McSweeney’s WHL Community Collective: Prince George Cougars
Prince George, B.C.- The B.C. Cancer Centre- Prince George is a critical component of healthcare in the heart of the Cariboo region.
On any given day the centre is bustling with patients receiving treatment, people participating in clinical trials, researchers- and even hockey teams.
The Prince George Cougars visited the B.C. Cancer Centre ahead of their annual Cougars Fight Cancer Night to learn more about the disease and how it’s treated.
“Some guys maybe have had experiences with family members or things like that, but for myself, personally, I knew a little bit but going into there I didn’t know as much as I thought I did,” Captain Hudson Thornton recalled. “Being there and learning what goes into it and the difference between chemotherapy and radiation and the steps to the whole treatment process opened up my perspective a lot. I think that’s really important for our group to go in there and experience that.”
The B.C. Cancer Centre- Prince George team is made up of counselors, nurses, oncologists, pharmacists, radiation therapists and registered dieticians.
It’s known for its world-class clinical trials and innovative research into radiation therapy.
The scope of their work has left an indelible impact on Thornton.
“Then they took us to the radiation side and showed us one of their radiation machines and how it works,” Thornton added. “Just being in there and seeing how the computer works and the math and all the science behind it was pretty cool.
The people that work there, those people are true heroes. What they have to deal with every single day and the job they do to make people dealing with cancer feel safe, I just feel like they’re in really good hands.”
The visit gave the Cougars some extra jump in their stride for the Cougars Fight Cancer game against the Seattle Thunderbirds on February 19.
In addition to an 8-1 win in front of more than 6,000 fans at the CN Centre, the evening also raised more than $70,000 for the B.C. Cancer Foundation.
“Those nights are always special, especially when it has such an important meaning behind the game,” Thornton said. “It was a sellout and kind of to see that, obviously everybody knew how important the cause was.”
The Western Hockey League strives to promote and foster a welcoming environment in communities close to our 22 clubs in Western Canada and the Pacific Northwest. Every team has the creative freedom to allow their players and staff to work with the organizations and groups that they are most passionate about. The end goal is to create and maintain long-lasting relationships and ongoing partnerships within their community.
Through the McSweeney’s WHL Community Collective, we aim to highlight these outstanding initiatives done by each club throughout the season.