11-year-old cancer-stricken Butler youth finds the net in his long-awaited return to dek hockey
Forget the rare diagnosis, numerous chemotherapy treatments and continually beating the odds.
Aiden Bartley just wants to be a kid.
At Highfield Park’s dek hockey rink recently, the Butler youth got to experience the feeling of being exactly that.
In his first return to dek hockey in nearly two years — the absence caused by chemotherapy treatments and the inability to receive medical clearance to play — Aiden scored a goal for his Warrior team recently. And no one on his team is a bigger warrior.
“He’s not even supposed to be here right now,” Aiden’s father, Michael Bartley, said. “Back in July, we were told he had about six months. Not only is Aiden still with us, he’s getting stronger.
“Seeing him score that goal ... definitely an emotional moment, a powerful moment ... to watch him out there playing, you couldn’t tell there was anything going on with him. He was a happy kid out there with his teammates. He keeps defying the odds.
“It meant the world to us to see that.”
Aiden, 11, was diagnosed with metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma, an adult form of cancer. He is one of only two children in the United States to have the disease.
“It’s not supposed to be possible. A child can’t get what he’s got, but he’s got it, and we’re dealing with it,” Aiden’s father said.
Dealing with it has included Aiden being taken out of school to be cyberschooled. He had been unable to see his friends much, and he was taken away from the sport he loves — dek hockey.
He was medically cleared to return to dek hockey a month ago.
“I used to play baseball, but now I just play hockey,” Aiden said. “Scoring that goal felt pretty good. I can’t run that fast or shoot real hard, but the goal was a good one. I one-timed it.
“I only scored one goal in my life before that. Now I want to get a few more.”
His father plays dek hockey as well, helping to fuel Aiden’s love for the sport.
Aiden attended a Pittsburgh Penguins game for his birthday earlier this year. He and his family sat in the VIP suite at PPG Paints Arena, and Aiden received some autographed items from Penguins players.
“That was pretty cool,” Aiden said. “My favorite hockey player was Mario Lemieux. Now it’s Sidney Crosby. It feels good just being around (hockey).”
His mother, Megan Bartley, described dek hockey as being “a big part of Aiden’s life. His father has been playing dek hockey with him since Aiden was 5. To have it taken away from our son for so long was heartbreaking.
“Now to see him fight his way back, even score a goal, that was a special night for our entire family. Being able to eventually return to dek hockey was a motivating thing for Aiden. It helped keep him fighting.”
His fight is not over. He still does chemotherapy, and Aiden and his family will soon be traveling to California for clinical trials, cell boosts and another form of chemo.
It’s just another step as Aiden and his family continue to fight.
“What he’s been through, no kid should have to go through,” Michael Bartley said. “Yet he still has that smile on his face.”
And that goal in his back pocket.
“Proud? No words can describe what that moment was like for us,” Megan Bartley said. “It was joy. Utter joy.”
