Henderson, an 84-year-old former semipro player and Air Force veteran, founded the Cannons in 1978 to use hockey as a prism to instill teamwork, discipline, perseverance, responsibility and accountability in boys and girls from some of Washington's toughest neighborhoods, free of charge.
More than 1,500 players have worn the Cannons black, white and gold jerseys since. Some, like Abercrombie
and Zachary Ware
, a forward for El Paso of the North American 3 Hockey League, are striving to advance in the sport behind the bench and on the ice.
Others have gone on to professional careers, like U.S. Marine Lt. Col. Ralph Featherstone, who serves on the Joint Staff at the Pentagon. He gives back to the program by helping coach the current generation of Cannons.
Henderson was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 2019 as its first Black member. His story and the history of the Fort Dupont program is chronicled in "The Cannons," a documentary by former NHL video production staffer Steven Hoffner and AJ Messier.
The film debuted at the DOC NYC film festival in New York in November. The film's producers said they hope to have its Washington, D.C., debut in February.
"I never thought that it would be this rewarding to me and to the kids to be able to have a history that they could be a part of and remembered," Henderson said in an interview on NHL Network in November, "and they can see themselves in it for what they did to make this history possible.
"If it wasn't, I wouldn't be where I am today. It's the kids who've made me who I am."