Penguins Play Santa At Children's Hospital
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - The Penguins got into the Christmas spirit Friday afternoon as they donned their Santa caps and headed over to Children's Hospital for a special holiday visit.
All the young patients were excited to see them as the teammates passed out gifts, signed autographs, posed for pictures and spread some Christmas cheer.
Kansas Widmer, 17, is spending time in the hospital after she was injured in a car accident. Her mom admits that Widmer's favorite player has some injuries of his own.
"She loves Jordan Staal," she said of her daughter.
"I have been a huge Penguin fan since I was a little girl; and not only getting to meet one of them, but four of them, is just everything to me," said Widmer, of Claysville.
The visit doesn't just mean a lot to the kids though; the players enjoy it just as much.
"Especially for the guys who have families - that have young children," said Pens' forward, Matt Cooke. "Don't take health for granted, and this just proves to you why you don't."
"I have young children, we can relate," added Pascal Dupuis, Pens' forward. "Any time you can put a smile on the kids' or the parents' face, it makes it special."
The Penguins proved that they really do have the Christmas spirit. The hundreds of gifts that were handed out, the Penguins paid for them.
While it may not make up for being stuck in a hospital, it sure brightened up little Zachary Gaskell's holiday season.
"He's been down and not feeling too well, and then he knew they were coming and he was really excited," said Jeff Gaskell, Zachary's dad. "All of a sudden, we knew they were two doors down, he was really pumped up."
"I never pictured myself meeting all these guys, and they gave me a gift and signed a poster for me. It was just great," said Zachary.
