For a second time this year, Dorchester Youth Hockey (DYH) families and the community at large are rallying around a young player recently diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.
Thomas Lucas, 12, was diagnosed with this type of cancer in September and is getting treatment at Boston Children’s Hospital and Dana Farber. His father and mother, Tommy and Laurie Lucas, are hoping to join his siblings – Jake and Sean – for the fundraiser at the Devine Rink at 9905 Morrissey Blvd. on Wed., Nov. 16, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
It was only a short time ago that the same community rallied around DYH goaltender Conor Olsen and his family as he faced the same form of cancer.
Lucas, a seventh grader who attended the Henderson School, Boston Collegiate Academy, and is now at Archbishop Williams, woke up in July complaining of pain in his foot. Several trips to the doctor revealed no clear diagnosis until September when they found the cancer in a bone in his lower body.
Thomas is very active in hockey, playing right wing at the Pee Wee level last year. He also plays baseball, lacrosse, flag football, boxing, and other pursuits, and Tommy Lucas – a carpenter by trade – is a coach in nearly every sport, often found at the ice rink or the playing fields in Dorchester.
The family is also balancing a pregnancy: Laurie, a schoolteacher in Quincy, is looking to welcome another member of the family in January.
The ‘Skate for Thomas’ event is also meant to raise awareness for Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in children, so if the proceeds aren’t needed by the family, they will be appropriately donated to Boston Children’s Hospital.
Family members said the treatments will require Thomas to be in the hospital two weeks at a time and includes chemotherapy and immunotherapy. The treatments are expected to last four to six months, and the prognosis is very good.
Suggested donation for the event are $12. Skate rentals will be available, helmets will be required. For more information, go to Jokesforthomas@gmail.com.
