New York Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer, alongside team officials and family members, dedicated the Jennifer Schaefer Child Support Room at the R.J. Zuckerberg Cancer Center on Monday. The hockey-themed room is designed to offer comfort and support to children whose parents or caregivers are undergoing cancer treatment. Schaefer's mother, Jennifer Schaefer, died of breast cancer in 2024.
"I know my mom is smiling down today," Schaefer said. "This means so much to my dad, my brother, and especially to my mom. This room is going to be so special. It’s going to help so many families and so many kids."
Schaefer, who is living with former Islanders forward Matt Martin and his wife during the season, shared that he envisioned such a space for families during his own mother's illness. "When my mom was going through cancer, we wished we could have had a room where me, my brother and my dad could go to get a breath of fresh air," he said. "I think I’m going to be there just as much as [these families] are."
The room will provide a space for children to engage in activities like playing video games and to experience moments of normalcy away from the clinical hospital environment. Islanders co-owner Jon Ledecky remarked that Schaefer is a better person than a hockey player, a significant compliment given Schaefer's on-ice achievements.
During the dedication, Schaefer played bubble hockey with 15-year-old L.J. London, whose mother recently completed cancer treatment. Schaefer also presented London with a ladybug bracelet, a personal symbol of his mother's enduring presence. The Islanders' Children’s Foundation contributed $150,000 to fund the project.
"My wife would be so pleased," Schaefer’s father, Todd, said. "That room is exactly what she would want... to have a space like this where people can come in and kids can be kids, and it doesn’t matter how old they are, to be in her name, it couldn’t have come in a better place."
