Hello ALL,
The story below concerns one of our own...Andrew CADDELL,
descendant of John/Andrew CADDELL of Barbados, 1650s.
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Scoring for cancer research
DAVE STUBBS
Montreal Gazette
Thursday, May 09, 2002
GAZETTE
Kid's goal - and goals - were to help Koivu: Jack Caddell
and Canadiens captain Saku Koivu exchange hockey sticks at
the Molson Centre yesterday. The 7-year-old, a talented
minor-hockey player from Ottawa, raised $1,000 for cancer
research after he heard about Koivu's battle with the disease.
His picture is at
"<http://media.canada.com/scripts/locate.asp?id=3670389c-d8b5-4b7b-9b73-a163f7b26387>".
(attachments can not be sent through Rootsweb)
Seven-year-old Jack Caddell remembers the pain he felt last
September when he learned that Canadiens captain Saku Koivu
had cancer.
"In my heart I felt very, very bad," Jack said yesterday,
watching the Canadiens breeze through an optional practice
at the Molson Centre to prepare for tonight's fourth game in
their National Hockey League playoff series against the
Carolina Hurricanes.
"I don't like it when people are sick, and I like it even
less when it's Saku."
It was then that the talented, precocious minor-hockey
player from Ottawa told his father, Andrew, that he had to
do something - anything - to help his hero. "I like Saku
because he's small, he's fast and he has really good moves,
like me," Jack said yesterday.
Andrew Caddell told his son, "You should pray for Saku to
get well. And for every point you score this season, we'll
give you $5 that you can give to cancer research."
A nice gesture that wouldn't cost a lot, Caddell must have
thought. A year earlier, Jack had scored six goals.
So Jack went out for the Novice C Sandy Hill Flying Mangoes
and tore up the league, scoring 29 goals and 10 assists in
23 games. Caddell and his wife, Elaine Feldman, rounded off
their contribution at $200, a total that was matched by
Jack's grandparents, Phil Caddell and Shirley Feldman, his
aunt, Susan Feldman, and his older brother, James.
Yesterday, the father took his son out of school for a day,
and they drove to Montreal with $1,000, a contribution they
would make to the Canadian Cancer Society in Koivu's name.
The Canadiens captain's recovery from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
and return to the ice has been one of the most inspiring
stories this season.
Yesterday, wearing a knee-length Koivu jersey, Jack was
bigger than his 4 feet and 52 pounds when he was ushered
into the club's Molson Centre gym - and in strolled the
player around whom his hockey universe revolves.
"So there's the man," exclaimed Koivu, exchanging a
high-five with his starstruck fan.
"You're a special guy."
Koivu immediately produced one of his game-used sticks as a
gift for Jack, who was so dazzled that he insisted a trade
be made, leaving one of his own considerably shorter sticks
with Koivu. They chatted like long-lost friends, Koivu
clearly moved by Jack's fundraising effort.
'Doing Great things'
"People in this world are doing great things, but we seldom
hear about them," said Nicole Mireault, communications
director of the Quebec branch of the Canadian Cancer
Society. "We think that everybody is bad, selfish, too busy
or too stressed to do anything but look after themselves.
"When you look at Jack, you see that's not exactly true."
Andrew Caddell's family was living in Geneva four years ago
when a friend presented 3-year-old Jack with a red Canadiens
sweater. By age 5 he was playing in a league of 7-year-olds,
clearly a fine young talent.
Jack had gotten to know hockey through a computer game,
memorizing all the numbers and names of the Canadiens he had
never seen.
Soon his No. 25 Vincent Damphousse jersey was replaced with
a white sweater bearing Koivu's No. 11.
"Basically, the first team I ever knew was the Habs and
they're the team I grew up with," Jack said. "People were
telling me the Habs were the greatest team of all time."
Living today in hockey-mad Ottawa suggests he should be a
fan of the Senators, the Canadiens' opponent in the Eastern
Conference final should both teams advance to the next round.
In fact, a Senators executive lives one street over in
Ottawa East, and often asks Jack why he's not sporting the
red, white and black of the home team.
"We like the Sens," he replies, "but the Habs are legends."
Jack hears little heckling in Grade 2 at École
Francojeunesse, the French school he attends that's well
stocked with Canadiens fans.
And despite their Ottawa address, his family has a strong
Montreal connection: grandfather Phil Caddell was in the
Forum in March 1936 for all six overtime periods of the
longest game in the history of the NHL, and his
great-grandfather, Jack Groper, years ago put Canadiens icon
Maurice Richard to work at Albert Oil.
Tournament's MVP
Two seasons ago, Jack was the youngest player in Ottawa's
novice-hockey system; this year, he was his team's most
valuable player in the Ottawa City tournament.
After a summer of golf, tennis, baseball, soccer and some
road hockey, he has next year's production figured: "From
six goals to 29 in one year is a five-times increase," he
said. "So if I do that again next year, I should score close
to 150."
