Kickin’ It Back in Gear
When asked for his bio on his Adventure Project application, this humble 18-year-old hero wrote the paragraph below. A lifelong soccer player and on his high school’s varsity team his junior and senior year, this high achieving athlete and student wound up caught in a different kind of net a year ago, one no kid should have to face. The Adventure Project aims to help him reclaim what his battle with cancer took away.
His story: “This is a weird thing to write and I’m not really sure what I’m supposed to write about. If it’s about my illness, I don’t think my story is too dissimilar from other cancer survivors and patients. I was diagnosed with T-cell ALL (T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia) back in September 2017 and with the support of my friends and family made it through intensive chemo, starting maintenance June 15, 2018. Like with other cancer patients, treatment has been rough and while I’m nowhere near the shape I used to be in, which has negatively impacted my self-confidence, I think I’ve become closer to some people than I otherwise would have and I’m grateful for that. I guess that is my story.”
His short-term athletic goal: “To be fit enough to play soccer again.”
His long-term athletic goal: “To be comfortable with my body again. Healthy enough to do all the activities I used to be fit enough to do.”
Personal Motto: He doesn’t have one (yet). So we’re giving him one until he does. It matches the young man we’ve been fortunate enough to get to know: “Infuse your life with action. Don’t wait for it to happen. Make it happen. Make your own future. Make your own hope.”
