Hello All,
 
Please give serious consideration to attending the KeeneICE fundraising event this Friday and/or contributing to the cause (see details below).  As a reminder, KeeneICE is a registered 501c3 organization, so your donation is tax deductible.  This means your contribution of $200/year for (5) years is actually ~$150/year.  I have taken the liberty of jotting down several ideas for how a new, year-round facility in Keene will each save my family $150/year .  
 
- Fuel for (14) trips to and from Cushing Academy (60 miles round trip)- $150/year
- Wear-and-tear on vehicle suspension after (5) years of Cheshire parking lot - $750 total ($150/year)
- (1) In-season car wash per week to remove complimentary mud bath - $150/year
- (1) Hotel night for adult or youth tournament stay - $150/year
- (1) Day of restaurant food at youth or adult tournament - $150/year
- Playing in a state of the art, professionally run facility - PRICELESS
 
As you can see, any family in a similar situation to ours can easily realize an immediate payback and significant additional savings, in return for donating $200 (pre-tax) per year, for (5) years.  If KeeneICE can rally adequate support from the private sector with this capital campaign, we WILL have a new rink in Keene.  If not, the pledged amounts are not collected.  It is rare, if not unheard of, to guarantee results and payback from a personal donation.
 
If I could now direct your attention to the elephant in the room.  There are some satisfied with the current situation for ice in Cheshire County, thus struggling to justify the personal financial support of this project.  To this point, I encourage everyone to approach the KeeneICE representatives next Friday with questions about the operating budget, and how they plan to re-invest our ice usage fees, once the new rink is operational.  Specifically, ask about the timeframe for board and glass replacement, projected chilling system updates and annual maintenance plans.
 
The current provider of seasonal ice in Cheshire county has no such plan in place for re-investment of our ice fees on component upgrades, except in the case of failure.  Although ice is source of revenue for the Cheshire Fair Association, they are not dependant on this income to stay afloat, and managing such a facility is not their area of expertise. When the inevitable happens, the difficult decision has to be made to repair or shut down indefinitely. It is my speculation that ice users will have little, if any input into this decision.
 
For my money, and peace of mind, I look forward to the feelings of pride and accomplishment we all will have on the day new rink opens, compared to the feelings of worry and despair while waiting for the inevitable to happen.
 
Please do what you can and make arrangements to attend the function this Friday and RSVP through the link provided.
 
Thank you!
 
Chris Stroshine