In Pro Sports, Fans Become Part of the Action Through Charity

When Jeff Vinik bought the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2010, he wanted to connect with his new community. Born in New Jersey, he had lived most of his adult life in Massachusetts, not Florida, and as an owner, Vinik said he believed that helping the local community was not just the right thing to do, but also would be helpful to his team.

Vinik pledged to give $10 million to local charities, but instead of picking the recipients, he asked fans to help him. To do that, he set up the Lightning Community Hero program. Three times a year, fans nominate hundreds of local good Samaritans. A committee of community leaders then selects a hero for each of the NHL team’s 41 home regular season games.