Raiders Play Waiters for Charity

The Colgate men's hockey team swapped its jerseys and skates for aprons and dress shoes to dish up smiles and good service for diners at the Hamilton Inn in support of charity on Monday, Sept. 30.

The team and the Hamilton Inn partnered for a new event called, "Raiders as Waiters." As guests enjoyed their dinners, all 26 members of the Men's ice hockey team worked as servers - taking orders, serving drinks, and schmoozing with anyone who wanted to talk hockey.

Reservations were required, and customers had the option of booking seats at 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. All proceeds and tips given to players were donated to the Hamilton Food Cupboard.

Only a few members of the team had experience in restaurant work. But it wasn't a baptism of fire. The team received a crash course from the Hamilton Inn staff shortly before the start of the event. The Raiders were also determined to do a good job.

Senior defenseman Tommy Bergsland said he and his teammates were nervous heading into the event.

"It was nerve-racking at the start, but once we got going and got the hang of it, I think it was great. It's awesome to give back to the community and meet a bunch of people."

For diners, the event was a golden opportunity to meet the team while enjoying a fine meal and supporting a good cause.

"This was an absolutely fantastic event," said diner and Colgate hockey fan Joe Caprio. "It was like having celebrities serve you - a bunch of people you are usually cheering for on the ice, and here they are coming face-to-face. It's been great, and everybody has loved it."

Caprio said the Raiders provided good service, although he pointed out - in a joking manner - that each student-athlete only had one table.

"They did pretty good, especially seeing that most of them were assigned one table," he said. "They couldn't really mess it up or get the orders wrong."

The menu included a few hockey-themed dishes, such as "'Right Wings' Southern Fried Chicken" and "Hat Trick" - a pasta dish made with broccolini, sun-dried tomatoes, light roasted garlic butter, mozzarella, and toasted breadcrumbs.

There was even an eggplant-and-marinara dish called, "Coach Harder's Garden," named after head coach Mike Harder '97.

Harder, who dined at the event, said "Raiders as Waiters" was a big success.

"What a great event!" he said. "Huge thank you to the Hamilton Inn for their support, to our wonderful community, and the Hamilton Food Cupboard for the great work they do. It was fun to see our guys work together outside their comfort zone and for the most part and get things right."

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