From the time Minnesota Duluth hockey player Grace Sadura first engaged in cross-cultural and dynamic human interactions as a young child in China, she has turned that fascination and yearning for diversity and knowledge into genuine acts of deep community engagement and meaningful human experiences across a broad spectrum of people in the Duluth area. Today, Grace “fills her cup” with multiple team and individual community service endeavors that broaden participation and engagement with impacted groups across a wide range of activities she leads herself with her hockey sisterhood.
“My dad worked in China when I was very young,” Sadura said. “I was about 2 when I got there and was there about three years, during which I learned to speak Mandarin Chinese fluently. I loved engaging with that different culture on so many levels and have carried that forward. I still study Chinese today and love to surprise people in the area who don’t expect me to speak their language. Last week I was in a Costco store and listened to a couple debating in Chinese which frozen pizza to buy. I politely walked over and told them in their native tongue that I really liked the pepperoni pizza, and they were both really surprised but delighted by the brief interaction — and the choice of pizza. I love this community. I really crave the human connection and thrive on helping others experience those joys through my community actions.”
From her time in high school, when she began community service through unified club hockey that offered those with special needs and challenges a chance to play, Grace has branched out to lead community service activities for her UMD Bulldogs team through a diverse program that includes teamwork at 7 Stars Horse Ranch, special-needs hockey through the Duluth Special Wild, and local engagement through the DEI group clothing drive, which targets public outreach with clothes for students in elementary, middle and high school in the area. Grace not only leads these engagements, but also coordinates closely with her teammates to keep everyone involved and engaged.
“I have to be honest,” Sadura said. “The time-management part of things is a challenge. I have both an electronic and paper planner as a backup to map out weeks in advance for activities and event planning like the clothes drive, where we recently packed a record 101 bags of items to distribute to local schools and students in need in the Duluth area. Our team has everyone involved, from the coaches on down, and after our visit this week to the ranch, I think we are averaging about 31 to 32 hours of volunteer time per player, which is up a couple of hours from our previous totals. It is a great feeling to give back and to see the joy and engagement of people who might not otherwise have the opportunity to ride or experience horses, or play hockey in what we do with Duluth Special Wild and see those players get to do their thing. We also benefit from the opportunity to engage with key influencers like Tom Modder at the ranch, who did a leadership training session with our group. It has been a great opportunity to learn about and from each other in a meaningful way while supporting the broader community.”
After finishing her double major this summer, Grace will graduate and begin pursuing a master’s degree in clinical counseling or criminology while playing hockey in her final year of eligibility next season. She intends to continue studying Mandarin Chinese and hopes to leverage her psychology degree in service of helping solve a terrible global issue: human trafficking.
“My grandpa was an FBI agent, and I really would like to use my education and language skills to maybe join the agency and work on stopping this horrible global problem,” Sadura said. “I would love to interview some of the victims with my language skills and find patterns to really find a way to solve this global problem that ruins so many lives. Of course, I still want to continue my other community activities in this area and maybe even give back by coaching back in my hometown of Minnetonka at the U12 or U15 level.”
Grace clearly has enjoyed success on and off the ice this year with her teammates in becoming an integral part of the Duluth community. As for being named a finalist for the Hockey Humanitarian Award, the humble hockey player shared the recognition with her coaches and teammates, which is no surprise to those who know Grace well.
“It has been so great to engage as a team, from the coaching staff on down to each player, to grow and thrive through activities that benefit the community here in Duluth,” Grace said. “I thrive on human connection, and what better way to engage with others than volunteering to broaden one’s awareness and understanding of the diverse people who surround us every day? I don’t know where the road will take me next, but I want to help create better communities wherever that is. I want our team to continue to be part of 7 Stars Ranch and Special Wild and to do the clothing drive and other things that help this community. I am so honored to be considered for this award and feel it recognizes not just me, but our team here at UMD.”