RIP John Challis

[Trey Beamon]

Sad news out of Pittsburgh.

John Challis, a teenager who became nationally known the past few months, died of liver and lung cancer Tuesday afternoon at his family's home in Freedom Township. He was 18.

http://www.postgazette.com/pg/08232/905451-49.stm

If you hadn't read it, here's the story, videos and message that drew people to John in the first place. Really touching stuff:

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08125/878966-85.stm

 

[markvid]

Thanks, Trey - I was getting ready to put this up.
RIP to someone who should give us all a lesson on life.

 

[Matt1735]

RIP John ... He used his brief time on earth to teach people more than some do in much longer lifetimes.

 

[markvid]

I am trying to do something for him in our game telecast - anyone know the year he was born? I can't seem to find it anywhere.

 

[Moderator1]

1990 or 1989 if he was 18. Has to be one of those, right?

 

[pmartin25]

I'm not a very emotional guy, but every time I read about this kid I get a little teary eyed. The kid was just amazing. RIP John.

 

[Tiger16]

Sad ending to a tremendous story. Kid left quite a legacy.

 

[markvid]

1990 or 1989 if he was 18. Has to be one of those, right?

It does, but given I'm doing a headshot to air with the dates, there is no way I'm gonna guess...

I did just find out, though, born December 16, 1989.

 

[Sxysprtswrtr]

Man, just watched this story on ESPN and I'm crying like a baby right now.

It's amazing what people taked for granted while there are 18-year-olds out there truly fighting for their lives.

RIP John Challis.

 

[BitterYoungMatador2]

If we all lived like him this country, ****, this world, would be a lot more fun.

 

[Oz]

An amazing story. The only thing I ever heard him say he was mad about -- not getting married and having kids. I was choking up. Fortunately, that kid made sure he lived life to fullest.

RIP, John.

 

[KYSportsWriter]

Damn.

 

[outofplace]

We all knew how this story was going to end, but damn it still sucks.

The part about Challis wishing he had the opportunity to get married and have kids really gets me, too.

I spent this past weekend visiting my best friend. He was about the same age as Challis when he was diagnosed with stomach cancer. The prognosis was not good, but he refused to let that get him down. To this day, he tells me he was always thankful to G-d for giving him the opportunity to fight. He says he could just as easily have been hit by a bus, and then he would just have been gone.

An experimental treatment ended up saving his life. His last treatment was 18 years ago yesterday.

He is getting married in October and he and his fiancee are talking about having children in a couple of years. He was once told he would never have children, but the more recent tests are very positive.

The stories I have read about Challis remind me of my friend. They shared the same positive outlook, the same determination to make the best of any situation and a stronger faith than I can imagine ever having. I think of how proud I am that my friend asked me to be his best man. He is a genuinely good man. Most of the time I am too cynical to think of anybody that way. He is certainly a better one than I will ever be. I never met Challis, but I can't help but think the same of him.

I don't even want to try to figure out why one good man survived and the other had his life cut so short. I find myself thinking of Challis's best friend, who will never have the opportunity that I have to stand up with a good man on his wedding day. I think of my own wife and daughter. I think the next time that I ***** about ANYTHING, I really need to just shut the **** up.

 

[bagelchick]

OOP: That was really nice. You should think about saying some of those things at his wedding during a toast....

 

[outofplace]

OOP: That was really nice. You should think about saying some of those things at his wedding during a toast....

Thanks. I have thought about it. In fact, I will write a version of the speech using some of that, but I doubt I'll use it. Light and happy might be a better approach. I'll probably bounce both versions off Mrs. OOP and see what she says.

 

[bagelchick]

I think there's a way to coney it while keeping light and happy....I think you had a dash of thankful in there and you got it.
I remember when my brother got married, it was shortly after my dad had a really serious illness...like-nearly-died-serious...and he stood up and just talked about how happy he was that my dad was there.....it was a nice moment that I always remember....

 

[sports scrub]

Mike White's story on the funeral ...

http://postgazette.com/pg/08237/906702-49.stm

 

[zagoshe]

Mike White's story on the funeral ...

http://postgazette.com/pg/08237/906702-49.stm

How does any of you feel about a first-person account of a funeral story?

 

[Smasher_Sloan]

Didn't like the approach at all. It would have been better if it had been split into straight coverage of the memorial service and a separate on the writer's relationship with the young man.

 

[zagoshe]

Didn't like the approach at all. It would have been better if it had been split into straight coverage of the memorial service and a separate on the writer's relationship with the young man.

In some ways it does seem like it is organized that way (first half seems to be about funeral, second about writer's experiences)....

I just don't know, I go back and forth about these first-person accounts, especially about a story like this where, the subject is obviously very sensitive.

I think your approach, the more I think about it, a straight news story and perhaps a sidebar about the author's experiences might have been the best way to go.