By Kevin Nix and Patrick Schneider, Cronkite PR Lab
Life can turn on its head in the blink of an eye, especially in sports, but accepting the situation and fighting through the adversity can be rewarding. For Sun Devil Hockey forward Tony Achille, even when it seemed like recovery was out of the picture, he overcame his illness and eventually grew stronger from the experience.
Tony Achille, a freshman, grew up in Hingham, Massachusetts, with his close family already entrenched in the hockey community. He started playing hockey at age 8 for the Boston Advantage, a youth hockey club near his home. He played for them until 2022 when he switched to play juniors level hockey in Maine, a more competitive experience. After this switch, his coaches recommended he play for Arizona State upon his graduation, which he eventually did.
“[The Boston Advantage] rink was literally five minutes away from my house, so I had almost unlimited ice [time],” Achille said. “And then I went up to Maine, where luckily, the [ASU] coaches out here saw me play and they liked my style. Thankfully, [the coaches] offered me a spot. And so now I’m here.”
His journey to ASU, however, was not a smooth one.
At age 15, Tony was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, a type of cancer that affects the lymphatic system.
When Achille was diagnosed, his life turned upside down. His daily routine was interrupted, and he had to step away, competitively, from the sport he loved the most.
“I had a big lump on the side of my neck,” Achille said. “My family and I went to a bunch of doctors, and they all thought it was a swollen lymph node. But the lump stayed on my neck. I went into surgery, and I got the lump removed. About two or three days later, my parents got a phone call.”
“[It’s] not the phone call that anyone wants to receive. Doctors told them that I had Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.”
Achille, following his diagnosis, underwent chemotherapy for several months. His grades slipped. He was in and out of hospitals and away from school for weeks at a time. The physical toll on his body was significant, and his treatment forced him to stop skating competitively.
Mentally, he also struggled. He became isolated from those around him. The more isolated he got, the worse he felt about himself and his situation.
“Once you sit down and lock yourself away from everyone else, that’s when [those feelings] creep up on you,” Achille said. “And that’s when you start to feel terrible about yourself. You start to look back and realize what’s going on. But if you keep yourself busy, hopefully it keeps you happy just long enough to push to another day.”
Keeping busy is what kept Achille sane. His love for hockey persisted throughout his entire journey with the disease. Even though he didn’t skate competitively for two years, he skated sparingly on an ice rink near his house. This ice rink was owned by the father of his best friend, Tim Lovell.
Lovell and Achille have been best friends for 10 years. In addition to Achille’s family, Lovell was a centerpiece to his support system as he overcame Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Through his constant support, Lovell reflected on the importance of admiring what you have and the impact one’s story can have on others.
“This kid is a cancer survivor and a miracle,” Lovell said. “Not often people can beat those diseases. It's very heartwarming for guys to have a kid like this around the team…because they all know he's going to give a maximum effort. For someone to beat cancer, that's life changing.”
Having a strong support system has been a primary motivator for Achille to give back. During quarantine, he and his family founded Mission 16, a website designed to sell merchandise. This merchandise consisted of sweatshirts, t-shirts, and other apparel with the number 16, which is the number Achille used to wear in competition. His family raised over two thousand dollars, and all profits were donated to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts, where Achille underwent his treatment.
In 2022, his family started a toy drive. In the months leading up to Christmas, they placed multiple boxes outside police stations and city hall, allowing the wider population to donate unused or extra toys. When these boxes filled up, new boxes were put in their place. In addition, they continued selling sweatshirts and other gear through Mission 16.
In total, thousands of more dollars were raised, and all profits and toys were donated to a hospital. The Dempsey Center, which is in the city where Achille played hockey as a child, was the recipient of this second wave of donations.
“I know how it feels when someone donates to you when you're going through a tough time. To just have that feeling, it is awesome,” Achille said.
His journey and reciprocation of service make him an inspiration to many. As his best friend, Lovell always had confidence in Achille.
“I always knew I was going to be back on the ice with him just because of who he is as a person,” Lovell said.
“There’s always someone in a worse position than you,” Achille said. “Going into the hospital every week made me realize that, especially seeing the young kids that were going through the same thing. They were honestly the happiest kids I’ve ever seen… You couldn’t break their spirit.”
Every time he plays hockey, he does it for the kids. He does it for those who need a little extra fighting spirit.
“Every time [I play] I’ll write ‘DF’ (for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute) on the side of my stick,” Achille said. “I’ll look at it before I go out on the ice just to remember what I went through and what the kids go through. And I play for them every time I step on the ice.”
“I think that’s pretty special.”