Board Candidates for 26-27 and Voting Information

I was born and raised in Auburn and have been part of several youth sports organizations, from participating to coaching my children, between Florida and now here in Auburn. After moving back to Auburn, I took an active role in Little League Baseball and serve on the organization’s Board of Directors. Having outside experience from other places has allowed me to bring a different perspective and ideas to build upon our local leagues.

Collaboration and Communication are two skills that I would bring to my role if elected. We must begin now to grow our organization and look at the future. Youth sports play an important role in teaching life skills such as leadership, perseverance, and sportsmanship. I look forward to collaborating with fellow members to support strategic planning, strengthen communication with families, and help provide opportunities that allow every player to succeed both on and off the ice.

My wife and I are both teachers here in Auburn. We have three children, Toby, Tatum, and Taelynn. Toby will be moving to 10U next year, and Taelynn is planning to skate 8U next year.

My name is Jason Flanigan, I am a father of four children, and I am a small business

owner. I run a laser engraving business here in Auburn. My son is currently playing hockey with

the Auburn Ice Hawks on the 6u hockey team. I helped coach the team with Scott Simpson. I

worked with the learn to skate program the previous two years when my son and two daughters

were in the program and my youngest daughter is eager to start in a couple years.

I grew up in Auburn and played youth hockey here for the Ice hawks. When I was

playing we had a robust competitive hockey program with multiple teams at every playing level

and we were able to compete with the top teams around the region. I would like to be part of

bringing this club back to what it once was. We had many successful years when I was playing

and I was part of our Peewee hockey team that finished 2nd in sectionals and finished 2nd in

the state tournament. I played 3 years of high school hockey for Auburn, after graduation I went

on to play Junior hockey for the Syracuse stars program. I played collegiate hockey at Buffalo

State where I finished my hockey career.

Hockey has been an integral part of my life. It has taught me to be resilient, determined,

and has shown me how to handle the highs and lows we all face throughout our lives. It instilled

a strong work ethic in me that I use to this day. It showed me the importance of being in great

physical shape which helps mould your mind to be disciplined and determined, no one is going

to do the work for you. I enjoy working out and doing cardio to stay in shape to this day and the

foundation of that started in youth hockey.

The reason I am running for a board position is to help be part of guiding our program

back to prominence. I have many years of experience playing hockey at a high level and have

been part of many successful teams in our program and others. We have a lot of good young

hockey players who need development and continued opportunities to succeed. I think player

development is the most important part of the club, building confidence, resilience,

determination and the ability to work within a team by listening to coaches and being a good

teammate are invaluable assets that will help all our children for the rest of their lives. Turning

our children into leaders and giving them the confidence to chase their hockey goals all starts

with the leadership that we provide and the examples that we set.

I hope you will consider me for a board position. I am going to be part of this organization

for many years to come so whether I am elected or not I will still be helping this organization by

helping coach and guide the players under my direction to get the best out of them.



I am proud to have been part of the Auburn Icehawks community since my 2 boys Kaden and Kyan, first stepped onto the ice in the Learn to Skate program. They are both currently in our 12u program. That same season marked my own introduction to hockey—I never played when I was younger, but as I watched Kaden and Kyan grow and fall in love with the sport over the years I did the same. I've come to deeply value the positive impact this organization has on our players of all ages, teaching not just skills on the ice but important life lessons in teamwork, resilience, and sportsmanship as they develop into strong young youth and adults. I am running for the Board because I want to help ensure every youth in our program has the support, resources, and opportunities needed to succeed, develop, and thrive both on and off the ice. With over a year of prior experience serving on a nonprofit board, I bring a solid understanding of collaboration, and strategic decision-making, and I am eager to apply that experience to strengthen and grow our youth hockey community.



I’m running for the board because this program meant a lot to me growing up, and I want to help give today’s kids the same—or even better—experience. I spent many years around the game, playing youth and high school hockey in Auburn and later continuing at the club level at Ohio State University. Being part of different teams and programs over the years gave me exposure to a wide range of coaching styles, team cultures, and player development approaches. More recently, I’ve been an assistant coach in the Auburn program for the past two years which has given me a firsthand look at what’s working well today and where there are opportunities to improve.

As a parent of three young kids who will all be in this program for years to come, I’m deeply invested in its future. My goals as a board member include growing enrollment, making sure families feel welcomed and supported, and creating as many positive development opportunities as possible for players (and goalies) at all levels. Professionally, I work as a Controller for a mid-sized business, bringing strong financial and organizational skills that I’d be excited to put to work helping strengthen and sustain the program.



