Bob Probert's family helps open Tecumseh health care campus in his name

Family members of the late Detroit Red Wings enforcer Bob Probert celebrated what would have been his 60th birthday on Thursday by helping open the Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare (HDGH) Tecumseh campus named in his honour.

The Bob Probert Tecumseh Campus offers specialized outpatient programs, including cardiac wellness, rehab outreach, outpatient rehab services and geriatric services, according to a news release from HDGH.

Probert's widow, Dani Probert, said the official opening was more emotional than she expected it to be.

"Typically on Bob's birthday, we like to celebrate quietly, privately," she said.

"The kids and I are sitting with his favourite music and eating all of his favourite foods. And today, it seemed so appropriate to be with the community at an event like this. … I think the community of Windsor-Essex has been so amazing with helping us in the grieving process over 10 years. So it seemed really special to be with the same people after all these years to spend his birthday."

Bob Probert died in 2010 of a heart attack at the age of 45, eight years after his retirement from the National Hockey League.

A feared enforcer and one-time all-star

His 16-year career with the Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks earned him a reputation as a feared enforcer who accumulated 3,300 penalty minutes – the fifth-highest total of all time.

He also racked up 384 points, including 163 goals, and earned an All-Star nod during the 1987-88 season.

For a decade after his death, his family helped organize the annual Bob Probert Ride, a fundraising motorcycle poker run in his honour, to raise money for health care. 

"The ride has achieved a lot over the years," Probert's daughter, Brogan, told the audience at the opening.

"Since that very first meeting, we were able to support the cardiac cath lab on Ouellette, provide exercise equipment to the Petro Family Cardiac Wellness Centre on Prince Road, and now the Bob Probert Tecumseh campus will officially open. The impact that this campus will have on our community is greater than we originally had anticipated. It's incredible."

The president and CEO of Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare said the campus has already seen around 700 patient visits since its soft opening on March 3.

And there's been no reduction in the patient volume at the main campus on Prince Road, a spokesperson added. 

That demand is prompting the organization to think about expanding, Bill Marra said.

"I've been in the public service for 37 years in a variety of leadership roles," he said. 

"This is one of the most grassroots community-based success stories I've ever been a part of – the family coming together over a catastrophic event, donors from a wide spectrum of corporate citizens, private citizens, a hospital institution, the Town of Tecumseh, organized labour. Think about that formula and look at where we're at today."