Ryan Miller's Steadfast Foundation "Catwalk for Charity"

Building a Foundation of Hope

January 31, 2006
by Brian Wheeler

There is no time like the present. That's the attitude Ryan Miller learned to take and it's one that he wants to spread throughout Western New York.

After witnessing first-hand the monotonous, tedious and painful treatments for cancer patients, Miller created a charitable foundation that will benefit children with various illnesses around the Buffalo and East Lansing, Mich. areas.

Miller established the Steadfast Foundation with two main missions in mind. Raising money to help fund the establishment of specialty rooms in hospitals where children can escape the pain and discomfort of their treatments and raising awareness and increasing awareness for the need for heightened community involvement.

"I've been visiting hospitals for a while, but I felt there was something else I could do," he said. "A lot of people are excited about hockey right now. Obviously, you want to use your influence to do something good.

"You have to do whatever it takes to help the kids fight a battle. When you are diagnosed with a disease like that, it's a battle for your life."

In 2005, his cousin, Matt Schoals, 17, was diagnosed with leukemia. Since that day, Miller has taken a person charge to help anyone battling the disease. Building a foundation from the ground up was the next logical progression once he became a professional hockey player.

"I know from talking to my cousin that's the one thing, you just sit in your room," said Miller. "That can get pretty boring no matter how the walls are painted or how many channels they get. Kids need a chance to be social and a place where everyone can meet-up, when they feel up to it, and interact, watch a movie, play some music or just be creative.

"Our approach is that we're just going to compliment the medical side with the mental side. We want to do things that really make it fun to be a kid, whether they are in a hospital or not."

With help from a friend in Rochester, Miller and the Steadfast Foundation will hold its inaugural fundraiser on February 13, 2007. "Catwalk for Charity" combines some of Miller's passions off the ice into a single event with a good cause. Add to the mix his Buffalo teammates modeling Hugo Boss menswear in the in the Asbury Hall at The Church - Ani DiFrancos venue on Delaware and Tupper in Buffalo - and it's sure to be an entertaining time. Strictly Hip and Jennifer Heieck are scheduled to perform.

Catwalk for Charity

Tuesday, February 13, 2007
6pm - Midnight

Asbury Hall at The Church
341 Delaware Ave., Buffalo, NY

1st Star, 2nd Star & 3rd Star Sponsorship
Individual tickets - $175 each

For ticket sales or to pledge your sponsorship:
Call Ann Brooker at 716-204-1212 ext. 206
Hurry! Tickets are limited!

For more event details:
Call Therese Forton-Barnes, Events to a Tee,
716-868-8868 or via email: Events2aT@aol.com

Join Ryan Miller and the Buffalo Sabres with Honorary Chairman, Tom Golisano, for a funky night of fashion, lively music, fabulous food and fun!

Cocktails
Gourmet Cuisine
Unusual Auction Items
Live music
Buffalo Sabres on the catwalk!
21 and over only
Fashions provided by Hugo Boss and gotdenim.com
Some Items for auction will include:

Various team autographed items
Gibson Guitar autographed by Ryan and played that evening by him on stage with the band
Dinner at Tempo with Ryan and another Buffalo Sabre
and many other great items
Visit again for an update and list of all the items!

Entertainment: Strictly Hip...Is a multiple Award winning band and has built a reputation with their dynamic show consisting of upbeat high energy songs from bands such The Tragically Hip, U2, The Cure, REM and Lowest of the Low. Ryan is fond of this band and has been known to play guitar with them on occasion. He will be joining the band for some songs playing the Gibson Guitar, that will be auctioned off in the Live Auction...Don't be surprised if other Sabres join in...Besides Hockey, some of the Sabres can also entertain on stage!

Thriller in Atlanta

What a thriller in Atlanta, and great to see the Sabres skating better. During the intermission they said that Lindy Ruff had called players out individually this morning, looks like they are responding. A great game agains a tough opponenet. Great hits by Gaustad in the first period!!

My concern is Max Afinogenov, certainly one of our most talented players, but he has been taking a lot of penalties the last few games. Is he a step slow, is he trying to help cover for someone else on the line who is a step slow, most of his penalties have been hooking...I would have to sit through the hours of replays to break it down, but it needs to stop because it has hurt the team the last couple games!

Hopefully the guys launch off this game and start another winning streak, with the cold weather in Buffalo, somebody has to start heating things up!!!

All-Star Final 12-9 West, Briere MVP

So what if the East lost, way to go Danny Briere. All-Star MVP with 1 goal and 4 assists. In a show that promised to be overshadowed by Crosby and Ohetchkin, the three players from the Sabres showed everyone why they are on top in the Eastern Conference.

Way to go Brian Campbell, and Ryan Miller, both playing solid games and really representing Buffalo in a way all fans can be proud of. Let's carry some excitement into the second half of this season, figure out our special teams problems and finish strong!!

Sabres All-Stars on VS.

Check out this link to a Clip from VS. featuring our three All-Stars!!
http://versus.com/?artID=28327&catID=457&playerID=1

Good luck tonight guys!!!

CCM Practice Jerseys On Sale

Looking for those hard to find Sabres Jerseys? While the Reebok and CCM Game Jerseys are still sold out in most stores, the CCM Practice Jerseys are available and are priced quite reasonably. Just click the pictures and get yours today!!

Injuries Starting to Show In Game Results

Buffalo Sabres forward Jochen Hecht was expected to miss the last three games before the All-Star break with what coach Lindy Ruff called a lower body injury.

He ranks ninth on the team with 25 points -- 12 goals and 13 assists -- in 43 games, and has been a steady contributor on a line centered by co-captain Daniel Briere, Buffalo's leading scorer.

To replace Hecht, the Sabres recalled rookie forward Drew Stafford from Rochester of the American Hockey League.

Buffalo will need the All-Star break to get some players healthy. Forward Paul Gaustad, listed as day to day, missed Monday's game because of an upper body injury and has already been ruled out to play Wednesday.

Defenseman Henrik Tallinder, who's missed six games with a high right ankle sprain, hasn't been cleared to skate and isn't expected back until after the All-Star break.

While the rookies called up have done an outstanding job this year, the amateur observer could say that the last few losses could have been at least partially due to missing or inured personnel.

Let's hope everyone gets healthy and stays that way when the games really start to count!!

Aces and Blades

Aces & Blades presented by Verizon
It's a night of hockey and high stakes, where the players are the dealers and you are the star! The Buffalo Sabres Foundation announced today they will be hosting the second annual "Aces & Blades" casino night presented by Verizon on Friday, February 9, from 7-11 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in downtown Buffalo.
Tickets for the event are $100 each, with current and former Buffalo Sabres players acting as the dealers. There will be casino gaming, first-class food and drinks, live and silent auctions, and so much more!
Tickets can be purchased by clicking here: https://secure.sabres.com/acesandblades.cfm, or by calling (716) 855-4417.
All proceeds from the event will benefit the Buffalo Sabres Foundation, a non-profit foundation that is committed to enhancing the quality of life of everyone throughout Western New York and Southern Ontario. In the process, the foundation strives to assist worthwhile organizations that make this region a better place to live and work. The primary focus of the foundation is to assist youth hockey initiatives, non-profit organizations and groups that provide vital services to those in need in our community.