Inside the ice hockey arena, sticks and "biscuits" - or pucks - are crucial for staging the contest. On the Thanksgiving table, drumsticks (or simply sticks) and biscuits play different roles that are just as important.

Sticks and biscuits also have a lot of meaning to the Palmyra Cougars Ice Hockey Club (PCIHC). For it is from them that the club's most important fundraising event, Sticks & Biscuits 5K, originates.

"People in the hockey world get it," said Ryan Patrick, PCIHC's president. "There are costs to (playing ice hockey), but we're trying to keep them down. Sticks & Biscuits is our way to do that. You get to come out and run and be active. We want to continue to grow the game in the area."

PCIHC will present this year's edition of the annual Sticks & Biscuits 5K run and fun run on Thursday, Nov. 28, Thanksgiving Day, beginning at 8 a.m. at In The Net Sports Complex, 798 Airport Road, Palmyra. Competitors and participants can preregister at https://palmyracougarsicehockey.sportngin.com or in person beginning at 6:30 a.m. on the day of the event.

Runners will be sent out over the 3.1-mile Airport Road course in two waves, one at 8 a.m. and the other at 9 a.m., and prizes will be awarded for the top male and female 5K finishers in different age groups. Top finishers not present when the winners are announced will have their prizes sent to them.

The fun run, which is designed for kids age 12 and under and also requires a fee, will be conducted on one of In The Net's artificial turf fields beginning at 8:15 a.m.

More than 1,200 runners are expected to participate. Members of PCIHC will be on hand to assist with the staging of the event.

All proceeds from the fundraiser will be used to offset expenses incurred by PCIHC. PCIHC will also be accepting separate donations for the Hershey Figure Skating Club's Hershey Twizzles therapeutic program for children and adults with physical and mental disabilities.

"It's our primary fundraiser for the year," said Patrick. "We are responsible to fund our program, and the burden on parents can be pretty high. The cost of ice time isn't cheap."

"Hockey is more of a lifestyle," continued Patrick. "It's a family pursuit. It's open to everyone, but it takes a lot to get our athletes where they need to be. Hockey is not a game you just stop playing after high school."

Unlike many scholastic athletic endeavors, ice hockey is not a Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association-sanctioned sport. PCIHC is associated with the Palmyra Area School District (PASD), but not affiliated with it or funded by it.

PCIHC sponsors a high school varsity team made up of 24 PASD students in grades nine through 12 and a middle school team made up of 17 PASD students in grades five through eight. PCIHC's high school varsity team is a member of the Central Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League and plays about 20 games each season.

PCIHC was founded in 1994, and the club established the Sticks & Biscuits 5K fundraiser in 2007. The club plays its home games at Klick Lewis Arena, which is located at In The Net.

"A lot of these kids play travel hockey too," said Patrick. "This is an opportunity to play for their school. Hockey has always been a big thing in Palmyra. When you have a crowd packed into an arena, it just takes games to a different level. It's the school-pride piece that the kids play for."