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by John McGourty
NHL.com
February 5,2010
Former Phoenix Cardinals running back Tony Jordan is one of the top athletes that Rochester, N.Y., has produced. He was a high-school All-American at East High, went to Kansas State on a full scholarship and earned All-Conference status.
Jordan has met many of the most famous athletes and celebrities in North America, but he's looking forward to this weekend when he'll meet a sports pioneer, Willie O'Ree, who became the first black to play in the National Hockey League when he broke in with the Boston Bruins in 1958.
"I'm excited about this opportunity because it's not too often you get to meet someone who is an important part of sports history," said Jordan, now a manager with the City of Rochester Recreation Department. Jordan's involvement goes far beyond the job. The Tony Jordan Sports Foundation helps the city assist over 4,000 youths participate in organized, non-scholastic, volunteer-led, sports activities.
"The buzz in Rochester is great and the kids at the two schools he'll visit are very excited," Jordan said. "It's Black History Month and Willie is a part of black history. The adults get as excited as the kids and there are adults here that remember him playing in the NHL.
"Willie was here in 2002 and I've heard from people who met him then. They can't stop talking about him because he made such an impact. He's a great people person and he made a great impression. One guy showed me the picture that he had taken with Willie O'Ree and the Bruins playing card that Willie signed."
O'Ree will be in Rochester this weekend as the guest of Genesee Valley Youth Hockey, a volunteer-led program that provides free weekly hockey instruction and equipment to a group of about 80 Rochester children at the Genesee Valley Park Sports Complex Ice Skating Rink. O'Ree will visit two schools on Friday and visit with the Rochester Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired.
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