Gone a Year

This is a difficult post to write because it's about the first student I've ever worked with who has died. He's been gone a year now - and it's been even longer since he attended school - but as with any grief, the memories linger and the anniversary stings. Brian was seventeen years old when he died. He valiantly battled cancer his entire adolescent life. He endured cycle after cycle of treatment, caught infection after infection, and finally his body was too tortured - too tired of fighting - to last any longer.

His funeral was the most uplifting gathering I've ever experienced. There was singing, dancing, poetry, and friends from all walks of life who gave staggering testimonies of just how influential Brian had been in their lives. And he was influential. He taught his teachers much more than we could ever hope to teach him. About priorities, faith, and love. This young man had every reason in the world to be angry. He had every right to rail at his God - to lose hope. But he didn't. Instead he embraced his faith, he coordinated fundraisers for other children suffering from cancer, and he never once gave up fighting to make a difference in this world. To say he was special is a vast understatement.

And now his mother - his dear, good to the core, selfless mother - has sponsored a room in a community learning center in an impoverished area of the city in which they live. This is what she wrote me recently,

My family has adopted one of the rooms at the Center and have dedicated it to Brian.We selected the game room and are now in the process of converting it to a Cardinals theme room. So far, we have quite a bit of Brian's personal belongings on display. I plan to frame and mount his poems, and "his story." The room is used for the kids in the community to come and have fun in a safe environment. Some items donated are badly worn and need to be replaced, and then there are those items we would like to purchase to improve the general appearance of the room.

Here is a pretty comprehensive list of Cardinals stuff (or not) that is on our wish list:
-Trash Can
-Checker Game
-Chess Game
-Table tennis paddles and replacement net
-Dart Game (with rubber tips)
-Pool sticks and rack
-2 Card tables for playing board games
-couple of bean bags or something on that order
-Replacement floor (commercial tile (VCT) (floor is approx 30 x 30)

The purpose of this post is not just to memorialize Brian - although it does that, I hope.
It is to ask this generous community of bloggers and readers if you want to help. I do have a paypal account,
and I'm betting I can probably figure out how to use it by the time this posts. I have never asked
for help via my blog before this, but Brian's legacy is worth it. And if you knew his mother, you too would do
anything you can to make her smile.

If you are interested in helping, please send me an email or comment here.

Thank you.