Dallas Stars hold annual Hockey Fights Cancer Night with inspiring guest
NORTH TEXAS — The Dallas Stars are holding the team's annual Hockey Fights Cancer night, and they invited a special guest to help them knock out their toughest opponent.
In a lot of ways, Wednesday was a normal skate inside the American Airlines Center.
The Stars have their normal skate around and for 10-year-old Wiley Luhm, it's still a pretty normal day.
"People told me to come here, and so we did," said Wiley Luhm.
His dad, Mike, knows it's anything but normal.
"We got here around 8:00 and watched the players come in," said Mike Luhm.
"I saw all the players and their... plot," said Wiley.
"They snagged him, took him into a team meeting. Now we're here watching them warm up on the ice," said Mike Luhm.
The Stars invited Wiley because he designed the shirt for Hockey Fights Cancer Night.
"I made it for my line, I'm still standing. It's... I'm still alive to this day," said Wiley.
"We knew he was going to scrap through it. I think the hardest part was waiting to find out what the tumors were in his brain," said Mike Luhm.
Wiley has a rare form of Hodgkin lymphoma that left him with five tumors on his brain.
"Call it shocking, but, your day stops," said Mike Luhm.
But when your kid gets cancer, the only thing you can do is pick up the puck and keep fighting.
"We knew we would get through it, he's a fighter," said Mike Luhm.
Now after chemo, the tumors are gone.
"I already beat it," said Wiley.
Wiley is going to keep doing chemo through January to make sure there's not a single cancer cell left, but he's going to keep fighting – and he has a message for all the other kids fighting cancer.
"Be brave and still go. You got this," said Wiley.
Wiley and his family will be wearing those "I'm still standing" shirts rink side at Wednesday night's Stars game. All proceeds from shirt sales will benefit Salood Childhood Cancer Organization and the Jimmy V Foundation.