Father’s Day 2024: How to make it special
It’s not too late to make Father’s Day feel special.
Problem Solved
This story is so much bigger than a father and his sons.
It is bigger than one team or one sport. It’s a lesson for everyone.
But it starts small and focused — with one family, at a single rink.
It starts with a man named Frank Taylor, who has three sons — two of them young hockey players.
The other?
Trevor has Down syndrome and didn’t have anywhere to play.
“Trevor was hanging around the rink, watching his brothers playing hockey,” Frank said.
So, Frank wondered: Why couldn’t Trevor get on the ice, too?
“His physical therapist said, ‘oh, he’ll never be able to skate — he doesn’t have the muscle tone,’” Frank said.
But Frank refused to believe it, refused to accept it; and he fought against the idea of putting limitations on any of his sons — yes, this story is packed with layers of lessons, if you want to see them.
So Frank got Trevor into a learn-to-skate program, and Trevor loved it.
But Trevor wanted to play hockey, too.
Just like his brothers.
So Frank created a team for Trevor and some of his friends. Frank started the Michigan Flyers, a hockey team for developmentally or physically challenged athletes.
“Now, he’s buzzing around the rink,” Frank said, proudly.
That was nearly 30 years ago.
The Michigan Flyers are still going strong — they are affiliated with the St. Clair Shores Hockey Association and draw players from around metro Detroit — and Frank continues to coach it.
“A lot of these kids, I’ve had them since they were babies basically, 7 and 8 years-old,” Frank said. “Now they’re in their 20s and 30s.”
Passing on the tradition
If the story stopped right there, that would be one thing.
But the lessons of a father — the ones that are profound and hold incredible meaning — have a way of getting passed down from generation to generation.
Which brings us to the next stage of this story.
Frank’s other two sons, Troy and Tom, went on to play hockey at University of Michigan-Dearborn. They became police officers, and then they started Blue Line Hockey Development, training hockey players out of the St. Clair Shores Ice Arena.
Just like that, they became coaches, following in the footsteps of their father.
“In the summertime, we have 36 groups that come through us,” Tom said. “We are training 400 to 500 kids now.”
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