National Hockey League:
April 10, 2001
- NHL Referee Paul Stewart Named NASO Gold Whistle Recipient
(RACINE, Wis.) – NHL referee Paul Stewart has been named by the National Association of Sports Officials as recipient of the 2001 Gold Whistle Award.
The Gold Whistle Award, presented annually since 1987, salutes an official for community involvement, achievement in officiating and a reputation for strong integrity and ethics. Stewart, the second NHL honoree, is being recognized for his work with professional hockey's ‘Hockey Fights Cancer’ program as well as his involvement with charities in the Boston community.
The award will be presented during a banquet Sunday, June 17, at the Marriott Waterside Hotel in Norfolk, Va. Fox 40 International will host the banquet, at which several past Gold Whistle Award honorees will be present. The banquet is part of the NASO "Successful Officiating Summit," which concludes the following day.
NASO President Barry Mano will present the award to Stewart, whose accomplishments will be featured in the June issue of Referee magazine.
When it comes to officiating hockey, no one has called more games in the NHL and American Hockey League than Stewart has over the past decade. A player for eight seasons in the World Hockey Association, the minors and the NHL, and currently in his 16th season as an NHL referee, Stewart has always been strong and seemingly indestructible. But in 1998, Stewart was challenged with the toughest battle of his life.
On Feb. 23, 1998, less than one day after the birth of his son, Stewart was diagnosed with colon cancer and given a less than 50-50 chance of survival.
"Within a 12-hour period, I got the greatest gift in the world — a healthy boy -- and I was told I have cancer," Stewart said.
Told he might not make it to Christmas, Stewart would not only beat his disease -- just one stage shy of the worst on the scale -- but amazed doctors with the speed of his recovery. Less than nine months after his diagnosis, Stewart was back at work in the NHL and spreading the word of his remarkable comeback.
Stewart helped inspire the NHL and the NHL Players' Association to create Hockey Fights Cancer (HFC), an initiative which to date has raised $2.6 million for cancer research in North America. HFC is a charitable campaign that raises awareness and funds for local cancer organizations as well as the American Cancer Society and Canadian Cancer Society.?Stewart has appeared in two nationally broadcast public service announcements about HFC and is an accomplished public speaker, motivating audiences with his humor about the game he loves and his "new lease on life" after overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds.
"Paul turned a personal and potentially tragic medical challenge into a charitable cause that has had a real impact not only in his community, but across all of North America," said Mano. "He conducts a local golf tournament to help families in need and his involvement with ‘Hockey Fights Cancer’ has been nothing short of phenomenal."
During the 2000 NHL All-Star festivities, the "Hockey Fights Cancer Dodge On-Line Auction," raised $418,000 for HFC. The event offered a collection of 100 unique hockey items and attracted bids from fans around the world.
Previous Gold Whistle Award winners are former director of NFL officiating Art McNally; the late amateur football official Ed Myer; the late Pete Pavia, a sporting goods store owner and long-time basketball official; retired AL umpire Larry Barnett; former NFL referee Jim Tunney; former AL umpire Steve Palermo; former NHL linesman Ron Asselstine; educator and NCAA basketball official Ed Hightower; Iowa High School Association Executive Director Bernie Saggau; long-time amateur sports official and trainer Ted Butcher; retired AL umpire Durwood Merrill; NBA referee Tommy Nuñez; and retired NFL referee Tom Dooley.
262-632-5448 • 262-632-5460(Fax) • www.naso.org
