A fundraiser is being held Saturday to assist the family of hockey player Mandi Schwartz, who is battling leukemia.

Schwartz, 20, began this season with the Yale Bulldogs women's hockey team before being diagnosed. She is undergoing chemotherapy in preparation for a bone-marrow transplant, which would be performed in Seattle.

To help defray expenses, "A Night For Mandi'' will take place at the Italian Club. The event will include dinner, silent and live auctions, and entertainment by hypnotist Dirk Gettle.

"When I heard the news, Ted Buch and I started talking,'' Brent Bobyck (ND Grad 1986) said while mentioning the other organizer of the fundraiser. "It really hit us hard. We said, 'Let's see if we can do something.'

"It started off as a small thing. We said, 'Let's just sell tickets and get a couple of jerseys,' but the response from throughout the city has been just phenomenal. It just got contagious. The more that we got, the more we kept going after it. Everyone has been encouraging us and wanting to help.''

Schwartz, who is from Wilcox, has been undergoing treatment at the Pasqua Hospital's Allan Blair Cancer Centre.

The auction items include jerseys signed by Rod Brind'Amour, Chris Chelios, Jonathan Toews, Jordan Eberle, Colten Teubert, Brandon Gormley and the Washington Capitals (including Alex Ovechkin).

Gormley, who played defence for the midget AAA Notre Dame Hounds, was chosen first overall by the Moncton Wildcats in the 2008 QMJHL draft. He is from Murray River, P.E.I.

A Tiger Woods print is also up for auction. Various WHL teams have contributed other items.

Saturday's dinner is to be held at the Italian Club (2148 Connaught St.), beginning with cocktails from 6 to 7 p.m. Supper is from 7 to 8:30 p.m., with entertainment and the auctions to follow.

Tickets are available for $30 at all Factory Optical and Eye Candy locations in Regina, as well as Extreme Hockey and Sports. For more information, call Ted Buch at 789-2787.

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