Sandy Irwin Volunteer of the Year Award

(The Sandy Irwin Volunteer of the Year Award is given to a member of NYSAHA who strives to demonstrate the same qualities and personal characteristics that Sandy possessed.)

Mona Smart
Valley Hockey Association

Mona Smart is a seven-year Valley board member, including two terms as president and 10 years as team manager. 

In her first year as president, during the Covid pandemic, Smart worked with the mayor of Syracuse in pushing for rinks to open to give kids the outlet they so badly needed. Valley not only survived that year but thrived thanks to Smart’s strong leadership. Working with a dedicated group of board members and volunteers, her tenure as president has been marked by continued growth and success at the Valley Youth Hockey Association. She has forged strong relationships in the community and across central New York.

Smart has a great sense of fairness and right and wrong. Her greatest strength is her ability to handle difficult situations and have difficult conversations that most tend to shy away from. She does it with a clear head, keeping her emotions out of it. 

She is a consistent and collaborative ambassador of the game who is focused on providing players at all levels a safe and positive environment to play the game.