NHL prospect Austin Roest took to social media to share a heart-wrenching message to his girlfriend, former figure skater Milara Okabe, amid her stage 4 cancer diagnosis.
The Nashville Predators’ 2023 sixth-round draft pick described Okabe as the “strongest person” he knows and predicted she would overcome her health troubles in the emotional post last week on his Instagram page.
“Milly, I don’t even know what to say. I am so sorry this is happening to you,” he wrote under a photo of him with Okabe in her hospital bed. “No one deserves to go through this. That being said, I have no doubt in my mind you will beat cancer. You are the strongest person I know and I know you will overcome everything that comes your way over the next year. I love you so much and I will be right there with you through all of this.”
As part of the message, he also directed his followers to a GoFundMe page to support Okabe and her family during her battle with cancer.
Okabe had recently been diagnosed with stage 4 adenocarcinoma, which is a cancer that lives in organ glands, according to the GoFundMe page.
The page was set up by Kristin LeDuc, a friend of Okabe, and said any funds raised would go toward her treatment.
As of Monday night, the page raised more than 76,000 Canadian dollars, just shy of the CA$80,000 goal.
“Milara is so much more than her diagnosis. She is a kind, strong and selfless person who means so much to everyone around her,” the GoFundMe read. “Skating has always been a huge part of Milara’s life. After spending years as a high-level skater herself, she now loves being able to share that passion by teaching kids how to skate. Outside of the rink, she is constantly with the people she loves the most – her friends and family, as well as simply having the most fun in everything she does.
“As Milara goes through treatment, her family is doing everything possible to remain by her side. Along with the emotional weight of her diagnosis, she is now facing time away from work, travel and accommodation costs, medications, fertility preservation, and many other unexpected expenses.”
Okabe also revealed her own diagnosis in a post on her social media page, in which she said she was “extremely lucky in this life to have friends that are family, and a family that loves me this hard.”
The couple began dating in June 2023, according to social media posts.
Roest has not appeared in an NHL contest since he was drafted and split last season between the Preds’ minor league affiliates, the Milwaukee Admirals in the AHL and the ECHL’s Atlanta Gladiators.