  Hello, my name is Joe Plis, and I am asking for your vote for the Auburn Hockey Club

Board of Directors. Before I get into a little bit about myself, I would first like to ask anyone

that is reading this to please attend the parents meeting on Wednesday March 4th at 730 at

Casey Park. Your voices matter. It is crucial for you to speak about any questions and

concerns you may have, so as a board of directors we can address these topics to make

the club stronger for everyone involved. And if you do not feel comfortable speaking in front

of others please email me at jplisstillandbarrel@yahoo.com and I will make sure these

issues are discussed at the meeting.

       I started playing hockey when I was three years old at Casey Park. I stayed with the

club for my whole career and played four years of high school hockey as a maroon. I wasn't

the best player, but I loved the sport. More importantly, I loved being on the team, a team

full of my friends that all stuck together for our whole careers and that is one thing I feel we

need to get back to, to make our club more successful. We are losing too many of our local

kids to other clubs for us to ever have any chance of being successful in their later years

with the club and at the high school level. Some of it I blame parents believing their child is

going to the NHL instead of allowing their kids to be kids and enjoy time with their friends,

but a lot of it the club needs to take responsibility for and improve the club in a few key

areas. I do not want to take up too much of anyone's time with all these topics, but I am

more than willing to discuss each one of them with anyone that would like and can be

reached at the above email.

        I would like to take a second to say thank you to our current president, Lauren

Collister, for her years of dedication to the club. Unfortunately, this will be Laurens final

year on the board and that will leave a vacancy at the president position. If I am fortunate

enough to receive enough votes to be elected to the board for another term it is my

intention to seek out a nomination for the president roll and lead the club into a solid

future. For those of you who do not know me I am a local business owner, coach in the

club, and father of two wonderful (sometimes) kids. I feel as though I can say with extreme

confidence that I have what it takes to fill this leadership role with the integrity and

determination it will take to achieve the goal of making this club as strong as it has ever

been.

        Thank you to all that read what the candidates have to say. Thank you to anyone

that has chosen to run for a spot on the board. What you're doing is very commendable and

without leadership we will be nowhere. Thank you to all of the outgoing board members for

the time you have spent trying to make the club better. Please know that anytime I have

disagreed with any of you it was all with good intention and I think very highly of each one of

you. We all want what's best for the club, sometimes we just disagree on the path we must

take to get there.

       Finally, I would just like to ask everyone one more time to please attend and

participate in the parents' meeting. It can and will make a difference.



Hockey has been a central part of my life for more than two decades. I first stepped onto the ice at four years old, when my parents enrolled me in a learn-to-skate program with our local youth organization, the Wallingford Hawks (Connecticut). What began as a simple introduction quickly turned into a lifelong passion. I played travel hockey with the Hawks from mites through pee wees, then continued at the bantam and midget levels with the Connecticut Clippers, followed by junior hockey with the New England Junior Coyotes. After juniors, I returned to play for my high school during my junior and senior years. Ultimately, I chose to prioritize my education and attended Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts, where I stayed connected to the game by competing in intramural hockey. 

I hold a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Merrimack College and a Master of Business Administration from Southern Connecticut State University. Currently, I am in a management role at a regional credit union, where I have been employed for nine years. In my leisure time, I enjoy long-distance running. Drawing on skills acquired from playing hockey, I have successfully completed 11 marathons and 8 ultra marathons. I live in Auburn with my wife, Ashley, our son, Jack, and our dog, Charlie.

I’ve been an assistant coach at the 8U level for two years. My son, Jack, recently completed his second full year with the Ice Hawks, playing under Heath Ferris, Eric Miler, and myself on the 8U White team. 

The position of board director holds significant importance for me as both a parent and a coach. If afforded the opportunity to serve the membership, I would focus on the following areas: the implementation of multiple levels within the learn-to-skate program, a strong emphasis on player retention and core skill development, the establishment of a fair and consistent process for player evaluations and tryouts at all levels, the creation of a consistent procedure for filling coaching positions, and the establishment of an open-door policy for meetings of the AHC Board of Directors.

I firmly believe in the principles of transparency, integrity, accountability, and honesty. These foundational values will guide my actions as I serve on the board of directors for the Auburn Hockey Club. Thank you for your consideration. 

Voting will open up Wednesday March 4, 2026 in the evening. We are hosting a spring parent meeting, where you can meet candidates, have an opportunity to talk with them and vote in person. If you are unable to attend the meeting, a link will be provided to all members to vote electronically. You may vote only once. We are asking all votes to be placed by Wednesday, March 11th at 11:59PM.

Please reach out with any questions or concerns!