OTTAWA, SEPTEMBER 25th, 2024 — Yesterday evening, NHL Alumni, Mark Kirton found himself surrounded by former teammates, friends, and supporters as he spoke to both political and hockey-world dignitaries in the Wellington Building on Parliament Hill about his work and advocacy with ALS Action Canada and the ALS Super Fund. His call to action being the fight against ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), a fatal type of motor neuron disease that causes progressive degeneration of nerve cells in the spinal cord and brain, which he was diagnosed with in 2018 after experiencing symptoms since 2015.

Kirton played six seasons in the NHL for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, and Vancouver Canucks, totalling for 266 regular-season games-played and scored 113 points.

Ever since his diagnosis, Mark has been advocating for funding and research to find a cure for the deadly disease. His honesty in sharing his fight, as well as his courage and determination in the battle have been nothing short of heroic to so many, including his former OHL teammate and longtime friend, Wayne Gretzky.

“You are a hero to me” is just one of the things Gretzky remarked to Kirton last night. He gave credit to Mark for being an integral part of his hockey career from when he was called up to the Peterborough Petes at the age of 15 sitting beside Wayne in the locker room, to stopping by at his father’s house in Brantford, Ontario. When Kirton called up Gretzky to be in Ottawa, there was never a doubt that he needed to be there for him.

Another former teammate, Darryl Sittler, also spoke at the event recognizing the hockey community members of Bob Jones (Ottawa Senators), Chris Snow (Calgary Flames), and NHL Alumni, Borje Salming, who all battled ALS and lost their lives to the disease. Darryl announced the recent total of fundraising for the ALS Super Fund reaching the one million dollar milestone in just nine months; a significant achievement for ALS research to find a cure. He noted that this movement to find a cure had been led by Mark Kirton.

Darryl reflected on Wayne’s speech when he mentioned how disappointed he was to not be in Toronto with Sittler to welcome Canadian cancer hero, Terry Fox. Sittler said that he got to know Terry quite well during that time, then turned to Kirton to say “He reminds me so much of Terry Fox and the fact that he was dealt with a lot of adversity in his life, but instead of taking that and feeling sorry for himself, he wanted to go on and make a difference in other peoples’ lives”.

Sittler continued to praise Mark for his strength and determination in battling the disease for already six years, and stated that “He’s my hero, as Terry was”. He then thanked Mark for including him in the opportunity to create awareness for ALS, and the need for this work to change lives that takes collaboration with governments, charities, corporate sponsorships, and other vital components. He ended with reminding the audience of the importance of nights like this to raise funds and try to make a difference in ALS patients’ lives, and to find a cure for the horrific disease.

Mark Kirton then took to the podium with a speaking mic attached to his breathing tube to deliver his powerful message. He began by thanking everyone for attending and in true hockey fashion, mentioned his NHL friends “who could very easily be over at the arena watching the Leafs clobber the Sens”. It was evident that there were Senators fans in the room as a roar of laughs and comments were made, exactly what Mark had expected when making that remark.

Kirton shifted to the painful truths about living with ALS, and the “nightmare” that him and his family have been living in for six years. He described it as “horrific, and cruel, and torturous. These challenges are not daily challenges, they’re hourly challenges. They’re now my arms, my legs, my feet, they can’t do anything. So it’s quite the sacrifice when you think about it,… asking human beings to take time away”.

Mark then recalled when he joined ALS Action Canada years ago and the friends he had lost in the group who were also battling ALS, totalling to 30 in the last 16 months. He mentioned that befriending someone in the group means that you’re also going to lose them in a short period.

Kirton explained “Somebody brought up the fact that Lou Gehrig died eighty seven years ago or so… it’s been a lot of years. And we’ve seemed to solve COVID, we’ve seemed to solve other issues, but this is one of the worst diseases of the rare disease sector. So why not put the head powers to be, put their heads together to solve this so it’s not another eighty seven years?”.

Mark’s determination in finding a cure has been tireless and courageous. It’s included being a support system to the Salming family behind the scenes, and bringing awareness to the disease on ice in front of thousands of hockey fans when Borje walked out on the ice for one final time just two weeks before his passing. His countless phone calls and video chats brought all seven Canadian NHL teams together to create the ALS Super Fund to raise these funds and awareness to solve ALS and find a cure.

Mark then announced that come December 5th-19th, the Toronto Maple Leafs have donated Real Sports restaurant to host a virtual auction with the goal, he said, to get each of the 32 teams to donate three items, including a trip for fans to see the individual teams play. A charity online fundraiser is also in the works, including a mini-concert by iconic Canadian singer-songwriter Jim Cuddy.

With NHL Alumni friends in attendance, Wayne Gretzky, Darryl Sittler, NHL Alumni Association President and Executive Director, Glenn Healy, Toronto Maple Leafs President, Brendan Shanahan, Laurie Boschman, Edmonton Oilers CEO of Hockey Operations, Jeff Jackson, Ottawa Senators Sr. Vice President, Dave Poulin, and NHL Director of Hockey Operations, Colin Campbell, Mark’s goal is sure to be completed through his inspiring perseverance and advocating hockey family.

Other notable attendees included Mark’s wife, Lisa, his daughter Sarah, Ottawa Senators owner, Michael Andlauer, and Canada’s Minister of Health, Mark Holland.

For those wishing to support Mark in his fight against ALS, please consider donating to the ALS Super Fund or by participating in the ALS Super Fund Auction in December.