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Brian Leetch to Join Other Rangers Heroes to Benefit the Ronald McDonald House · Go News To Go: More Good News

• 0:07
  High post Slack. It's good news broadcast here with the president of the Ronald
• 0:10
  McDonald House here in the New York area. Is that right, Bill,
• 0:13
  Bill Sullivan High, that's right. Welcome, Welcome to Rockefeller Center, and
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  here we are at Skate with the Greats. And for the benefit of the
• 0:20
  Ronald McDonald House. We have a facility up on East seventy third Street that
• 0:25
  houses eighty four pediatric families that are suffering with cancer here in the city and
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  it's a wonderful place where we provide a home away from home. The New
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  York City House is very unique and that we're the largest in all of the
• 0:41
  Ronald McDonald houses in the country. Skate with the Greats has been going on
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  for fourteen years and we're very excited about tonight because it's our largest and most
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  successful ever. We'll raise one point five million dollars house the first three weeks
• 0:56
  in January, so that's that's really exciting, and we're so pleased to be
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  honoring Brian Leach who's been a really a mainstay at the house for many years,
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  over a decade when he played with the team here and so it's our
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  chance to kind of pay him back for everything he did. He used to
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  come up at nine o'clock at night and sit and read with the kids and
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  do kind of things, and he really involved the team in a very meaningful
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  way. Of our partnership with the Rangers is very very important to us,
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  and we're very privileged to share that partnership. That's wonderful. I actually Austin
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  Tongue as a producer a good News broadcast, and Austin has had involvement with
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  the Ronald McDonald House. Austin Hello, um Hi was once a resident in
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  ron McDonald House from ninety eight to ninety nine, and I was wondering,
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  like, what has changed or has it changed our hasn't it since? So
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  I think you're basically talking about, you know, a decade and basically seventy
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  to eighty percent of our kids go on to lead very cancer free, normal
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  lives, and we only unfortunately twenty percent pass. Ten years ago that number
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  was fifty percent. So the wonderful hospitals that we partner with, and we
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  have thirteen of them here in the city that we potner with, and they
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  refer patients to our facility. But the good news is ten years ago we've
• 2:31
  improved drastically in ten years for the better. So more kids are being cured
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  because of science and advanced medication and experimental treatments and things of that nature.
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  Music. Well, when Brian saw you, you guys, he remembered you.
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  I mean it was like I got goose pemples and I have got goose
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  pimples right now. So how does that feel for you? For me,
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  it felt great, um no, that I got to meet um rab mcdonna.
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  Uh, and then um going and getting to meet Brian Leach and how
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  are you thing? So I have a question, do you think hopefully it
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  will become true it's gonna be um reach from eighty to one cancer free?
• 3:29
  Well, I think we certainly. I think we're certainly that's our the overriding
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  goal of the medical institutions and the scientists who work very very hard. We
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  consider ourselves part of the cure by allowing the families to stay with the children
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  while they're going through this very traumatic experience. And that's part of the cure
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  that people have said that, uh, that helps keeps the kids going and
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  fortified. And so we certainly hope, you know, I hope in my
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  lifetime that we'll get that number. If not one hundred percent, you know
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  we're close. Xcellent. So home, do you have anything to say?
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  Oh, I just you know, we've actually covered some other events that Bill
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  has been connected to our good friend gene Fish and had a nice event down
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  one of the nightclubs, another fundraiser. So if people are able to do
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  a fundraiser further around the McDonald house, get in touch with you guys,
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  Absolutely give us a call. We'd love to. We we depend on private
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  donations where no government, no state funding, no needed way funding, all
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  of it comes from corporations like this evening and very generous individuals who take their
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  checkbook out and support our cause. And so we need as much help as
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  we can get, and especially in today's difficult financial uh you know time.
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  Well, I'll also say I'm going to throw it in because I love McDonald's
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  and and all their outreach. I have known them for a long time in
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  the in the philanthropic way and the multicultural way, in many different aspects of
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  their corporation. Yeah, they're just the company that's really there for the community.
