Dear Jonathan Toews,
The Merriam-Webster dictionary has many definitions for the word “classy,” but the one that really hits it on the nail is “having or reflecting high standards of personal behavior.” I have always liked to identify with that word; a lot of girls my age don’t, because they think it means they have to take everything seriously and behave properly, but I am fine with living up to those expectations. I often think of Audrey Hepburn when I think of people who are considered classy, and I like to live up to that level of class. I never thought I would ever refer to a professional athlete with that word, but then, it happened.
Terms like “the classiest hockey player," “pure class," “class act," “classiest guy around," and “world’s classiest athlete” were used on the internet to describe you, and the most negative comment I have seen on a video or photo of you is “want to hate him, but can’t, such a class act." I would look away, but they were talking about the guy who has been my favorite player since I was seventeen and my dad took me to a Blackhawks game and told me “check out number nineteen, you’ll like him, I promise.” He was right. I liked him a lot, enough to call him my hockey crush. Four years later, nothing has changed.
You’re my favorite athlete of all time, and I highly doubt anyone else will ever change that. It is not just because you are one of the most talented athletes out there (dare I even say the best in the world right now?) or because you are extremely attractive, but because of how you handle yourself in those regards. The way you handle yourself (especially during scandals) is why so many admire you. Yes, they admire how much of a good player you are, and it makes it only better when you are humble when asked about your achievements and always give credit to your teammates, your family, and your fans for supporting you.
You spend plenty of time giving back by working with children, and there is not a bad thing to be said about you. I have met multiple people who have had the privilege of meeting you, and they have said nothing but good things. Whenever your name goes viral online, it is due to how good of a player or how good of a person you are, from the awesome water bottle trick that came out just a few weeks ago to the heart-melting #WhatsYourGoal video with the five-year-old Girl Scout that wanted to sell cookies to her favorite player.
As captain of your team, you receive the Stanley Cup for two days instead of one when you win. In the three times that you have won, you showed nothing but class by sharing it with everyone in Winnipeg, from your family to disabled children. The best part is that none of this is a publicity stunt, you do it from the generosity in your heart, because you genuinely love your fans and want to give back.Many young male athletes would fully take advantage of such success and heartthrob appeal, spend countless hours partying and sleeping around, making headlines for less than honorable reasons. You haven’t done any of that, which proves that you are just an all-around good guy.
That brings me to my next point, and the point I really want to drive home here: you are living proof that, in a world where everyone wants success and wealth, and where many will do anything achieve it, you can still achieve it while being true to yourself. You’re living proof that nice guys do finish first, and that you can be the most successful person in your field while still remaining a genuine, classy, and kind person. In all honesty, the way you have achieved success gives me hope for my future.
As I only have two and a half semesters left of college and will be entering the real world soon with my dream of becoming a historical fiction author, I’m terrified of what is coming my way. I have often been told that I need to be a bitch to be taken seriously and achieve success, and I think that’s wrong. Yes, I can’t let people walk all over me in the real world, but I can still be a nice person and be successful.W henever someone tells me “nobody ever made it to the top by being a nice person,” I can’t help but laugh, because it’s how you did it, and why so many people stand behind you.
I know for a fact that I can have the career and success that I want while remaining true to myself, and that is all because someone I admire very much did so himself. It gives me so much relief to know that my future won’t be compromised because I want to stick to my values. Thank you for showing the world that you can be the best at what you do and still remain a good person, and thank you for giving everyone in Chicago such a positive role model.
Sincerely,
