91原创鈥檚 Liam Visram has been named the January recipient of the Shaw BCHL Community Hero Award.

Visram, who now plays defence for the Nanaimo Clippers, recently made a huge impact in a young fan鈥檚 life.

In a game earlier this season, the 19-year-old Visram was making his way through the tunnel into the team鈥檚 dressing room when he overheard a young fan and his mother speaking with a team volunteer about diabetes 鈥� a cause that hits close to home.

Diabetes runs in Visram鈥檚 family and he鈥檚 been living with it himself ever since he was diagnosed as Type 1 at 13 years old. After confirming that the young fan is also living with the disease, he made an instant connection.

鈥淚 just talked to him about how I鈥檓 diabetic and it hasn鈥檛 really stopped me from doing anything and how I still love playing hockey,鈥� said Visram. 鈥淚 think it impacted him a lot.鈥�

The child鈥檚 mother was so impressed that she wrote an email to the team to show her appreciation.

鈥淪he said she went home that night and her kid said, 鈥楳ommy, that hockey player does finger pokes [to test blood sugar levels], so I can do it too,鈥欌�� said Visram. 鈥淚 saw the email and sent it to my parents right away. I was really happy. It put a huge smile on my face. I can honestly say that I haven鈥檛 been that proud of myself in a while.鈥�

Visram feels strongly about passing this message on to kids, because he understands what it鈥檚 like to be newly diagnosed and feel unsure about what kind of limitations it might put on him.

Since his interaction with the child and his mother and the positive reaction it received, Visram was inspired to continue to advocate for children with diabetes and began going to schools in Nanaimo, specifically to tell his story.

鈥淟iam is a prime example of what you want in a young man,鈥� said Clippers general manager Tali Campbell. 鈥淪ince coming to our team in August, he鈥檚 always been one of the first guys to step up and help and has truly made a huge impact as a positive role model for others with diabetes.鈥�

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As the title sponsor of the Shaw BCHL Community Hero Award, Shaw has committed to donating $500 to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation on behalf of Liam Visram.

鈥淟iam is proving that living with a condition like diabetes does not have to limit what you鈥檙e capable of,鈥� said Chethan Lakshman, Vice President, External Affairs, Shaw Communications. 鈥淜ids need role models like Liam to show them that when they work hard, they can do anything they set their minds to 鈥� no matter what kind of obstacles they may be facing in their own lives.鈥�

Visram wants to be a role model for these kids, just like other diabetic athletes, like Montreal Canadiens forward Max Domi, are to him.

鈥淚t never stopped me from playing hockey,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 kept playing, but that was the one thing that I was pretty worried about. I eventually got the hang of it. I use an insulin pump and it鈥檚 just a part of me now. It鈥檚 everyday life. I just find a way to balance it.

鈥淢y message to kids is that [diabetes] doesn鈥檛 stop me from doing anything and it won鈥檛 stop you. If you want it, you can do whatever you want. Don鈥檛 let it stop you.鈥�

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