Friday, February 13 – LHS conducted a massive bone marrow drive during the Colorado Avalanche vs. Montreal Canadiens NHL Hockey Game. We were able to register over 75 people during the game and had a blast seeing the logo on the jumbotron and on TV during the game. Thanks for all of the kids that wore the LHS tattoo the night of the game and all of the parents that took the time to get registered.
LHS director, Shannon Foley, had time to meet with Saku Koivu after the game. Saku signed his name to a prayer flag which will be carried by the Kilimanjaro Rocks team to the top of Africa in September of this year. Add a name to the flags.
Saku Antero Koivu is the captain and plays center for the Montreal Canadiens. On 6 September 2001, Koivu was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma after having serious pains in stomach and vomiting. Koivu was on his way back from Finland with then-fellow Canadien Brian Savage who said he looked pale and not well at all. He went to see the Canadien’s physician David Mulder, who did tests. It was later discovered that Koivu had cancer.
Koivu was expected to be out for the season but made a remarkable comeback in time for the last few games. Fans gave Koivu an eight-minute standing ovation when he skated onto the Molson Center ice for the first time on on 9 April 2002. Koivu helped the team to gain a playoff spot and they went on to beat the #1 ranked Boston Bruins in six games.
In 2008, Koivu was featured in the Simple Plan music video for the song Save You, which was originally written for the lead singer’s brother. The music video features many cancer survivors such as Koivu.
