January 13, 2026
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It's the final push for the Kincardine Hospital capital campaign and Canadian hockey icon Paul Henderson (above) is ready to do whatever he can to help the community raise the final $6-million in support of the redevelopment of the facility.
Last week, the Kincardine and Community Health Care Foundation named Henderson an honourary health-care ambassador for the foundation’s fund-raising campaign — supporting the community’s share of a transformative hospital expansion.
Speaking to reporters, Monday morning, via Zoom, Henderson said the Kincardine Hospital holds a special place in his heart because he was born Jan. 28, 1943, on the ice of Lake Huron and taken to that hospital where the staff saved his life.
The nurse that day was Lexi Bell, recalled Henderson. His mother arrived in the horse and sleigh with her baby in her arms, and they couldn't get up the hospital hill so Bell went down and brought him up to the hospital. He was covered in hay and straw and was turning blue.
"When I met her (Bell) on her 90th birthday, she told me, 'I know all about you, everything about you. I gave you your first bath.' She was a wonderful lady.
"I am convinced that without the Kincardine Hospital, I would be dead today."
Henderson actually grew up in the Kincardine, Lucknow, Amberley area. He played minor hockey in Lucknow, Junior B in Goderich, Junior A in Hamilton, and then to Detroit where he turned professional and played 18 years with the NHL.
Best known for scoring the legendary winning goal for Team Canada in the 1972 Summit Series, Henderson now brings his leadership, legacy, and compassion to the forefront of local health care, proudly championing the campaign to modernize the emergency department, diagnostic imaging unit, and laboratory, and bring Bruce County its first Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machine.
He will also help launch the "Paul and Eleanor Henderson Quiet and Comfort Lounge," with a goal of raising $100,000 to name a special space in the redeveloped emergency department, offering comfort, privacy, and connection during life’s most vulnerable moments.
Henderson said he and his wife of 63 years, Eleanor, have donated several thousand dollars to the campaign and look forward to encouraging others to do the same.
"If I can do anything for a charity, then I'm in," he said. "At the end of the day, if you help somebody else, it feels good to do that."
He would rather do that than be entered into the Hockey Hall of Fame, as some people have suggested.
"That's the worst thing ever," he said. "Then people would forget all about me. I'm better off on the outside, doing things to help others."
Mark Womack, the foundation's capital campaign manager, said the plan is to have construction of the hospital redevelopment project under way by the middle of 2027.
"We're approaching $13-million of the $18-million fund-raising total," he said. "We're in the final 12-18 months of the campaign, and we hope Paul will give us that extra push."
"It's all about momentum," said Henderson. "I expect you'll reach your goal, and maybe I can help."
"Paul will be in the community," said Womack. "He's part of the community."
"I love this area," said Henderson, "and I'm always quick to tell people where I'm from."
Paul Henderson (left) with Wendel Clark on the bench, coaching the Toronto Maple Leafs alumni at the game against the Kincardine Bulldogs alumni, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Davidson Centre in Kincardine, last year; photo by David Dadson
To view a message by Henderson about the Kincardine Hospital project, click here.
Written ByLiz Dadson is the founder and editor of the Kincardine Record and has been in the news business since 1986.
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