By ALISON LANGLEY Niagara Falls Review Posted 3 hours ago
John's MacLean's passion was hockey.
As a kid he played with Niagara Falls Minor Hockey and he spent four years with the Niagara Falls Jr. B Canucks, which included winning the Sutherland Cup.
He was an OMHA referee as well as a coach with NFMH, most recently for the 2010 Minor Atom AAA champions.
Even when he underwent treatments for cancer, he was determined to play the last tournament of the season with his team from his electrical union IBEW Local 303.
"He scored so many goals but was so humble about it," his wife Jennifer recalled.
"He never saw an end and he never gave up...with anything in his life."
MacLean lost his two-and-a-half-year battle with cancer on July 4. He was only 31.
"He had such a positive character and optimistic outlook on life, even in the face of horrible circumstances. He was the one who was uplifting and encouraged everyone else to think positive," Jennifer said.
As his funeral service approached, his friends and family wondered what charity they could support to honour his memory.
"Literally, at the funeral home I had to think about where to give donations," Jennifer recalled.
Due to her husband's passion for the game, she suggested the idea of a hockey tournament and, soon after, the JMAC Memorial Hockey Fund was launched.
The fund will support an annual hockey tournament in his honour as well as provide hockey scholarships to players with NFMH and education scholarships for Canucks players.
The fund will also support the Greater Niagara General Hospital Emergency Department through the GNGH Foundation.
The inaugural JMAC Memorial Hockey Tournament will take place on April 13 from 4 at the Gale Centre. A 'post tourney bash' will be held at Our Lady of Peace Hall on April 14.
"John was all about people getting together for a good time," Jennifer said. "He would have loved the fact that everyone was going to get together for a hockey tournament."
A portion of proceeds from the hockey tournament will be put back into the fund for successive tournaments.
The scholarships will be given annually to players who exhibit "positive sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct."
"Those are the exact qualities that John brought to every game he played," Jennifer said.
His wife hopes the tournament will become an annual event where people can "come together to laugh and remember John's spirit."
"He never complained and never wanted cancer to define him," she said. "He always pushed through and there were no words to describe how brave he was."
For more information on the fund and the upcoming hockey tournament, visit www.jmac27.ca .
A networking and charity group called Forward will host an event next week to raise funds for the JMAC Memorial Hockey Fund, as well as Niagara Falls Community Outreach.
Dueling Pianos will be held Oct. 7 at Our Lady of Peace Hall on Stanley Ave.
Two piano players will take requests from the audience and, for a tip, they'll play the requested song. The tips will be donated to the two charities.
Tickets are $10 and are available at The Review, Niagara Falls city hall and from Forward committee members and volunteers. Tickets will be $15 at the door. For further information on Dueling Pianos, send an email to mcressman@nfreview.com .
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