Paralyzed Smiths Falls hockey player begins intensive rehab
Posted Jan 7, 2015 12:10:05 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
OTTAWA – The family of a Smiths Falls hockey player, who had a scholarship at Princeton University, have revealed details of his injury and comfirm that he’s been paralyzed from the waist down.
Neil Doef, 17, has been in hospital since December 14th, after an on-ice collision with another player at the World Junior A Challenge in Saskatchewan but his family never revealed the full extent of his injuries until Tuesday.
In a post on the “Doefstrong” Facebook page, Doef’s family says he has sustained a spinal cord injury but is committed to pushing himself in rehab.
“This journey Neil is on requires the perseverance, dedication and an excellent outlook on life that we have seen from him on ice,” reads the Facebook post.
Family friend Pat Morell has known the Doef family since Neil began playing soccer with her kids at age 8.
Morell tells 1310News she is doing everything she can to help the Doef family through this traumatic time.
“Neil’s wonderful. Neil is great and in all honestly if anyone can beat these odds, he’ll beat them,” says Morell.
Morell is one of the organizers behind Doefstrong and tells 1310News they have raised $100,000 to support the Doef family, thanks to generous donations from the community and from rinks across the country.
“It was an accident that happened in a split second and could happen to any one of our kids at any time,” says Morell. “And I think that struck a chord across Canada and into the States.”
Donations can be made at any Scotiabank to “Doefstrong in trust” or by e-transfer to doefstrong@gmail.com.
