For Jackets' Wisniewski honoring military is important every day
When the Blue Jackets take to the ice Saturday night, they will mark Military Appreciation Night by wearing camouflage-style jerseys during warmups. But it's a different piece of clothing that has connected one Blue Jacket and one member of the military in a way that transcends the game.
Shawn Jones, a Chief Warrant Officer 3 born in Sydney, Ohio, has served for 18 years in the Army and counts himself as a proud Blue Jackets fan. He is also the owner of a shirt from Wiz Wear, a clothing line created by Jackets defenseman, James Wisniewski.
A fan of hockey since childhood, Jones followed other teams in the league until the Blue Jackets came to town. The Jackets soon became his team and seeing Wisniewski sign as a free agent in 2011 was something that made Jones proud.
"The organization talks a lot about bricks, and (Wisniewski) was one of the first bricks to arrive for our turnaround," Jones said. "He knew coming in what the culture was and he didn't shy away from it. He embraced the challenge and dedicated himself to righting the ship."
Jones says he knows what it takes to bring about change -- he has had four tours in Afghanistan, and one in Iraq. During his last assignment in Afghanistan, after eight-hour shifts, Jones would listen to Blue Jackets games over the Internet. He also decided to order a Wiz Wear shirt to support the charitable efforts of Wisniewski's clothing.
"I thought I was just anonymously buying a couple of shirts to help out his cause, I made the order and someone confirmed my address," Jones said. "A couple days later I got another e-mail that said James wanted to send more T-shirts to the men and women in our unit. I felt honored that he would make such a kind gesture to me and my fellow soldiers."
The minute Wisniewski, who has two military-themed tattoos to honor his grandfathers who served, saw the order come in he and his team knew they wanted to do more.
"We sent a bunch of gear right away," Wisniewski said. "For me it's about giving back. It's fun just to be able to see someone wearing your shirt and know they support not only the military but they follow you as a person and what you're doing for the community."
For Jones, it was important to reciprocate and, knowing Wisniewski's respect for those who serve, Jones chose to send the Jackets player an American flag flown in battle.
"Something we do is take a flag with us on a mission and give it to a person," Jones said. "The flag came with us on a mission in Afghanistan where we were support crew. If something needed to be done to facilitate the mission we would get launched, and we did."
Jones delivered the flag via mail to Wisniewski when he returned stateside. Wisniewski immediately posted a photo of the flag to his Facebook page and says the flag hangs proudly in his bar at home.
"It gives me goosebumps talking about it just to have a flag flown in battle coming from our military," Wisniewski said. "These are people who are putting their life and limb on the line for our country."
For both Jones and Wisniewski, sharing these items was an act of gratitude for each other. Wisniewski knows he can play the game he loves thanks to the protection afforded to him by the men and women in uniform.
"(The military) don't always get the recognition they deserve -- a lot of times they can't even talk about what they do," Wisniewski said. "They go through dangerous situations -- saving lives, putting other people's lives in front of their own and to me that's a real hero."
For Jones, who plays defense in a local hockey league when he can, seeing Wisniewski score seven goals and 44 assists last season is impressive, but so is Wisniewski's genuine appreciation for the military.
"I admire the things these guys do athletically, but I'm not a star-struck child who idolizes players solely for their athletic feats," Jones said. "The quality of character of the guys on this team is what makes me most proud."
Jones is still able to make it home for a few games. He visited last February and was also able to attend a playoff game in the spring. Jones attended a few games this season and hopes to get to more as his schedule allows.
"In the military, we don't really know what's going on two weeks from now, deployments can come up," Jones said. "I signed my own name up fully knowing what I was signing up for -- but it means a lot when someone recognizes that and says thank you."
CW3 Shawn Jones and members of his unit show off their WizWear clothing in support of the Blue Jackets and defenseman James Wisniewski.
Wisniewski and Jones have never met, but the Jackets defenseman knows what he would say if he ever got the chance.
"I would like to tell (Jones) thank you for keeping our country safe and for doing the things that you do," Wisniewski said. "I would say to him that I have the upmost respect for him and his team and to always come home safe."
The Jackets will mark Military appreciation night Saturday night at Nationwide Arena during a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Camouflage jerseys worn by players will be auctioned off and the evening will include tributes and recognition for members of all branches of the armed services. Discounted tickets are available to all members of the armed services. For information on tickets visit www.bluejackets.nhl.com.
