Chicago hockey icon Eddie Olczyk is in the spotlight again, but not for his battles on the ice.
Olczyk, a former Blackhawks star and current broadcaster, will be honored at the Northwestern Medicine 2022 Digestive Health Foundation Gala on Saturday, June 4.
The honor comes five years after Olczyk was diagnosed with stage three colon cancer. He said the real honorees are "the men and women at Northwestern, the medical professionals there to help people like myself."
"It's also about us remembering and recognizing the caretakers,” Olczyk said. “My wife Diana, of 33 years, was really the strength and the backbone of me getting through this battle because there was a time when I wanted to quit, and I had never quit at anything in my life."
Olczyk, the emotion in his voice strong, said a key to getting help is admitting vulnerability. Olczyk said he wants to "try to have people know my story, to let them know that if you're not feeling well it's ok to raise your hand, it's ok to look for help, it's ok to let people know that you're afraid, and look, I was very much afraid."
Gala attendees will receive copies of his book, ‘Eddie Olcyzk: Beating the Odds in Hockey and in Life’.
"I'm very proud of the book," Olczyk said. He added with a laugh: "It will be the last book I ever write in my life."
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