"We've been helped by so many people throughout this journey - the nurses, the doctors, they're all amazing and he knows that," Will's mom, Adrienne, told stlouisblues.com. "I think, once he did it he felt really good about it. That feeling alone is huge, that feeling of contributing in a way when you're so sick - then you feel like you can do anything."
Will, who is from Fenton, MO, was diagnosed with AML in July and has been undergoing chemotherapy treatments with the support of his parents and three sisters. Will and his family chose to highlight as many different cancer causes as they could on his puck design, designating each letter of the word "FIGHTS" in "HOCKEY FIGHTS CANCER" with a color that represents different forms of cancer.
Yellow, which represents all forms of childhood cancer, was chosen for the letter "F". "I" was colored red to represent blood cancers like leukemia while also encouraging others to donate blood and platelets.
"We're always encouraging friends and everybody to give blood because it's just a huge, life-saving gift," said Adrienne. "You don't even realize when you're giving it how much it means."
Will colored the "G" green in support of those battling non-hodgkin's lymphoma, the "H" orange to support others battling AML like himself, the "T" grey in support of brain cancer causes, and the "S" teal for ovarian cancers.
