Thank you for sharing this with us.**

Subject:

Comments:
: : <I>I'm not a big fan of the local rag, but, Zeigler did an outstanding job on this piece</I> : : <B>Fan had the courage of a champion : : Scott Delgadillo inspired many in leukemia battle : : By Mark Zeigler January 31, 2001</B> : : As they leave the locker room before home games, University of Notre Dame football players reach up and slap a yellow sign with blue lettering. "Play like a champion today," it says. : : Someone gave San Diego's Scott Delgadillo a replica of the sign, and he put it over his bed. And even in his final days, when he was too weak to walk, he would reach up each night before he went to sleep and slap it. : : Delgadillo, 14, lost his yearlong battle with leukemia Monday night, but those who were touched by him say he lived like a champion. : : "We go through life sometimes and never inspire anybody," said Carmen Delgadillo, his mother, "and Scott inspired thousands of people at a young age. That's a fulfilled life. He's been an incredible, incredible inspiration. We can all learn something from him." : : You might remember Scott from last fall, when he visited Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., and attended the Sept. 16 football game against Purdue. The Make-A-Wish Foundation grants wishes to children with life-threatening illnesses, and ever since he was 5, Scott had dreamed of attending Notre Dame and playing on its storied football team. : : Part of the visit was a campus tour and an audience with Bob Davie, the football coach. Davie invited Scott and his family to the pep rally the night before the game, and then asked if he'd like to speak at it. : : The ensuing, impromptu speech is now part of Notre Dame legend. : : "Through these nine months," Scott told a packed arena of 12,000, "I've had a lot of times where I was feeling just terrible. To get through this treatment, what helped me a lot is positive thinking. What inspired me a lot is this university, and how I know I'm going to come back here one day." : : The next afternoon, Notre Dame beat Purdue 23-21 on a last-second field goal. The Irish players awarded Scott the game ball. : : The leukemia was in remission that weekend, but Scott had a relapse shortly after returning to San Diego. Davie learned of his condition and wrote an open letter to the campus newspaper asking the Notre Dame community for its support and prayers. He included e-mail and street addresses. : : Soon, the Delgadillos were inundated with hundreds of cards and gifts from those touched by Scott's courageous words at the pep rally. : : Scott had a form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia that is found in about 15 percent of cases and is treated with chemotherapy. Relapses in this form of leukemia, which attacks the body's T-cells, often are fatal. : : Scott was scheduled to fly to Boston on Dec. 26 to undergo a bone marrow transplant with his brother, Eric. But on Christmas night he was readmitted to Children's Hospital in San Diego, and his condition never stabilized. He died Monday at his home in San Carlos. : : "Scott Delgadillo was a very special and courageous young man," Dr. William Roberts, his oncologist, said in a statement yesterday. "His incredible spirit touched many people here at Children's Hospital, all of whom are honored to have been a part of his life. We will remember him fondly." : : Through his final weeks, the outpouring of affection continued. : : A local man who had given Scott a Notre Dame helmet autographed by Joe Montana told Carmen Delgadillo that he had recently been in Paris and lit a candle for Scott at the cathedral of Notre Dame. She joked that she wished she knew he was going, because they could use some water from Lourdes -- the Catholic shrine in southwestern France known for its miraculous healing powers. : : The man made a few phone calls, and a few days later he brought the family a vial of water from Lourdes. : : Shane Walton, a cornerback at Notre Dame who attended The Bishop's School in La Jolla, visited Scott several times at Children's Hospital during his semester break. Back at Notre Dame, Walton and other players wore buttons with Scott's picture. : : Students at Patrick Henry High School, where Scott was a freshman, wore specially designed blue and gold ribbons in his honor -- the blue representing strength and the gold representing childhood cancer. Both colors represent Notre Dame, of course. : : "Scott's story touched not only our football team but a lot of other people here at Notre Dame," Davie said. "You couldn't help but be impressed with his attitude, his perseverance and just the way he approached life. He was a special young man who made a big impression here." : : The family has scheduled a 7:30 p.m. vigil Friday at St. Therese church, 6016 Camino Rico in Del Cerro. A Mass is planned there at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, and the family is inviting the public to both. : : Next week, Delgadillo said there are plans to fly Scott's body to South Bend for a memorial service at Notre Dame. : : "Scott always said he was going back to Notre Dame," she said. "We wanted to grant that wish."

Optional Link URL:
Link Title:
Optional Image URL: