New York Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer and his family opened the Jennifer Schaefer Child Support Room on Monday at the R.J. Zuckerberg Cancer Center in Lake Success, N.Y., a space dedicated to his mother, Jennifer Schaefer, who died of breast cancer in February 2024. The hockey-themed room gives children a place to play while their parents undergo cancer treatment nearby.
The $150,000 project was funded by a donation from the Islanders Children’s Foundation. It stands as a tribute from a family that knows firsthand what it feels like to sit in a hospital waiting room with nowhere to turn.
A Room Built In Jennifer Schaefer’s Name
The space is stocked with Islanders memorabilia, air hockey, bubble hockey and gaming consoles, giving kids something to do while family members are down the hall receiving treatment. It will also include personal, uplifting messages written by Matthew Schaefer for the families who use it.
Todd Schaefer, Matthew’s father, delivered remarks at the opening. He said the room reflects exactly what his late wife would have wanted for other families facing what theirs went through.
“My wife would be so pleased,” Todd Schaefer said. “The room is exactly what she would want. I know when she was battling, we didn’t have anything like this. To have a space like this where people can come in and kids can be kids and it doesn’t matter how they old they are … in her name, it couldn’t have come to a better place.”
Growing Up Without That Kind Of Space
Matthew Schaefer, 19, was selected No. 1 by the Islanders at the 2025 NHL Draft. He described wishing a room like this had existed when his mother was sick, so he, his brother Johnny and his father could have had somewhere to step away without leaving the hospital.
“When my mom was going through cancer, we wish we could have had a room where me, my brother or dad could go get a breath of fresh air,” Matthew Schaefer said. “It’s not always fun when you come to hospitals, but obviously the people around it make it super special, the doctors and nurses. To have a room like this where kids and families can go when family (members) are getting treatments, the kid can go and just be a kid and play video games … they don’t have to see their parents go through treatment, because it’s not always fun.”
Johnny Schaefer, who is nine years older than Matthew, also attended the dedication. The brothers went through their mother’s illness together, old enough to understand what was happening but still searching for ways to cope.
What The Room Means Going Forward
Matthew Schaefer said the room’s purpose is not to help children forget what their families are facing, but to give them a break from it.
“The impact is going to be something that I’m really looking forward to,” he said. “This fell into our lap, and there’s nothing better that we could possibly do. Seeing kids deal with a sick parent going through (cancer) is terrible, (and) there’s no little kid that should have to deal with that. Having an environment like this where they can, not forget about it, but kind of harness them being scared a lot more and allow them to enjoy it, in my mom’s name, is something I’ll forever be thankful for.”
The Jennifer Schaefer Child Support Room is now open to families at the R.J. Zuckerberg Cancer Center. Matthew Schaefer continues his rookie season with the Islanders, who the family hopes will see the room’s impact grow as more children pass through its doors.
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