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Swedish Hockey Team Enjoys Visit to Geneva

Posted on: Wednesday, 16 February 2005, 21:00 CST

With a team name like the "Vikings" and a hometown in Sweden, wasn't it meant to be?

It was probably destiny as well as hockey that brought 13 teenage members of the Nybro Vikings hockey team, plus another 20 or so family members, from Sweden to the Tri-Cities shortly after Christmas for a week-plus stay.

While they were here, the young Swedish guests (mostly 13 and 14 years old) took in the sights, plus played some tournament hockey at the Fox Valley Ice Arena in Geneva, a town known for its Swedish heritage.

The kids were here for the third Holiday Hockey Classic Tournament, said Bill Fetter, one of the members of the local Cyclones Amateur Hockey Association.

The Cyclones include hundreds of kids ages 6 to 18 from throughout the Chicago area. A Cyclones team went to Sweden last Christmas and it was during that visit that the seeds were planted for a turnabout trip.

Hockey - and by the way, the Swedish team won - was only one highlight of the stay. The visitors also visited Geneva, Chicago and the Woodfield Shopping Center, taking in many attractions.

"We took them to a Wolves game. They loved that," Fetter said.

Several local businesses contributed to the warmth of the visit. To make the guests feel at home, Cyclones decorated one of the locker rooms at the ice arena. Viking Office Supply donated nameplates for the lockers, and Gear on Ice donated hats and skate- sharpening gear. "To watch those kids' faces when they walked into the locker room, to see all that stuff and their faces light up ..." said association member Bob Piper. "It was very fulfilling."

"People were so generous," agreed Fetter. "There was lots of goodwill."

The Geneva tour included a visit to Graham's Chocolates, a meal at Pizzeria Venti and dinner at Stockholm's Pub. Mayor Kevin Burns met with the boys, giving them a tour of the City Council chambers, and was presented with a crystal sculpture and a table flag from the Swedish Vikings team. The youths also went to the Gift Box in downtown Geneva, specializing in all things Scandinavian, where owner Lennart Jonsson was able to talk to the visitors in their native tongue, Piper said.

The boys stayed in pairs or trios with local host families in Batavia, Geneva, St. Charles and Wheaton. Because English is taught at an early age, language was no problem, said Fetter. And even before arriving at O'Hare on Dec. 26, the Americans and Swedes were getting to know each other via e-mail, said Fetter. And with the down time built into the schedule, the groups really got a chance to get acquainted. "They got a chance to know each other as people," said Fetter.

One Swedish family had brought their two daughters, who play soccer, along with a hockey-loving son. One of the host families also had a soccer-playing daughter and the girls all ended up playing soccer together. "The intermixing was very gratifying to see," said Fetter.

And of course, there was hockey. "They play a very European style of hockey; it's more of a precision game," said Piper. "It's not as much as physical game as in the States. It was a pleasure to watch."

Already, there's talk of next December and a possible trip to Sweden.

If it comes to pass, for the hockey players and there families, it will be a real Swedish Days - only six months early.

- To contact Beth Bales, send e-mail to bbales10@@ameritech.net

Source: Daily Herald; Arlington Heights, Ill.

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