Devils Impact Community with Annual Hospital Visits | FEATURE

Half the size of the NHL player in front of him, a little boy reached as high as he could to give a high-five to Devils defenseman Luke Hughes. He was successful and all of his family and care team at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center shared in the joy of this interaction with laughter. They weren’t the only ones touched by this experience.

“It’s pretty special for us to come out here,” Hughes shared. “Anything we can do to help our community. It was great to meet those kids, just to talk to them, see what they’re going through. It really puts in perspective for me just to see how lucky we are, and how lucky they are to have (the hospitals and staff) take care of them. Just for us to spend an afternoon getting to know them is pretty special for us.”

This was one of the many core memory moments created at various RWJBarnabas Health hospitals throughout the state of New Jersey, as the Devils participated in their annual hospital visits. On Monday, Devils players, staff, alumni, and even NJ Devil, visited with patients, nurses, and doctors to bring support during the holiday season.

“It’s the best time for us to come to see the kids and everyone, wishing them to be well before Christmas and the holidays,” Ondrej Palat shared. “It’s important to see the kids, smiling when they see us, give them little gifts, and make their day a little better. It’s a huge impact and we’re so happy we get to do it.”

“It’s very important for the community and also for us to get to come here, brighten some kid’s and different individual’s days any way we can,” Erik Haula explained. “We’re very fortunate what we get to do, and the lifestyle we have and there’s a lot less fortunate people. It’s very rewarding to be able to come and even just a little smile or making a difference in any way (is important). We just want to show we care about the community and care about everyone around us so it was a great day for us.”

At Cooperman Barnabas in Livingston, Devils players did everything from playing cards to painting with various patients throughout the hospital.

“We were playing cards for a little bit with one girl,” Colin Miller recounted. “That was probably my favorite, even though she cleaned me up pretty good, it was still fun.”

When Miller, Haula, Brendan Smith, and Palat met with 8-year-old Nalani, they met her stuffed animal Nessa before discussed her favorite movies like Frozen.

Devils Team President Jake Reynolds saw first-hand the energy generated by these visits.

“When you’re able to walk into these rooms, and you’re able to see these kids and their faces light up when the players walk in, just the impact they have,” Reynolds recounted on the impact of these hospital visits. “They’re going through such a challenging time and such a struggle. To bring a little bit of light, a little joy, and a little smile to their face, you get to see, first-hand, the impact that has.”

As Chief Executive Officer of RWJBarnabas Health Mark Manigan has seen the importance of this day and the long-standing partnership with the Devils.

“The impact’s incredible,” Manigan, shared Monday. “The patients are uplifted, their parents are uplifted, the smiles that come across the faces. The staff loves meeting these guys too.

“The state’s leading health system partnering with the state’s only professional sports team on the most important thing, the patients and their families,” Manigan continued. “It’s a really special thing, we’re really proud to have partners like the New Jersey Devils."