Amaar Rashid, resident Imam in the quaint town of Mercy, Saskatchewan, felt that in addition to the often-visited local mosque, church and Fatima’s Café, the community needed a new hangout.

‘I couldn’t help but feel that something – or somewhere – was missing from our small prairie town. And then it dawned on me: the people of Mercy needed an arena,’ writes Rashid, on CBC’s Kraft Hockeyville 2010 website, where he officially entered Mercy for a chance to win a $100,000 arena makeover paid for by Kraft Canada.

Rashid, of course, is a character on CBC’s Little Mosque on the Praire, and his fictional entry, to be followed with a video (the making of which will be featured on a Little Mosque episode airing Jan. 18) is the latest example of the network’s commitment to unique brand integration with its programming. Media and sponsorship for the annual contest were arranged by Mediavest, with promo creative by MacLaren Momentum.

The collaboration of CBC’s small-town favourites was also a way to keep the competition fresh, according to an earlier MiC interview with Jim Kozak, senior manager consumer promotions at Kraft Canada. Hockeyville had more than 7,100 entries, nine million votes and 330 million media impressions last year, he said.

The winning community also gets to host a pre-season 2010/2011 NHL game in their new arena, while the four runners-up each get $25,000 from Kraft for their own arena upgrades. In-store promotions will end in March after the nomination closes, while Kraft Hockeyville fans can also join the contest Facebook fan page and follow @hockeyville on Twitter.