Sept. 24, 2009
PHOTO GALLERY
Bronx, N.Y. - September 19th was a special night for 14-year-old Meaghan Tully. For that was the night the Pearl River High School freshman got to see her very first college football game in person. It was also the night that she officially met her adopted team, the Fordham University cheerleaders.
Two years ago, Meaghan and her parents weren't sure if she would get to see her next birthday, much less her first college football game. At the age of 12, Meaghan was diagnosed with germinoma brain cancer. She underwent a biopsy which was followed by chemo and radiation therapy in Boston. The chemotherapy treatments lasted two to three hours and caused her to be nauseated and lose her hair.
"People ask me all the time about how I felt during the treatments and I really don't remember much," said Meaghan. "I only really remember being sick a lot and laying on the floor when I was sick since it felt better than being in bed."
Once Meaghan was finished with the treatments she returned to Pearl River but had difficulty getting back to a "normal" life. She had challenges at school since she missed all of fifth grade due to the treatments and was very self-conscious about her hair loss. Luckily, the treatments seemed to have worked and now she is doing fine.
During her recuperation, Meaghan contacted the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, a 501(c)(3), non-profit, charitable organization that improves the quality of life for children suffering with pediatric brain tumors and their families. FOJ is all about love, support, and friendship. FOJ matches a child with a college or high school sports team based on geographic location. Once the team and child have been matched, there is a ceremonial adoption. The child is surrounded by 20 or 30 new friends that rally around him or her. A deep bond is formed between the child, the child's family and the sports team. The relationship is a priceless gift. The gift is in the relationship; a child is gaining a loving support network and the team is gaining an insight into the value of life and the power of love. The result of this connection is mutual respect, support, friendship and love.
Last summer, Fordham's head cheerleading coach, Jennifer McCarthy, contacted the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation about adopting someone who is interested in cheerleading. The timing was perfect as the foundation had Meaghan's request to be paired with a cheerleading team and the wheels were set in motion. It turns out that she is the first child from Friends of Jaclyn to be adopted by a cheerleading team.
Members of the team reached out to Meaghan and friended her on her Facebook page. Arrangements were made for Meaghan and her family to join the team at the football home opener on September 19th where she was joined by Angela and Danny Lam from the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation. The Lams' daughter, Devon, was adopted by the Temple women's lacrosse team in February of 2008. Unfortunately, she succumbed to the disease in December of 2008.
"We love coming to these events and seeing the joy on the faces of the kids" said Danny Lam. "But it's just as much for my wife and I. When we lost Devon we could have easily just given up and gotten angry. But we decided to channel our energy into the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation and help ourselves by helping others."
Even though Fordham lost the game to Columbia, one young Ram fan left the contest with a lot of memories, not to mention a bunch of new friends.
"I'm having a great time," said Meaghan during the game. "The women on the team are like big sisters to me and I always wanted a big sister. We keep in touch all the time on Facebook. They help me with some of the problems I have and are just great friends."
"Our involvement with FOJ and the adoption of Meaghan on Saturday was an unforgettable experience," said McCarthy. "The girls have each formed unique relationships with Meaghan and know that they have been given the opportunity to make a difference for one special girl. We are truly honored to be the first cheerleading team to partake in the foundation and can't wait to see Meaghan again."
More information on Meaghan can be found on her Caringbridge page at www.caringbridge.org/visti/meaghantully/mystory.
More information on Friends of Jaclyn can be found on their website at www.friendsofjaclyn.org. A video of HBO's Real Sports feature on Friends of Jaclyn can be found here.
