There is still time. So we know that Edmontonians will take this precious time and do the right thing. Because Dr. Brent Saik knows better than most that time is precious.
It started last Friday when 39 men and one woman laced 'em up at Saiker's Acres in Strathcona County. Not for themselves. Not for the press or the publicity. And certainly not for the thrill. Agony, they all knew, was just around the corner. But it hurts so good. It would begin with the national anthem and accolades, bag pipes and speeches. And then the onlookers would disappear to the comfort of their own homes.
The World's Longest Hockey Game is so much more than an opportunity for men to be boys. Two hundred and forty-plus hours. That's all. And that doesn't even begin to tell the story. It is, in a sense, a mission. Or, in Dr. Saik's case, it is almost a calling. A son's promise to a dying father has been kept, and then some. The World's Longest Hockey Game is a tribute to family and friends. It is a tribute to those who have come (and gone) before. It is one of those special events where you really can't go wrong. When it comes from the heart, and it doesn't end there, how can you possibly go wrong?
Most people will be touched by cancer during their lifetime. This hideous disease has tortured Dr. Saik not once but twice. First with his father, Terry, and then with his wife, Susan. This week, it will slap him silly again, especially in the middle of the night and the middle of the week, and he will somehow muster the courage and the spirit to punch back. There is no quit in this man, or the 38 other men and one woman who will accompany him.
In the beginning, back in 2003, this initiative raised slightly more than $100,000. It had nothing to do with money back then. It had everything to do with family. The same can be said now, but the numbers are inspiring. The hope is to raise $1 million.
Between the first game and the second, Dr. Saik lost his wife Susan and found a whole new focus that centred around daughter Angelica. She is 11 now, full of life and spirit. And love. Hers is the heartbeat behind this extraordinary event. In the middle of the night, when all seems lost, and it's so damn cold, Angelica Saik will step out onto a balcony and wave to her dad. And Dr. Brent Saik, and the others, will get their second – or 15th – wind. The fight against cancer continues.
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