pseudo-parent,’” Corinne said. “I don’t think that you would want to force that on them. You just have to sit back and let them come to you.”
Key to success
Proffitt said the billeting system is one of the reasons the Ice Dogs are so successful.
“The host families are an absolutely integral part of the Ice Dog program,” he said. “We couldn’t exist without them.”
Proffitt also noted that the interaction between the players and their host families can be beneficial for both parties.
“The players appreciate having a family to interact with,” he said. “Maybe they play with younger kids in the family. Maybe the adults offer some advice and support. At the same time, the player can hopefully serve as somewhat of a role model for the kids.”
Proffitt said he’s awed by the support each host family provides.
“I’m in awe of people who open their house to a young man and welcome him in for 8-9 months,” he said. ” Many of our host families come back year after year. It must be a positive experience for them, or they wouldn’t come back.”
Not every pairing of player and host family works out perfectly, but based on input from players, parents, coaches and the host families, the billet system in Fairbanks appears to be a major success story.
Randy Zarnke is the president of the Fairbanks Hockey Hall of Fame and author of the book Fairbanks Hockey Pioneers.
Thank-you to the Fairbanks (Alaska) News-Miner newspaper which originally published this article.
