FARMERS BRANCH, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) – This weekend’s annual charity hockey game at the StarCenter between the Dallas Police hockey team and a team made up of pros was supposed to be another fundraiser for sick and injured first responders or the families of those killed.
But a sad twist of fate will have them playing on Saturday, February 9 for one of their own teammates.
Brian Simonds found a way to combine his police work with his passion.
The 33-year-old Dallas Police sergeant helped organized an emotional charity hockey game not long after the horrific sniper attack in 2016 that killed five law enforcement officers during a peaceful demonstration in downtown Dallas.
It’s led to several more fundraising games in the years since.
But during the holiday season, Simonds, a husband and father of six including two 15-month-old twins, was diagnosed with cancer that he learned had spread.
When Simonds’ fellow officers and teammates learned about his condition, they decided to play this weekend solely for him.
Ticket sales from the game will go toward medical expenses from the officer’s cancer battle.
Brian Simonds – Dallas Police sergeant (J.D. Miles – CBS 11)
“As much as the depression anxiety hopelessness that comes with this, the people that are around me right now, it makes me feel like I can do it,” said Simonds. “It gives me more strength going forward.”
Simonds unfortunately won’t be able to play this Saturday but he’s hoping to play later this year.
