Steve Mitchell, former Stouffville Spirit videographer, passed away June 20 at Southlake Health in Newmarket. Steve was 61. (Photo courtesy OJHL Images)
Steve had a heart transplant September 19, 2019, thanks to the selfless act of an organ donor. “He got an extra 5 years and 9 months with family and friends, which he never took those extra days for granted and often encouraged others to sign their organ donor card,” his family said.
The Spirit honoured Steve with an Organ Donor Awareness Night on Oct. 19, 2023. He dropped the puck during a ceremonial faceoff.
Steve was the first person to bring a 24/7 dedicated High Definition community television channel in Canada.
He first started videoing Jr A hockey games in 1979 for the Aurora Tigers and Aurora Cable 10. He became a station manager of Aurora Cable in 1983 until the company sold to Rogers in 2008. Steve has videoed thousands of Jr A hockey games for various teams throughout the GTA. He was the first person to bring a 24/7 dedicated High Definition community television channel in Canada.
Cremation has taken place and a celebration of life will be at the Aurora Community Centre auditorium on Saturday July 12, from 12-4 p.m. with words of remembrance starting at 1 p.m. Per Steve’s wishes, the dress code is to wear your favourite sports jersey.
As an expression of sympathy, donations to the Heart and Stroke Foundation or the University Health Network Foundation for the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre Campaign would be appreciated by the family. The family also encourages everyone to sign up to be an organ donor at beadonor.ca
Here’s Steve’s story, in his own words, written in 2019 for the OJHL:
VETERAN VIDEOGRAPHER THANKFUL FOR NEW HEART, SUPPORT FROM OJHL
Date: Nov 5, 2019
By Steve Mitchell
It was September of 2018 and I was excited hockey season was back – my 40th year of videoing Jr. A hockey!
I was back in the rinks of the Ontario Junior Hockey League, four or five nights per week throughout the GTA.
The rink was where I belonged. I fit in. So many friends and familiar faces throughout the league after videoing thousands of games – following that first gig as a 15-year-old volunteer with Aurora Cable 10.
When I wasn’t at the rink, I’d be home editing hockey videos for team websites, social media, player reels, coaches and scouts.
October came and I wasn’t feeling right. I struggled greatly lugging my camera gear around the rinks. It got to the point I needed friends, my daughter or team staff to carry my gear up the stairs to my camera position.
Out of breath, some extra heartbeats here and there and I developed high blood pressure. I saw my cardiologist and family doctor for advice and treatment.
I had been diagnosed with a genetic heart condition in 1988 but it was well controlled by meds throughout the years with no issues. My brother and my sister were diagnosed in the mid-1990s.
The plan now was more meds and new meds but they made me ill. I thought it was a matter of time to get used to the meds and let them do their work.
Going to the rink was a chore now. All I wanted to do was stay home on the couch or in bed until things got better.
I started losing a shocking amount of weight. My medication reactions were still making me ill but I trudged on going to games when I clearly shouldn’t have.
The final straw came in February of 2019 when having trouble breathing, I almost collapsed at the Aurora Community Centre setting up for a girls’ hockey tournament.
Off to Southlake Regional Health Centre’s emergency in Newmarket I went. My lungs were full of fluid and had to be drained. Following that, an intense two weeks of tests revealed that I was in advance-stage heart failure.
My jaw hit the floor when the doctor told me I needed a heart transplant in order to survive. My family and I were devastated. Being the worrisome type, I thought I was a longshot to make it. I started to make arrangements with my wife for my possible demise.
Shortly thereafter, I was transferred to Toronto General Hospital to be “worked up” for transplant readiness. From March 5 to April 11, I was heavily medicated on IV, poked, prodded, tested, re-tested and put through a number of procedures that quite frankly I wish I had been heavily sedated for.
Besides my loving family, I drew strength from the OJHL community. Cards, gifts, visits and well-wishes came pouring in. People like Aurora Tigers’ owner Jim Thomson and announcer/friend Anthony Regan were incredibly supportive. I was inspired by my brother and Kingston’s Allan Etmanski who both beat Cancer.
Throughout the entire experience my wife Judy was a rock. She’s a strong, sensible Newfoundlander who is the perfect life partner for me.
Finally, I was home in mid-April and officially on the Ontario transplant list in May. For the first time I thought I had a really good shot at beating this.
I was stable and now playing the waiting game. I kept my phone by my side at all times and was told to stay put because “the call” could come at any time.
I was back in and out of the hospital once in June and once in July with minor issues.
By the time Labour Day arrived I was getting pretty antsy. I knew I wasn’t going to be stable forever. Suddenly at dinnertime on Sept. 18, “the call” came. A matching donor had been found, I was No. 1 on the list and was to report to Toronto General immediately for surgery.
Emotionally, I was a mess.
I was happy, excited, nervous, scared and crying during the drive. I called or messaged those closest to me to share my news.
Surgery started around 7:30 a.m. on Sept. 19 and ended in the afternoon. I briefly woke up at 7:30 p.m. and learned everything went well. Fell back asleep again until the morning, waking up relieved I made it.
The next 23 days in hospital were difficult, dealing with pain, struggling to walk again and having regular testing to make sure my body wasn’t rejecting my new heart.
I was released on Thanksgiving weekend and boy did I have a lot to be thankful for. Family, friends, doctors, nurses and most of all the true hero of this story: My anonymous heart donor. By simply signing an organ donation card, I had been saved in the most selfless, generous and heroic act of that person’s life.
So, what’s next for me? As Toronto General told me, a heart transplant is not a cure – it’s a lifelong treatment. The first year is a very bumpy road of avoiding rejection, infection and taking a multitude of medications. I go to hospital or clinic once or twice a week for testing and checkups. It will take quite some time to rebuild my core strength and muscle mass again. I am following the transplant team’s advice of taking a full year off work.
I hope to be back in the rinks in September 2020.
It’s where I belong!
And please – go to www.beadonor.ca
Steve Mitchell worked for the OJHL’s Aurora Tigers, Vaughan Vipers, Markham Waxers, Newmarket Hurricanes, Stouffville Spirit, Toronto Patriots, Pickering Panthers and North York Rangers.
The former manager of Aurora Cable 10 formed Jenmark Digital Media (named after his son and daughter) in 2009.
