The Utah Hockey Club are thriving in their arena during their inaugural season. They’ve created a passionate fanbase, broken jersey sales records, and turned Salt Lake City into a hockey market. However, the organization has done really to become part of their new community in a very short time. Owners Ryan and Ashley Smith have helped Utah become a force around Salt Lake City, and Wednesday’s Pay It Forward event was just another example of it.
SEG’s Pay It Forward Event
On Dec. 11, the Smiths held their third All In On Utah event, which is part of the Smith Entertainment Group foundation: a nonprofit organization that finds an organization/cause to support each month that will be funded by Utah, the NBA’s Utah Jazz, and the Delta Center. In the past, the Smiths have used the event to provide families with Thanksgiving meals and provide teachers with supplies for school.
This time around, the Smiths did a Pay It Forward event whose purpose was to surprise community members by covering the cost of their groceries, gas, and meals. Gift cards were also handed out by the organization to invite those same members to pay for someone else’s things as well.
Related: Meet the Newest Member of Utah HC: Archie
Multiple members of the Jazz and the organization attended these events, including former Jazz player Thurl Bailey and his family, who delivered breakfast to neighbors, Jazz and Utah mascot Jazz Bear, who filled up cars with gas, Jazz players Lauri Markkanen and Collin Sexton served customers at Chick-Fil-A, and Ashley Smith purchased groceries for Utahns at a store.
For the Utah Hockey Club’s part of the day, defensemen John Marino and Sean Durzi took a trip to Bjorn’s Brew Coffee, a local coffee shop, to help make coffee for customers. While both Marino and Durzi are injured and won’t be back in the lineup for a while, they still want to do their part in serving their community.
Sean Durzi (manning the counter) and John Marino (working the drive-thru) are here at Bjorns as a part of SEG’s pay it forward event. #UtahHC pic.twitter.com/xhQlgPGE4l
— Chase Beardsley (@ChaseBeardsley_) December 11, 2024
“Me and John, obviously, are not contributing too much on the ice right now,” Durzi said. “It’s great for us to give back to the community. The people have been too kind to us. Everybody we see, whether it’s at the rink or just out in the town, has really expressed how much they miss us on the ice. I know it’s just a statement, but to us, it means a lot. To be here and to acclimate to the community has been important to us, and it’s nice for us to have this opportunity.”
Durzi and Marino have made appearances all around Salt Lake City while they recover, including at KSL studios, where they “flipped the switch” to play Christmas music on Utah’s flagship radio station. On Wednesday, the two had a great time as they covered each person’s coffee and/or food, including for local police officers and others. For Durzi, it was just good to see people happy, especially during the Christmas season.
“The opportunity to come here and see people reaching for their wallets and then telling them that their order is covered, you can see the motivation for them to kind of pay forward through the holiday season,” Durzi said. “That’s a special feeling. Getting smiles on everybody’s faces at this time of year is a good feeling.”
Archie, Utah’s official team dog, who embodies the partnership between the team and America’s VetDog, was also at the coffee shop spreading holiday cheer. With his Utah earmuffs on, Archie even got his own order in the form of a pup cup.
Archie did get his pup cup order in. #UtahHC pic.twitter.com/nq2LFuSiH2
— Chase Beardsley (@ChaseBeardsley_) December 11, 2024
Durzi and Marino had a lot of fun. At Bjorn’s, Durzi made his own drink (a simple black coffee), which he trademarked “the Durzi special.” The two also got orders that they never heard of before, including an eggnog latte. Durzi opted to work the front counter, while Marino worked the drive-thru. When asked who the better barista was, Durzi gave full credit to Bjorn’s newest drive-thru handler.
“John, by a mile,” Durzi said. “It wasn’t even close. He was running the drive-thru. I had a huge lineup, and I kept taking orders and didn’t know how to make them. I wouldn’t say that’s a good combo.”
Marino is working the drive thru like a pro. #UtahHC pic.twitter.com/Elr2nJacoJ
— Chase Beardsley (@ChaseBeardsley_) December 11, 2024
Jokes aside, SEG’s Pay It Forward event was just another form of the Smiths, the Jazz, and Utah HC being important figures in the community. For Durzi, even though he’s frustrated not being out on the ice and battling with his teammates, he is very happy he gets to be a part of the community, and he’s excited to keep giving back to the new fanbase.
“It sucks when the guys are gone, and we’re not there,” Durzi said. “You miss everybody, whether it’s just the bonding time together. But we have so much free time now that we’re not doing rehab for 12 hours a day. It’s not part of the rehab process. If I could, I would. For us to do this in our free time and come out in the community is important. Me and John together, it’s been a fun little duo, and we get along really well. It keeps us busy, and want to keep doing it.”
The SEG Foundation will continue to hold community events throughout the season, including a fourth All In On Utah event.
