NCAA COLLECTORS, HERE IS A CHANCE TO HELP ONE OF COLLEGE HOCKEY’S GOOD GUYS, AND BID ON SOME GREAT NCAA AND PRO HOCKEY GAME WORN JERSEYS AND MEMORABILIA. CHRIS GARNER, HOCKEY EQUIPMENT MANAGER AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA, DULUTH IS CURRENTLY BATTLING MDS (MYELODYSPLATIC SYNDROME), FORMERLY KNOWN AS PRE-LEUKEMIA. CHRIS WAS DIAGNOSED WITH THIS DISEASE EARLIER THIS YEAR AND IS CURRENTLY WAITING ON A POTENTIALLY LIFE SAVING BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT. IF CHRIS DOES NOT RECEIVE A BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT, THE RISK OF HIS CURRENT BONE MARROW TRANSITIONING INTO AML (ACUTE MYELOGENOUS LEUKEMIA) WOULD BE EXTREMELY HIGH. FORTUNATELY, A DONOR MATCH FOR CHRIS WAS FOUND IN JUNE OF 2010 AND CHRIS HAS BEGUN THE TRANSPLANT PROCESS AT THE MAYO CLINIC. THE BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT IS A VERY EXPENSIVE PROCEDURE AND CHRIS MUST BARE SOME OF MEDICAL COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE PROCEDURE ALONG WITH THE COSTS OF RELOCATING TO ROCHESTER, MN FOR THE TREATMENT UNTIL HE IS CLEARED TO RETURN TO WORK AT THE DECC (UMD’S HOME RINK) AND MOVE BACK HOME TO DULUTH.

JEREMIAH MINKEL, ST CLOUD STATE HOCKEY EQUIPMENT MANAGER, MET CHRIS WHEN THEY WERE BOTH STUDENT ASSISTANTS AT SCSU AND THEY HAVE BEEN CLOSE FRIENDS EVER SINCE. JEREMIAH HAS PUT TOGETHER AN ON-LINE AUCTION THAT WILL BE STARTING OCTOBER 23 TO RAISE FUNDS TO HELP OFFSET CHRIS’S MEDICAL COSTS NOT COVERED BY INSURANCE. HE IS ACCUMULATING A VERY IMPRESSIVE LIST OF SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT MEMORABLIA AMONG OTHER THINGS TO GO ON THE AUCTION.

INCLUDED IN THIS ARE SOME IMPRESSIVE NCAA AND PRO HOCKEY MEMORABILIA AND JERSEYS. THE NCAA DIVISION I COMMUNITY HAS RALLIED AROUND CHRIS’S CAUSE AND CURRENTLY JEREMIAH HAS RECEIVED A GAME WORN, GAME ISSUE, OR UNNUMBERED JERSEYS FROM 40 DI PROGRAMS, WITH COMMITMENTS FROM SEVERAL MORE. HE HOPES TO HAVE AT LEAST ONE JERSEY FROM ALL 57 DI PROGRAMS TO AUCTION. OTHER HOCKEY ITEMS COMING IN ARE A VARIETY OF STICKS AND GAMEWORN JERSEYS,FROM THE PEORIA RIVERMEN (AHL), SOUTHERN MINNESOTA EXPRESS (NAHL), AND AUTOGRAPHED JERSEYS FROM THE PORTLAND WINTERHAWKS (GAMEWORN “C” JERSEY, TEAM AUTOGRAPHED), COLORADO AVALANCHE #9 SAKIC, AUTOGRAPHED BY MR. SAKIC), AND A 2009-2010 WASHINGTON CAPITALS TEAM AUTOGRAPHED PRACTICE JERSEY.

THE FULL DESCRIPTIONS AND PICTURES WILL BE ON THE SITE AND I WILL POST AGAIN ON SPECFICS OF THE AUCTION SITE ITSELF AS THE DATE IN OCTOBER GETS CLOSER AND WE GET ITEMS FINALIZED.