NEWS RELEASE
BRADFORD RATTLERS
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As their return to the ice approaches, the Bradford Rattlers hockey team is looking for billet families to welcome players into their homes for the upcoming season.
These are special families whom open their doors to the hockey players aged 16-20 playing on the community junior team while they work to further their hockey careers onto college or minor professional levels.
The team is looking to add three more families in the community to host players from during this 2021-22 hockey season. This year, the team has players from Sweden, Russia, Slovakia, Czech Republic, among other countries and provinces. Their stay will start in mid-September and could last until the end of March, depending on the team’s playoff performance.
The league has adapted a fully-vaccinated policy for all athletes, coaches, trainers and officials in effort to provide the safest possible atmosphere for all members of the league this season. The team is searching for families who may have an extra bedroom or basement for the players to live.
Billet families also receive $1,200 a month to cover food expenses to house two players, or $1,800 a month to house three players. Team beds are available if required.
Players sign a contract agreeing to the team rules, which details expectations of their contract with the team. They must also abide by specific household rules, such as curfews, and are asked to help out with chores like doing the dishes, doing their own laundry and keeping their rooms clean.
The team has a billet coordinator and general manager who are available to guide families through a billeting experience.
Billeting is an extremely rewarding experience, with many of our families staying in touch with their past “billet sons” for years after. Whether a player is welcomed as an older brother to a young family, or fill an empty nest, or to become involved in the community, there are a variety of reasons families open their doors and look to become involved.
To express interest in becoming a billet family, contact billet coordinator Jessica Beattie at [email protected] or 905-775-0062. The Rattlers will start their regular season on Oct. 3 against the New Tecumseth Civics, marking their return from Covid-19.
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