GREAT FALLS — University of Providence's hockey team competes at the Division II level of the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA), and one of the Argos' assistant captains is Charles Lupelow — a veteran of the United States Army.
"Everything just kind of aligned here at UP for me to have an opportunity to play," Lupelow said at Tuesday's practice. "I had some time, and I thought, why not? You don't get these chances very often."
He served in the Army for nearly four years prior to finding himself in Great Falls, he said, and serving for the country was something he dreamed of doing since he was young.
"In high school my parents kind of talked me out of going right away. I originally was considering joining right out of high school," Lupelow said. "It was something I had always wanted to do, and I just kind of decided to go for it one day and haven't looked back since."
While serving, he said he spent a lot of time overseas, traveling to places you might not normally see.
"I was in Germany for a while, saw most of Europe and everything," Lupelow said. "Got to see places in the world I'd never thought I'd be able to see, and it kind of took me to places in the world people don't necessarily travel to.
"I went to some areas definitely over in Europe where they don't have kind of the luxuries we have here."
His collegiate hockey journey started at Minnesota State-Mankato, but after his time there, he said he thought he wouldn't return to the sport.
"Coming back, my first game for UP was my first competitive game in probably seven or eight years, so it had been a while, and I was feeling it at first," Lupelow said.
Lupelow and his wife — who currently is active duty in the Air Force — moved to Great Falls in 2021, he said. That's when he said he used his G.I. bill to enroll at Providence, where the hockey team was in need of players.
"I kind of naturally drifted towards the hockey guys," Lupelow said. "They were in need of players, and I just came out for the team and kind of stuck with it ... for the last about three years now."
Right away, he said the adjustment to come back to hockey was tough, but his time in the Army helped build confidence, which attributed positively to his return to the ice.
"They instill in you to be confident in yourself, and that's something that, you know, can definitely translate to the ice," Lupelow said. "Then just keeping in shape and stuff. Even since leaving the Army, you know, physical fitness is something I take seriously, which obviously helps in the game of hockey."
Lupelow is wrapping up his time with the Argos, as he expects to graduate this spring. He said he hopes he can stay involved with hockey somehow once his time as a player is up.
"Whether it's coaching the youth levels, or something like that," Lupelow said. "I previously coached a youth team here at Great Falls, so I'd like to stay involved with hockey."
Providence hockey has four more regular-season games remaining before it pushes for a berth in the ACHA DII national tournament in March.
