William (Willie) O'Ree
Director of Youth Development, NHL Diversity
Willie O'Ree is the National Hockey League's Director of Youth Development and ambassador for NHL Diversity, a post he has held since January 1998. On January 18, 1958, playing for the Boston Bruins against the Montreal Canadiens, he became the first black person to play in the NHL -- an extraordinary event that paved the way for future players of diverse ethnic and economic backgrounds.
O'Ree played 45 games with the Bruins from 1958-61. His long professional career spanned 21 seasons, mostly in the Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Los Angeles Blades and the San Diego Gulls.
As Director of Youth Development, O'Ree has helped the NHL Diversity program expose more than 40,000 boys and girls of diverse backgrounds to unique hockey experiences. Over the past decade, O'Ree has traveled thousands of miles across North America helping to establish 39 local grassroots hockey programs, all geared towards serving economically disadvantaged youth. While advocating strongly that “Hockey is for Everyone,” O'Ree stresses the importance of essential life skills, education, and the core values of hockey, which are: commitment, perseverance, and teamwork.
O'Ree is the recipient of numerous awards and honors. In addition to being inducted into the New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame in 1984, he received the Lester Patrick Award for outstanding service to hockey in the United States in 2003. In 2007 O'Ree became the inaugural recipient of the Bill Walsh Champion of Change Award, which recognizes an individual whose tenaciousness of purpose paved a path of opportunity to everyone. In January 2008 the Fredericton , New Brunswick City Council will name their new hockey arena after O'Ree in honor of his accomplishments.
The 2007-2008 season will mark the 50 th anniversary of O'Ree's NHL debut with the Boston Bruins. To commemorate his work and recognize this milestone, O'Ree and the National Hockey League will host numerous activities throughout the season at both the local and national levels—including events celebrating the diversity of the game and the Hockey is for Everyone initiative.
O'Ree resides in San Diego , California with his wife, Deljeet, and daughter Chandra.
