Cornell Big Red vs Dartmouth College Big Green Hockey at Lynah Rink on Nov. 10 Jess Moskowitz/ Ithaca Week
Cornell hockey player turns injury into action
Makenna Chokelal, a third year student and former hockey player for Cornell University’s women’s hockey team was sidelined with an injury in the fall of 2022. During this time, Chokelal wanted to stay involved with the athletics program and make an impact off the ice.
Chokelal said that when she was younger, she and her mom would fill a box with clothes and toys for kids and families that did not have the means to do so around the holidays. Now in college, Chokelal wanted to combine her dedication to sport and community service. She used the resources of Cornell Athletics and the wide platform of sport to start a Toys for Tots drive during Cornell hockey games.
“Engaging in this act of service throughout my childhood set the foundation for wanting to continue something similar, so finding Toys for Tots, I immediately wanted to involve Cornell Hockey,” Chokelal said.
Toys for Tots is an organization that invites members of the community to drop new, unwrapped toys in collection boxes, which will be distributed to the less fortunate children of the community, according to the Toys for Tots website. Chokelal registered Lynah Rink, Cornell Hockey’s home ice, as a designated Toys for Tots drop off area.
Toys for Tots collection bin at Lynah Rink Jess Moskowitz/Ithaca Week
“I really wanted to get more involved in the community, because I believe that Cornell and Cornell Athletics take a lot from the community and it’s important to give back and have an impact,” Chokelal said
Come for the game, stay for the community
It is this spotlight on humanity, along with the game, that brings fans to the rink. There was immense excitement and a high energy crowd at the Cornell Men’s Hockey game against Dartmouth College on Nov.10 at Lynah Rink.
Inside Lynah Rink, the appearance of Toys for Tots bins drew the attention of a few Big Red fans, like Amar Vyas, a student at Cornell University.
“Toys for Tots is a great way to bring sport and people together to help the community,” Vyas said. “It shows that we care.”
Jude Kukla, a fellow student at Cornell University, was also eager to express his passion for Cornell hockey and said he believes Big Red hockey should continue to find ways to help foster a sense of community across the city of Ithaca.
“I love the energy hockey brings and if it’s possible, I think it would be cool for the team to go play hockey with the middle school or high school kids,” Kukla said. “Building that relationship between the kids and Cornell Hockey would be great.”
Cornell students attend mens hockey game Jess Moskowitz/Ithaca Week
Chokelal noted that the Cornell Women’s Hockey team does engage in a “cub club” program with female youth hockey players in Ithaca, acting as mentors to the next generation.
The power of sport in igniting change
There are thousands of sports fans around the country, making the industry a powerful tool for social change.
“Whether on TV, radio or in the stadium, sport is everywhere,” Chokelal said “Because of this, audiences will inevitably hear the details of a game from the previous night or the actions of players; when talking about the sport itself we should also be talking about what these teams are doing to give back and make a difference.”
Chokelal sees community engagement and service, such as Toys for Tots, as a key responsibility for not just a team as a whole, but also an individual responsibility for coaches or athletes. Understanding that someone is a human being before they are an athlete helps to create conversations surrounding identity and social impact.
“We are so much bigger than our sport,” Chokelal said.
