Phantoms partner with Lemieux foundation

YOUNGSTOWN — The Mahoning Valley Phantoms are partnering with the Mario Lemieux Foundation for a night to benefit the fight against cancer at the Chevrolet Centre.

The Phantoms will auction off the special Mario Lemieux Foundation jerseys worn during their Jan. 10 against Motor City, with the proceeds going to the foundation.

“It is such an important cause and to have one of the all-time great hockey players associated with it is a great honor for the Phantoms organization,” said Phantoms president Bruce Zoldan.

This is the first time the Phantoms have partnered with the foundation, formed in 1993 by Mario Lemieux of the Pittsburgh Penguins who had his 1993-94 NHL season cut short when he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease.

After a successful battle with Hodgkin’s, the eventual NHL Hall of Famer was cancer free but his experience led him to focus on ways to assist those who were not so fortunate.

The foundation’s main objective is to fund promising medical research projects being conducted by talented scientists.

Among the donations made by the foundation was a $5 million gift to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center to establish the Mario Lemieux Centers for Patient Care and Research in 2001 and a $2 million gift to the Children’s Home of Pittsburgh in 2005.

“The Mario Lemieux Foundation is thrilled to be the recipient of the Mahoning Valley Phantoms’ Uniform Night Fundraiser,” said foundation spokesman Andrew Parish. “The jersey auction is truly going to be a unique event for the foundation, and the winning bidders are each going to walk away with a really unique item.

“Mario is happy to partner with an organization like the Phantoms who work to further the sport of hockey in the United States, while at the same time work to give back the community.”

Fans will be able to make early bids on the special jerseys at MVPPhantoms.com starting Jan. 3. The live auction will take place following the Jan. 10 game.

Fore more details on the Mario Lemieux Foundation, visit MarioLemieux.org.

Phantoms tickets are on sale at the Ice Zone in Boardman or by calling (330) 965-7500.