For nearly 50 years, it was known as the Mt. Lebanon Ice Center, but most locals simply called it ‘The Rink.’

For five decades, multiple generations of figure skaters, hockey players and recreational skaters pulled open those heavy brown steel doors, heard that familiar metallic clank and stepped inside to the distinctive smell of cool rink air.

For many, The Rink became a second home.

Young athletes didn’t just practice there; they grew up there. Families and teams didn’t simply use the facility; they became part of the fabric of The Rink.

Perhaps no one embodied that sense of family, community and selflessness more than Frank Gill.

Frank the hockey parent. Frank the hockey player. Frank the coach. Frank the mentor. Frank the volunteer.

Frank Gill was the kind of citizen every community needs.

Gill and his wife, Deborah, raised their young family — sons Micah and Charlie and daughter Mollie — on Woodhaven Drive. When their eldest son, Micah, began playing ice hockey at a young age, Frank and the Gill family embarked on a nearly two-decade journey that would change not only their lives but the lives of many others.

Ice hockey, like so many youth sports, requires a tremendous amount of time, commitment and energy. Frank fell in love with the game — and embraced all the unglamorous parental duties that came with it.

He became the model volunteer, focusing much of his attention on youth hockey and the Mt. Lebanon Hornets organization. For more than a decade, he worked tirelessly as an assistant coach, head coach and director of communications, eventually becoming president of the Mt. Lebanon Hockey Association.

Frank believed hockey should always be fun for the kids. Along the way, he seamlessly mixed lessons about respect, teamwork and positive thinking with the joy of playing the game.

He became a role model without even knowing it.

At a time when parents and coaches can sometimes lose sight of the pure joy of youth sports, Frank was a welcome exception. Every practice and every game was about the kids.

“Frank taught many critical non-hockey lessons that the kids learn while playing hockey: how to win, how to lose, how to respect an opponent and how to be a good teammate,” said hockey parent and friend Pete Eberhart.

Sadly, in May 2023, at age 46, Frank Gill died after a six-month battle with cancer.

The Rink was silent.

 Soon, much of the hockey community he had touched rallied behind an idea: renaming the rink in his honor.

On Sept. 19, 2026, The Rink officially became the Frank Gill Ice Rink.

During the renaming ceremony, Frank’s son Micah reflected on what the honor meant to his family.

“I want to thank my family, the Mt. Lebanon community, and the hockey community for making this possible. I want to give a huge thank you to my mom, who has been the rock that has held this family together. I love you so much. And thank you to my dad for being someone that people love. Every day I am prouder and prouder to be his son.”

Deborah Gill also spoke about the significance of seeing her husband’s name become a permanent part of the community he loved.

“It is a tremendous honor for us to be able to recognize Frank this way. He loved Mt. Lebanon. He believed in giving back to this community and appreciated all that it offered to our family and to so many others. It is difficult to put into words what it means to know that Frank’s name will become a permanent part of a place where people of all ages come together to skate, play hockey, learn, compete and make memories. I can’t imagine a more fitting way to honor his life and his love for this community.”

The Mt. Lebanon Blue Devil Club also recognized Gill posthumously with its 2026-27 Sportsman of the Year Award. The organization honored him as a tireless supporter of youth athletics, a father of three and a true connector between youth sports and Mt. Lebanon High School programs.

And perhaps there could be no more fitting continuation of Frank’s story than what happened back on the ice.

His son Charlie Gill, a junior at Mt. Lebanon High School, scored a goal in his first game of the season at the rink that now bears his father’s name.

Today, as families pull open those heavy steel doors and step into that familiar cool rink air, perhaps they’ll take a moment to remember Frank the hockey parent, Frank the coach, Frank the mentor, Frank the volunteer — and, to so many who knew him, Frank the legend.

May his legacy of goodness and kindness, and his love for hockey, community and family, live on forever at The Frank.