During the Prairie Fire’s 4th year in the NRL, the players noticed a little 9 year old girl who would stand by the gate as they enter the ice surface for a game. This same little girl would be at the gate at the end of the game, giving the players a “high five”. Who knew that Shaelyn Phillippe would become the Prairie Fire’s number one fan?
Shaelyn got her first exposure to the Prairie Fire while at a local tournament which featured a game between the Winnipeg Prairie Fire and the Manitoba Jets. Shaelyn did not know what the NRL was at that time, but went with a couple of team mates to get autographs after the game. She cannot remember why, but they only went to the Prairie Fire’s dressing room.
A short time after the tournament, a friend told her Dad about the National Ringette League so Ray checked out the NRL website, found a schedule of the Prairie Fire home games and they have been attending faithfully ever since. The only time that Shaelyn has had to miss a home game is when she was playing her own game of Ringette. Not only does Shaelyn try to make every home game, she seldom misses exhibition games and this year attended every try out game as well, regardless of the time.
What makes Shaelyn and her family extra special, is that in 2010 the Prairie Fire travelled to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan for the National Ringette League Championships, and who do you think was sitting in the waiting area of the arena? You got it, Shaelyn Phillippe and her dad Ray. Shaelyn convinced her dad to take her out of school for a week to cheer on her Prairie Fire at the Championships. Shaelyn and her dad were joined later in the week by her mom Susan and Zach, her little brother, in support of our quest for Gold.
Shaelyn said that her most memorable moment with the Prairie Fire was when the team took her out for lunch to Boston pizza at the Championships and gave her #3 Meredith Warner’s away jersey , autographed by the team, in gratitude for her support. She also wears #3 on her team. Shaelyn has found a special place in the hearts of the Prairie Fire team, so last year during Shaelyn’s playoffs, the team showed up to give her and her team mates support. Shaelyn said that this was probably her second most favorite moment with the Prairie Fire and to top it off, her team won that game.
The Prairie Fire challenges any teams in the NRL to find a fan as great as Shaelyn.