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  They most certainly are, and for over thirty years they have been running
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  this wonderful Ronald McDonald House Charities, and in addition to the house, they
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  do a tremendous of other good with scholarship programs and local community based fundraising through
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  the UH the distribution of the the the canisters in the restaurants. In addition
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  to the company being very generous, they were the owner operators of the Tri
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  State area were extremely generous to us when we built our facility nineteen years ago.
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  Here in the in the city. Okay, what comes around, all
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  goes around, and everybody's here because of what you're doing. Congratulations. Did
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  you want to say last thing? I would? Sorry, but um,
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  like for um number of years, Uh, Ronald McDonald House has been uh
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  cancer free, UH house or trying to cure cancer? Is that the only?
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  Uh? Um? Do you have any other things besides cancer free?
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  We're in New York City. We were particular in that our mission is specific
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  to serving kids with cancer. H The other Ronald McDonald houses, and there
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  are over two hundred and seventy of them worldwide, serve all childhood diseases.
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  Some of those specialize in certain areas of neonatal and trauma and things of that
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  nature, depending upon what kind of hospitals they're associated with, but we are
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  specifically for cancer in New York. Excellent. Have I'd like to thank you
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  and thank you and I'd like to say have have uh happy day and uh
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  send so send any money you have left over two two Ronald McDonald house and
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  have a great day. Thank you. Hi. It's Andrew Goddimer and Austin
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  Tongue with Brian Leech. Um. Hi you good. Thank um. So
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  they're retiring your number of tomorrow at um the garden and um any uh what's
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  what does that mean to you? It's a great honor. Um humbling for
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  sure. A lot of players have been played for the Rangers over many many
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  years and to be the fifth jersey retired the Rafters and I got to play
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  with two of those players, Mark Messier and Mike Richter, and I got
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  to know Roger Bear and Eddie Jackman was a coach one time when I was
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  in New York. And to join those men, it's quite an honor.
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  It's gonna be great, okay, Mike, oh or I'm sorry, Brian.
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  Uh, Like, what in your mind in the future do you see
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  yourself and Robal mcdonaldhouse, kim up to do whatever? Yeah, That's interesting
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  because I had when I got traded to Toronto and then I played in Boston.
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  Was one of the things I missed was the skate with the greats and
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  being able to go over to the house. And um. You know,
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  I've got three young kids now seven, four and two that are keeping me
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  busy. But you know, I hope at some point I'm not playing anymore,
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  that I'm always invited back for this night here New York. And certainly
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  we'd like to be at all of these and to keep this event going would
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  be fantastic, it says Andrew got him with Austin tongue and UM. Good
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  News broadcasts at a Rockefeller Center with UM Adam Graves UM for the got In
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  Dreams charity event. Hi good, see good good to be here, Thank
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  you. So what um is uh? Um Ronald like God Him Dreams Foundation
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  about? I think when you you talk about Ronald McDonald house and in the
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  garden, Dreams Foundation to talk about certainly the house having the ability to house
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  people they come in, uh, learning when children come in for treatment at
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  and the different hospitals and the different cities, and and I know that I
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  had the good fortune working with them in Toronto, in Edmonton, Alberta.
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  It certainly in New York City here and in particular in New York where a
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  family comes in they could have their child from all over the world. You
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  could have their child in the hospital for for for weeks or months on and
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  to have the ability to stay at the house everything that the house has to
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  offer from the rooms so that the food, to the entertainment, to UM
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  to the support that these families need, and at an affordable valuation where if
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  they had to go into the normal hotel and had to put up their family,
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  it would be impossible. And that's where ron McDonalds so special. I
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  didn't know that as a kid, I never understood what ron mbale Hose was.
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  But now now that I've been educated over the last fifteen twenty years,
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  is one of my favorite charitable organizations because it does make a huge difference.
