W. Rockwell "Rocky" Wirtz is best known nationally as the owner of the Chicago Blackhawks hockey team and co-owner of the United Center in Chicago, where the

Providence College Friars played Kansas in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA basketball tournament last spring. 

But at PC, Wirtz is making a lasting impact in a different sport — field hockey. His $1 million gift this year to the field hockey program is the largest gift to women's athletics in college history. His daughter, Hillary Wirtz '01, played field hockey for the Friars throughout her years at PC, where she studied elementary and special education.

"I have such proud memories of watching Hillary and the team excel on and off the field," Wirtz said. "The Wirtz family is pleased to be able to give back, to support the field hockey program, and to provide other student-athletes with the opportunity to fulfill their dreams."

The gift establishes the Wirtz Family Fund for PC Field Hockey, which will support the team with travel, game costs, recruiting, professional development, supplies, summer tuition, and coaches' salaries, among other uses. It also establishes the Wirtz Family Scholarship Fund, which, as part of the college's permanent endowment, will enhance the scholarship allotment for the field hockey program in compliance with NCAA regulations.

It isn't the first time Wirtz has supported PC athletics. In 2017, he made what was then the largest gift in history to the field hockey program, designated for player development. The gift came at a time when the college was renovating Lennon Family Field, home of the field hockey program since 2005, with a new artificial surface, improved branding and padding, a new scoreboard, and an LED videoboard.

After teaching for 10 years, Hillary Wirtz now is director of diversity and inclusion for her family's company, Breakthru Beverage Group, based in Cicero, Illinois. She is charged with building a culture of inclusion and belonging where every employee can bring "their full, authentic selves to work."

"It is in this spirit that I hope the donated funds can provide an opportunity for talented student-athletes to attend PC, compete at the highest level, and receive a quality education," she said.

Hillary was a starting forward on the field hockey team as a sophomore and played defense her final two years. She attributes her commitment to community service, hard work, perseverance, and teamwork to all that she learned during her student-athlete days at PC.

As a senior, she remembers traveling to Chicago to play at Northwestern University.

"During a long rain delay, the team came to my house for a home-cooked meal and quality time with my family," she said. "It was so special to me to play on the field at Northwestern, where I grew up playing in field hockey clinics, games, and tournaments, always dreaming of one day playing at the collegiate level. To have my immediate and extended family all come to watch and support us was a dream come true. It's a memory I will forever cherish."

Rocky Wirtz, a graduate of Northwestern, is chair of the Chicago Blackhawks and co-chair of Breakthru Beverage Group, a national distributor of luxury and premium wine, spirits, and beer brands. He is president of Wirtz Corp. and oversees commercial and residential real estate companies as well as banks in Illinois and Florida. He is co-chair of United Center Joint Venture, overseeing the facility that is home to the Chicago Blackhawks and Chicago Bulls, and serves on the executive and audit committees of the National Hockey League.

He is recognized for his philanthropy in the community, where he serves as chair of the trustees of The Field Museum in Chicago, and to Northwestern, his alma mater.

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