Home / News / PK Subban to The Daily Show’s Trevor Noah: ‘I didn’t even think twice’ about donating $10 million to Montreal Children’s Hospital

PK Subban to The Daily Show’s Trevor Noah: ‘I didn’t even think twice’ about donating $10 million to Montreal Children’s Hospital

By Ian Oland

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January 25, 2018 3:20 am

Nashville Predators defenseman PK Subban was Trevor Noah’s guest on Wednesday’s episode of The Daily Show. Subban went on to promote this weekend’s NHL All-Star Game where he will captain the Central Division All-Stars.

During the interview, Subban was asked by Noah about his landmark $10 million donation to Montreal Children’s Hospital.

Subban’s explanation is emotional.

Video

Trevor Noah: You donated $10 million to a children’s hospital. Did you add a zero by mistake? I’ve done that. You can tell me.

PK Subban: I get that question a lot because it’s one thing to donate and give back, [but] another way to look at it is why $10 million? I think it comes down to: everybody has their own personal life experiences. I went to Haiti with World Vision a year after when I would have been 19 or 20 years old at the time. I’m not from Haiti. I’m not Haitian, but I had an opportunity to go with World Vision at the time (to see the earthquake-ravaged country). I went for three days, and it was a life-changing experience for me. But that wasn’t it.

I came back and I got to know a little boy named Alex Shapiro through my old minor hockey coach,
and still close friend, family friend Martin Ross. And he coached him. I got to know Alex very, very closely and his parents and his family. I was actually in touch with him until literally his last moments before he passed away.

You know, for me, that made me want to give back in a different way. And really have a significant impact. Not just give back, where everyone can say ‘Wow, that’s great,’ but give back to where I can actually make a difference.

When I was presented the opportunity to something like this with the 10 million dollar donation to the hospital of Montreal I didn’t even think twice about it. They came down the 401 to my house in Nobleton, Ontario, and they presented it to me. I signed the papers right there. It was the perfect situation for me. And to this point, we’ve helped over probably 10,000 families and raised millions of dollars. So I’m very happy about that.

Subban met Alex Shapiro when the youth hockey player was 10-years-old. Alex was battling breast cancer. During the last NHL lockout, Subban made Alex his special guest at a charity game called the RBC Play Hockey Charity Challenge held on December 19, 2012.

Nearly 5 months later, after a heroic battle with cancer, Alex died at the age of 11. Subban tweeted his condolences on Twitter.

Less than two years later, Subban’s donation to the Montreal Children’s Hospital was made public and the atrium was named in his honor.

While promoting a 2016 documentary, Subban spoke about the donation and how much Alex affected him with the Montreal Gazette.

“It also gives me an opportunity to clear the air on a number of different things,” Subban said. “Like the charity theme, which is so close to me and something that I take very seriously. There should have been no question in terms of why I did it or what I was doing it for. I had a lot of different influences, with Alex Shapiro being the main one. He lives through everything I do from a philanthropic standpoint. But the reality of it is that I want to help as many kids as I can.”

Subban’s donation remains the largest philanthropic contribution by a pro athlete in Canadian history.

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