2026 Fred Heslop Award - Stephanie Naqvi

As a marathon runner, Stephanie Naqvi is a firm believer in physical fitness and that belief carries through in her role of president of Port Moody Amateur Hockey Association, which includes upwards of 450 members.

“I have loved it,” she said of her position. “Like anything, there are moments that are challenging and I think I've learned a lot from those moments. But I've also had a ton of rewarding moments.”

One of those rewards was recently bestowed upon her, named one of a handful of winners of BC Hockey’s 2026 Fred Heslop Awards, which honours members who have given outstanding service and who have devoted a volunteer effort and service to a minor hockey program in British Columbia and Yukon.

 “I became president right before COVID. I was kind of learning the ropes and by February, March, we were dealing with stuff here and the role was becoming more challenging,” Naqvi explained. “Dealing with the personalities and the beliefs, and dealing with people's greatest asset, their kids. There was a lot of differences of opinion and challenges.

“But one of the proudest things that came out of that was that we were, besides a short little stint, we were able to keep kids on the ice.”

Those early challenges have helped Naqvi – who first joined the association’s board as a registrar before moving on to vice president, and eventually president along the way. And It’s the people she’s met along the way in her 15 years of volunteering in the association that she says are the biggest reward.

“That’s been a really special part of it. I’ve made some of my best friends because of [being a member of the association],” added Naqvi, who has held the position of president since 2019. “We've had different things [to deal with] each year, but the people side of it has been incredible.”

And through all the ups and downs, her belief in sports and physical activity and its long-term advantages continue to grow.

“I've been a long believer in sports. I grew up with sports and I played a lot of them myself and I've always really believed in the power of kids playing sports,” Naqvi added. “I believe that kids should be involved in sports, but I'm also a believer that as adults, it's important for us to show kids that physical fitness is sort of lifelong - not just stopping when you finish minor hockey.”