Local teen battling leukemia is ‘gobsmacked’ by newly renovated home: ‘It’s been a long journey but it’s a beautiful one’
On Tuesday, Flyers Charities and Michael’s Way unveiled a newly renovated home for 19-year-old Ethan Ruiz, who was the 10th recipient of the Building Hope for Kids grant initiative.
One word would describe 19-year-old Ethan Ruiz’s reaction to his newly renovated home: “gobsmacked.”
“I don’t know how you turn what was here before into such a large space,” Ruiz said. “I guess it involved knocking down walls but seeing it in its full extent — completely open. I love the open air design of everything.”
Ruiz was the 10th recipient of the Building Hope for Kids grant, an initiative where Flyers Charities and Michael’s Way partner up to renovate homes for children battling cancer.
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The initiative led to Ruiz’s home in Northeast Philadelphia being renovated to create a more comfortable, accessible, and uplifting space as he continues treatment for his leukemia diagnosis.
“Every year we work with St. Christopher’s Hospital,” said Blair Listino, chair of Flyers Charities and an alternate governor of the Flyers. “We work with social workers there who select a family that they think it would make a very big impact on in their lives to have a new home.
“This is the 10th house we’ve done and we’ve worked with a lot of organizations day in and day out. There’s different organizations here who’ve helped with the house. IKEA donated all the furniture. Sprouts [Farmers Market] stocked the kitchen. And we have Rheem who did the HVAC system for us.”
In 2025, Flyers Charities increased its financial contribution to the initiative to $100,000 due to the increased cost of building materials and the success of previous home renovations.
Flyers Charities financially supports Michael’s Way, a local nonprofit whose mission is to improve the lives of children with pediatric cancer, for the project while the wives and girlfriends of Flyers players act as interior designers for the house.
Ethan and his mother, Yomayra Carrer, were surprised with the news in October. Construction began in January with Flyers Charities and wives and girlfriends working alongside Fastrack Construction and IKEA to complete a full-scale renovation.
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The renovation includes a brand new HVAC system, a new roof for long-term structural security, engineered hardwood flooring to reduce dust and allergens, new cabinetry, a home gym, walk-in closet, and new tile.
When asked what his favorite part of the renovation was, Ruiz said: “My room.”
Ruiz’s room was decorated with forest green walls, featured a gaming setup in the corner, and personalized with some of his favorite items — including a “Ghost of Yotei” poster, and Tyler the Creator “Chromakopia” album artwork.
One of the masterminds behind Ruiz’s room was Alex Sanheim, Travis Sanheim’s wife.
“It’s tough to design something for someone else and still hope it’s exactly what they envisioned,” Alex Sanheim said. “And by his reaction, I think we nailed it. It was to be green and moody and have a gaming [setup]. I think the space works for him to enjoy gaming between school. Everything now, it’s just completely different.
“It truly wouldn’t be possible without every single person. I just truly don’t think that we give enough credit to everyone because it takes a village for sure.”
After getting to know the family, the Flyers’ wives and girlfriends took both Ruiz and Carrer’s interests in consideration to make their vision come to life. For instance, plants were something Carrer loved to have in her home. Going into the renovation, she was a little worried she would have no place for them.
“From my exact sitting position [in the living room], I can count like six of them,” Ruiz said.
Little did Ruiz know, he missed an entire cabinet of four additional plants to his right. Although the plants were a must have, for Carrer, the kitchen was the main star of the house — but it may take some time getting used to.
“I don’t know if I’m just like of a different tax bracket, so I don’t know this, but like, I didn’t even know that ovens could come in — dude, there’s two. And it’s split into one big one,” Ruiz said.
Carrer added: “We’re going to figure it out.”
When asked what would be the first thing they make in their new kitchen, they responded: “Empanadas.”
Despite the rainy conditions Tuesday, Gritty and Flyers players Jamie Drysdale, Bobby Brink, Owen Tippet, and Sean Couturier were there to witness the big reveal.
“Oh, they did a great job,” Couturier said. “I would probably let them redo our house all together. They did an amazing job. Everything kind of fit together and I’m sure they’re happy with the end result.”
For the Ruiz family, the renovation was a dream come true.
“The way that I saw all the wives show up, the contractors, I know how stressful it was,” Carrer said. “But they were like, ‘No this is something we want to do. We do it with joy in our hearts.’ So, to me it’s like they will forever be in my prayers. The contractors, the wives, the Flyers, Michael’s Way. It’s been a long journey but it’s a beautiful one.”