MIDDLE ISLAND, N.Y. -- Former New York Islanders trainer Joe McMahon, along with Islanders alumni, family, and friends, hit the links at the Middle Island Country Club for the 23rd Annual McMahon Family Golf Outing on Saturday.
Starting in 2001, after losing his mother, Lee, to brain cancer and his 18-month-old son, Aidan, to liver complications, Joe and his brothers, Tom and Mike, have helped raise close to $2 million to benefit the Hospice Care Network and American Liver Foundation.
Over Joe’s 19 years with the organization, the Islanders players became like family to him.
So when tragedy struck the McMahon family, his Islanders family was there every step of the way, and continues to be there 23 years later.
“It means everything to me that the organization was behind me,” McMahon said. “(Former Islanders coach and general manager) Mike Milbury was understanding of what I was going through. The love and support I got from the League at that time and my Islander family was incredible, and it helped my family get through it.”
Then-Islanders forward Claude Lapointe skipped a road game to be by his trainer’s side after Joe received the heartbreaking news about his son.
“He means a lot to me. We’ve been friends for like 25 years now,” Lapointe said. “And then, when his son passed, we became even closer. I was just happy to be alongside him and just comfort him and support him. Every time he needed to talk or to cry, I was always there. He's one of my best friends.”
As a trainer, Joe’s job was to cater to the players, but his kindness and positive attitude made him more than just a team employee.
"Joe was always taking care of us, so it was only natural for everybody to come to his aid and take care of him in his time of need," former Islanders forward Brian Mullen said. "Coming to this event, it’s like we’re all back in the locker room again, and we're all sitting there taking our pads off and having a beer together."
About 20 alumni were on hand to show their support.
"Joe has been special from my first days on the island," former Islanders forward Mick Vukota said. "You develop special relationships with your training staff. And those are truly the guys that always want to make sure that you're being taken care of. And it never changed from his first day there to the last day. And then, when it comes to this golf event, he treats you the same way. It's just that compassion and kindness that Joe and his family show every day. And that's what makes it a special event for us."
At the event, there were both live and silent auctions featuring prizes such as an Islanders jersey signed by New York's early-1980s dynasty team, a guitar signed by Taylor Swift and a stick signed by Hockey Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux.
