Keen-Eyed Hockey Fan Makes Observation that Saves Stranger’s Life

• Nadia Popovici was watching a hockey game between the Seattle Kraken and the Vancouver Canucks when something caught her eye.
• Spotting an irregularly-shaped mole on the back of the Canucks assistant equipment manager, she typed out a note on her phone to inform him.
• He credited her for saving his life, and the hockey teams awarded Nadia with a $10,000 scholarship for medical school.

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A hockey fan who made a keen-eyed observation during a game ended up saving someone’s life.

Nadia Popovici, 22, was planning to watch a game between the Seattle Kraken and the Vancouver Canucks. She was originally from Canada but recently moved to Seattle, Washington so she decided to wear a Seattle jersey.

She ended up being seated behind the Canucks’ bench, where she spotted something alarming.

She spotted an irregularly-shaped mole on the back of one Brian “Red” Hamilton, the Canucks’ assistant equipment manager.

Nadia, who was planning to attend medical school next year, explained, “I spotted some of the classic signs, you know, irregular borders, a little bit of discoloration, and a pretty large diameter. I thought, you know, it can’t hurt just to say something.”

Thinking she might not be heard through the plexiglass shield, she typed out the message on her phone.

Red, who didn’t even know he had such a mole back there, didn’t think much of her message at first.

But when he asked the team doctor to look at it, it turned out to be malignant melanoma, the most aggressive form of skin cancer. The doctor who removed the mole informed Red that it would’ve become fatal had it been left alone for 4 or 5 years.

Filled with gratitude, the Canucks tweeted a message from Red asking to help locate his hero.

Red said, “She saved my life. She didn’t take me out of a burning car, like in the big stories, but she took me out of a slow fire.”

He added, “How [Nadia] saw it boggles my mind. It wasn’t very big. I wear a jacket, I wear a radio on the back of my jacket that hooks on, so the cords are there…. Like, she’s a hero.”

Within two hours, Nadia was tracked down. The Canucks invited her to a home game in Seattle to meet a grateful Red.

She was surprised by both the Canucks and Kraken with a $10,000 scholarship for medical school!

Together with the @SeattleKraken, we awarded Nadia Popovici a $10,000 scholarship for medical school as a show of our appreciation 👏 pic.twitter.com/VgK8aMgJTA— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) January 2, 2022

Nadia didn’t do it for any reward. Knowing that Red avoided a fatal prognosis is enough reward for her.

We’re all rooting for her journey to becoming a doctor — we’re sure she’ll save many more lives!

Source: Inspire More