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  And the Garden of Dreams is all about kids, kids and crisis, kids
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  that are sick, kids that are are homeless, kids that are in need,
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  and UM to partner and have that partnership between the Garden of Dreams and
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  the Ron McDonald houses special and one of the things that we have the great
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  fortune of having is the Garden and the Rockefeller Center and the Beacon Theater and
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  the Womoo Theater and having the ability to bring you know, kids in on
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  the make a wish or from the RONA McDonald House to see a basketball game,
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  see a nick game, or see a ranging game, or see the
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  Rockets, or or just take them out of their element and give them the
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  opportunity to put a smile on their face. And that's why I think it's
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  such a tight match where you talk about the Garden of Freames and and the
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  ro McDonald's. Okay, well, um, like what uh are what are
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  your like? Create um hopes for the ron McDonald House and uh you yourself?
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  Well, I think when you talk about ron McDonald's, and I know
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  in the city here that they're starting a capitol campaign, I believe because they
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  want to build a or they're talking about expanding and maybe maybe expanding the new
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  one or the the the existing one or the new one that more people that
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  Ronald McDonald House can can help and impact the better, because it really is
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  a fantastic organization. And you go in there and you talk to any of
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  the families, and any of the families that have benefited from from a being
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  able to support your child, and a child that is sick and needs to
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  support of their mom and dad and their sisters and brothers, Well they wouldn't
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  have that support if it wasn't for Ronald McDonald House being able to house these
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  families, house these brothers and sisters and moms and dads and and give them
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  the ability to go down and live in the city and go to the hospital
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  and be there every day for your son or daughter and when they need you.
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  And you can't put a value on that. So, so as far
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  as Ronald McDonald House is concerned, you want them to have every opportunity and
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  every ability um to raise and be able to garner whatever moneys and support that
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  they can m to be able to touch as many lives as possible. And
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  whether that means creating more room building a new Ronald Donaldhouse, you're just increasing
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  the services that they already offer. Um, it's it's it's worth it.
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  So so like what uh factor are you part of the Royal Donald House hand
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  in the New York Rangers, Well, I'm not actually uh with the New
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  York Rangers Hockey club, and certainly Madison Spurg Garden and Cable Vision and H
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  and it's one big family. As I said before with Radio City in the
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  Beacon and and as part of the H Garden of Dreams, it's it's about
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  UM. And I think specifically with Ronald Donaldhouse. Certainly events like tonight,
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  UH skate with the Greats where a lot of people come out and hockey fans
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  are not come out to support a great cause. There's a silent auction get
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  out on Rockefeller Ice. And I've often said there's not a better city to
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  skate on an outdoor rink on than I knew or City, and on day
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  like today where you're going to see the stars, it doesn't get any better
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  in that at the same time, all the money is going to the kids
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  and making a difference. And Garden of Dreams does the same thing. It
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  takes these kids, UM takes me other and gives them opportunities to come down
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  on the garden and and and to enjoy and you know, and there's coach
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  drives and and food drives and and toy drives and and UH and certainly something
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  like this where we're partnering up to to to raise much needed moneies UM to
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  create and to be able to touch more lives through the Ronald McDonald House,
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  but also through Garden of Dreams and bringing these uh kids down on the garden
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  or any of those venues that we are so lucky to have um to to
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  enjoy and whether they're in the city and they get to a range of game
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  or or sit up in a box and popcorn and some and some ball caps
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  and get to sit there with the other friends from the house or whatever,
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  it's just a special night. And especially to be a part of both organizations.
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  Paul, do you have anything to say, um as one of us
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  about Brian Witch is not gonna honestly be retired tomorrow. What do you think
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  does that mean for the Rangers, Because you know, well, when you
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  think of Brian, you just think about everything that he embodies. He has
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  been from day one, from his first days twenty years ago when he first
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  started as a Ranger, he's been involved in an integral part of Ronald McDonald
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  Houst. And I know that he makes a frequent visits there and he's been
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  a part of a lot of those killed children and families lives that visited had
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  been a part of ron McDonald houset. So I think when you talk about
• 15:43
  Brian off the ice, he represents everything that is great, and certainly it
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  starts with Ron mcdonaldhust and his family and as a player, there's not a
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  more deserving guy to ever wear the jersey, the red, white blue with
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  the number two, and his number is going to where it belongs. And
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  uh, it's great that we're all you're gonna have the great privilege of watching.
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  Thank you, my pleasure, my pleasure, guys. Thank you very
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  much, all the us, thank you, Thank you.