Former Red Wings Stars Help Raise Money For Worthy Cause

The final score was 10-5.

But in reality, that didn’t matter one bit.

What mattered most was that well more than $5,000 was raised for a worthy cause, and a handful of hockey players got the chance to live out a dream.

“It’s a once in a lifetime thing, when you think about it,” Bob Livernois said. “I mean, we were out there playing hockey with guys who were some of the best players in the world. It’s an incredible experience.”

Livernois was a member of Team GTJ/David Livernois’ All Stars – a squad who came together to raise money to help cure a merciless disease, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP).

PSP is a fatal disease of the brain with no known cause, treatment or cure. It affects nerve cells that control many body functions such as walking, speaking, seeing, swallowing and even basic mobility.

Bob Livernois’ father, David, succumbed to the disease in 2008. Since then, Livernois and the fund, The David Livernois Fund—started in 2007 by his daughter, Hannah—have been dedicated to raising money and finding a cure for PSP.

The Stars Come Out To Play

Former Detroit Red Wing standout Shawn Burr and Livernois have been friends for nearly two decades. So, when Livernois’ wife, Becky, came up with the idea for a fundraising hockey event, Burr was quick to respond.

The beloved former Red Wing quickly called upon the Detroit Red Wings Alumni Association.

The Alumni Association is a group of former Red Wings who skate, without any compensation at all, with one goal in mind–to raise money for charity.

The Association has helped raise millions of dollars over the years, according to Burr.

“It’s always fun to get out there and play,” Burr said after the game. “But this one was extra special because I’ve known Bob (Livernois) for 18 years or so, so it was a pleasure to get the guys together and help out.”

Fellow former Wings star Jimmy Carson sees it as an opportunity to have a good time and also to make a difference.

“It’s a lot of fun,” Carson said. “For me personally, I haven’t really skated a lot the last few years. With four kids at home, your time is really filled with a lot of their activities. But, it’s funny, once you get out there, it’s a lot of fun and you even find yourself getting some of that competitiveness back. I really enjoy it. Then, you factor in the fact that you can raise some money for some very worthy causes, like tonight, and it’s even better.”

The Alumni squad, dressed in their Red Wings jerseys, skated with Team GTJ/David Livernois’ All Stars for 60 minutes; they smiled and laughed with the competition.

They played to a crowd that numbered well more than 700–a crowd that battled snow and cold to get to Civic Arena for the contest Saturday night—and they displayed some of the skills that made them Detroit Red Wings.

“The pace of the game was far greater than I anticipated,” Livernois said, smiling from ear to ear. “We thought we had some ringers on our team. But let me tell you, they were toying with us all game. But they’re just a nice bunch of guys, real gentlemen on the ice, making sure nobody got hurt, and everybody had fun. It was just an incredible game and an incredible experience.”

The Perfect Fit

In the 1990s, Livernois was an English teacher at .

While there, he taught a trio of brothers, Brandon, Blake and Kyle Johnson.

Little did he know, but these three boys would one day, with the help of their father, Gene, help him raise money to cure PSP.

“What a gas tonight. To get the Wings out here was just incredible,” Team GTJ/David Livernois’ All Stars coach Gene Johnson said. “The turnout was great considering the weather we had tonight. I mean, for such a good cause too. It just makes you feel good in the heart to be a part of this.”

Johnson and the foundation his company, GTJ Consulting, started, The GTJ Foundation, partnered with Livernois without hesitation.

“Bob was talking about doing something like this, and we do stuff like this through our foundation,” Johnson said. “So, it was just the perfect match. I hope we can do it again next year. I really do. It was just an amazing night.”

Livernois echoes the sentiment.

“We’ve done bowling before and card parties, things like that, but this is the first time we’ve done something like this,” Livernois said. “My dad was a big hockey fan so something like tonight was a real fitting tribute to him. It really was.”

For more information on the David Livernois Fund, log onto to www.livernois.org. For more information about the GTJ Foundation, check them out on the web at www.gtjfoundation.org.