French or English, if you grew up in Quebec, you probably know Roch Carrier’s classic, The Hockey Sweater. Published in 1979, it’s the story of a boy forced to wear a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey in a small Quebec town that worships Les Canadiens. Anguish and horror ensue.
Fast forward to the tail end of 2019 and another gravely disappointed little boy. Jacob Bertrand refused to eat his birthday cake because instead of this:
A cake with his team’s logo on it.
He got this:
A cake with the logo of Maple Leaf Foods, a Canadian company that makes cold cuts.
Not the same thing at all. Not to Jacob, who in a family of Les Canadiens supporters, is a die-hard Maple Leaf fan.
While Roch’s story ends with the boy praying that moths would eat his jersey so he wouldn’t have to wear it anymore, Jacob’s story finishes on a much happier note.
Through social media, the Maple Leaf Foods company found out about the cake fiasco, and decided to do something about it. They sent Jacob and his family to a Maple Leafs game in Toronto.
Did Maple Leaf Foods get a lot of free press out of this? Yes.
They also gave Jacob a birthday to remember.
I’m glad that story ended well. I don’t know much about hockey. I saw some games when I was in college, but the pace was so fast it was hard to follow. The crowd seemed to love and expect fights, which put me off. One good thing about hockey: Luc Robatille.
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LOL! I don’t follow hockey, or any sport, but it’s almost impossible to grow up here without knowing a little about the game 🙂
The name’s familiar, I think Luc’s from my hometown.
There’s a little less fighting than there used to be, but yes, It’s still part of the “entertainment” of the game 🙂
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Lucky Luc had a smile that could melt the ice.
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Hi, Aimer – What a wonderful story. Yes, good advertising for Maple Leaf Foods, but a lifelong positive memory for the little boy. Thank you for sharing this!
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Yes, Maple Leaf Foods did the smart thing here, but it was also a good thing, and that is so rare these days 🙂
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I know a Canadian guy who lost his front teeth to that sport!
Pass the cake and a fork…
JP
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LOL! Yes, between the ice, the sticks, and the skates, there’s a lot of potential for injury. Helmets and mouthguards can only do so much 😦
You want coffee with that cake, or tea? 🙂
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Cawfee
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A great story even for those like me who aren’t much for hockey 🙂
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I’m not either, but I liked the story 🙂
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