Wall of dreams

On Thursday, February 11, the Garden of Dreams Foundation and the New York Rangers traveled back to “Medieval Times” with 300 children from Garden Dreams partner organizations, Children’s Aid Society, Harlem Dowling, SCO Family of Services, and WHEDco as part of the “Show Kids New York” program. The children were divided into five kingdoms, each of which was captained by either a New York Rangers alumni, Ron Greschner or Tom Laidlaw, or one of the significant others of current Rangers players.

Wearing their kingdom’s crown, the children were buzzing with excitement as they took pictures with the King and Queen before heading into the main hall. Once inside, they were greeted with trumpets by the court jester who welcomed the children into the arena. After taking their seats with their respective kingdoms, everyone enjoyed a four-course medieval-styled feast during the show, which included an interactive educational experience.

The medieval-style tournament showcased different games from that time period including jousting, falconry and horsemanship. Each kingdom cheered enthusiastically for their knight and waved their kingdom’s flag high when their knight competed in the tournament. The Blue Knight proved to be victorious in the end and Queen Angelina was crowned from the Blue Kingdom. As they filed out of the 11th century style castle and back to their buses, the children enthusiastically recalled their favorite parts of the tournament and waved their kingdom’s flag proudly.