The Canadian Cancer Society later told Jack his donation
will go to the National Institute of Cancer of Canada, the
society's scientific arm.
But more important to a 7-year-old boy yesterday was basking
in the presence of greatness, sitting in the Canadiens gym,
rubbing shoulders and comparing sticks with Koivu.
"Nice meeting you," he told Koivu on the way out the door,
back to reality. "And I scored 29 goals with that stick. You
can use it if you want."
Seven-year-old Jack Caddell remembers the pain he felt last
September when he learned that Canadiens captain Saku Koivu
had cancer.
"In my heart I felt very, very bad," Jack said yesterday,
watching the Canadiens breeze through an optional practice
at the Molson Centre to prepare for tonight's fourth game in
their National Hockey League playoff series against the
Carolina Hurricanes.
"I don't like it when people are sick, and I like it even
less when it's Saku."
It was then that the talented, precocious minor-hockey
player from Ottawa told his father, Andrew, that he had to
do something - anything - to help his hero. "I like Saku
because he's small, he's fast and he has really good moves,
like me," Jack said yesterday.
Andrew Caddell told his son, "You should pray for Saku to
get well. And for every point you score this season, we'll
give you $5 that you can give to cancer research."
A nice gesture that wouldn't cost a lot, Caddell must have
thought. A year earlier, Jack had scored six goals.
So Jack went out for the Novice C Sandy Hill Flying Mangoes
and tore up the league, scoring 29 goals and 10 assists in
23 games. Caddell and his wife, Elaine Feldman, rounded off
their contribution at $200, a total that was matched by
Jack's grandparents, Phil Caddell and Shirley Feldman, his
aunt, Susan Feldman, and his older brother, James.
Yesterday, the father took his son out of school for a day,
and they drove to Montreal with $1,000, a contribution they
would make to the Canadian Cancer Society in Koivu's name.
The Canadiens captain's recovery from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
and return to the ice has been one of the most inspiring
stories this season.
Yesterday, wearing a knee-length Koivu jersey, Jack was
bigger than his 4 feet and 52 pounds when he was ushered
into the club's Molson Centre gym - and in strolled the
player around whom his hockey universe revolves.
"So there's the man," exclaimed Koivu, exchanging a
high-five with his starstruck fan.
"You're a special guy."
Koivu immediately produced one of his game-used sticks as a
gift for Jack, who was so dazzled that he insisted a trade
be made, leaving one of his own considerably shorter sticks
with Koivu. They chatted like long-lost friends, Koivu
clearly moved by Jack's fundraising effort.
'Doing Great things'
"People in this world are doing great things, but we seldom
hear about them," said Nicole Mireault, communications
director of the Quebec branch of the Canadian Cancer
Society. "We think that everybody is bad, selfish, too busy
or too stressed to do anything but look after themselves.
"When you look at Jack, you see that's not exactly true."
Andrew Caddell's family was living in Geneva four years ago
when a friend presented 3-year-old Jack with a red Canadiens
sweater. By age 5 he was playing in a league of 7-year-olds,
clearly a fine young talent.
Jack had gotten to know hockey through a computer game,
memorizing all the numbers and names of the Canadiens he had
never seen.
Soon his No. 25 Vincent Damphousse jersey was replaced with
a white sweater bearing Koivu's No. 11.
"Basically, the first team I ever knew was the Habs and
they're the team I grew up with," Jack said. "People were
telling me the Habs were the greatest team of all time."
Living today in hockey-mad Ottawa suggests he should be a
fan of the Senators, the Canadiens' opponent in the Eastern
Conference final should both teams advance to the next round.
In fact, a Senators executive lives one street over in
Ottawa East, and often asks Jack why he's not sporting the
red, white and black of the home team.
"We like the Sens," he replies, "but the Habs are legends."
Jack hears little heckling in Grade 2 at École
Francojeunesse, the French school he attends that's well
stocked with Canadiens fans.
And despite their Ottawa address, his family has a strong
Montreal connection: grandfather Phil Caddell was in the
Forum in March 1936 for all six overtime periods of the
longest game in the history of the NHL, and his
great-grandfather, Jack Groper, years ago put Canadiens icon
Maurice Richard to work at Albert Oil.
Tournament's MVP
Two seasons ago, Jack was the youngest player in Ottawa's
novice-hockey system; this year, he was his team's most
valuable player in the Ottawa City tournament.
After a summer of golf, tennis, baseball, soccer and some
road hockey, he has next year's production figured: "From
six goals to 29 in one year is a five-times increase," he
said. "So if I do that again next year, I should score close
to 150."
The Canadian Cancer Society later told Jack his donation
will go to the National Institute of Cancer of Canada, the
society's scientific arm.
But more important to a 7-year-old boy yesterday was basking
in the presence of greatness, sitting in the Canadiens gym,
rubbing shoulders and comparing sticks with Koivu.
"Nice meeting you," he told Koivu on the way out the door,
back to reality. "And I scored 29 goals with that stick. You
can use it if you want."