Dennis Lagerblade, who receives hospice in a group home, attended a Boston Bruins game, courtesy of the Care Dimensions Family Fund.

Lifelong Bruins Fan Gets Back to the Garden

Boston Bruins fan Dennis Lagerblade, 80, has followed the team through good times and bad since 1955.

“There used to be only six teams when I was growing up: Montreal, Toronto, Chicago, Detroit, New York, and Boston,” Dennis recalled. “Boston lost all the time, until Bobby Orr came on.”

While Orr was his favorite player (“too bad his knees gave out”), through the years Dennis also enjoyed watching Cam Neely and other players, either on television or occasionally at the Boston Garden.

Dennis’ life changed drastically six years ago when he suffered a stroke that landed him in the hospital, followed by rehabilitation. In 2019, he had a second stroke, which greatly limited use of the right side of his body.

He qualified for a MassHealth program that serves people with Acquired Brain Injury who need round-the-clock supervision in a provider-operated residence, and he moved into a group home operated by Beaverbrook STEP, Inc., in Watertown. Attending Bruins games seemed out of the question, but he continued to follow his favorite hockey team on television.

Dennis developed more health challenges and was referred to Care Dimensions for hospice by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Kathy Pike, Dennis’ hospice social worker, talked with his group home clinical specialist Roberta Altamari about Dennis’ needs.

“I told Roberta about the Care Dimensions Family Fund, which helps meet our patients’ basic and social needs,” said Kathy. Since the group home takes care of Dennis’ basic needs, Kathy requested funds for tickets to a Boston Bruins home game, preceded by dinner at a nearby restaurant.

Thanks to the Care Dimensions Family Fund, on November 13, Dennis enjoyed his big night out at TD Garden and saw the Bruins defeat the Vancouver Canucks, 5-2. He also was able to buy a Bruins hat and dinner at Sullivan’s. Altamari accompanied him on the trip.

Dennis described the night as “fantastic.” He said this year’s Bruins team is “very good” and he plans to watch as many games as he can in their quest for the Stanley Cup.

Help make wishes for hospice patients like Dennis come true by donating to Care Dimensions today. Thank you.

About the author
Lisa Conti is Senior Marketing Communications Specialist for Care Dimensions and manages its Voices of Care blog.