“There’s more to be than what you see, and there’s more to you than what you do.” 

That’s the motto of Silver Knights and Knight Hawks in-arena host Jennifer “JayBee” Beasley. Whether on the field, on the ice, or at the castle, Beasley encourages the fans at Lee’s Family Forum to get ‘out of their seats and on their feet’ to cheer on their home teams. 

The fans of the Vegas Valley, and the atmosphere that they create at sporting events, were a deciding factor in Beasley’s decision to relocate to Nevada. A California native, she moved to Henderson in 2023 to pursue that dream. 

Despite going in with high expectations, Beasley remained blown away by the enthusiasm and passion of the fanbase. 

“I don’t think that it’s for no reason that Henderson is one of the best places to live in the United States,” Beasley said. “Our fans, especially our local fans, take pride in not just being known for the Strip; we’re now known for being the entertainment capital of the world and the sports capital of the world. I’ll ask our fans where they’re from, and they’ll tell me that they’re born and raised in Vegas. And I always tell them ‘thank you for having me.’ It’s an honor.” 

It’s a community that has warmly welcomed Beasley, and a community that she has wholeheartedly given back to in return. 

A two-time Hodgkin’s lymphoma survivor, Beasley is a staunch advocate for early detection, speaking about its importance not only in her book Straight Outta Chemo, but also ahead of and during Henderson’s Cancer Awareness Knight. As her fellow Knights fans can attest: hockey is more than just a game. Hosting provides a rallying point for Beasley to inspire and motivate others in their own battles against cancer. 

“Sometimes you’ll have people that say ‘I didn’t think that someone so young [would] have gone through cancer treatment and beat it twice,” she said. “Those types of things are ways that I connect to fans across all ages and all backgrounds that go to our games, and our journeys really resonate with one another. I’ve been able to share things about myself and my journey here, and in turn, they’ve been able to share with me their stories and why they love hockey. The games here bring us together.”  

The philosophy of giving back is one that is central to the Knights’ organization, making it a natural fit for Beasley. 

“I think that one of the best ways to really show your leadership and commit to growing the game is to reach back and lift everybody up,” she said. “I was afraid when I started; it comes with the territory of being ‘the only’ in a lot of spaces. Probably the majority of them. But I know that if I’m here and leading by example, someone else will be able to do it, and someone after them will be able to do it, and the game will only continue to grow and get a bigger audience. We want to grow the game and grow the fanbase.” 

“Kids in the future are going to be able to say that, for example, Brendan Brisson came to their school or on a hospital visit. We have our players telling kids that they can do this, giving them equipment, teaching them hockey [at clinics]. So even if kids feel like no one on a field, or on a court, or on the ice looks like them – the players are telling them that they can. I’m hoping to keep showing them that they can, too. Just like I love when the players go to hospital visits and distribute toys and just talk with the patients there. Those are the kinds of things that people remember forever. The Lucky Launch teddy bears are probably things that they’ll keep for life. It’s about impact. To have us as the Henderson Silver Knights, as part of the AHL, making hockey more available and more accessible to more people – I think that’s extremely important. So we always want to give them a great show, a great product, a great place to be.”