After my diagnosis and move to Edmonton, one of the first Edmontonians that I became friends with was Colin. I have mentioned him before. He was a tri-athlete, school teacher, magazine cover model, and all around good guy. We discovered that the best people to talk to about Cancer – were other Cancer patients…. As the discussion topics of locations where things got inserted etc – didn’t cause either us, or our wives, to bat an eye. We have only known each other in this unfiltered fashion.
Colin had posted a comment from an Adam Carolla podcast some time ago (over a year). The comment was that when a Cancer patient dies, the Cancer within them dies as well. So, the Cancer doesn’t truly win, the patient doesn’t lose, and the battle ends in a tie. Well, Colin forced Cancer to accept at tie this morning.
When I met Colin, he was like me, very positive that this was a fight worth fighting. He was a young tri-athelete. He was on the news for being a ref for the world record breaking longest hockey game. During this time, he was active in his chemo sessions and while skating, he was still receiving his chemo treatments from a fannypack style pouch around his waist. Cancer did not slow him down.
I have only known Colin through Cancer for about 2 years, it was my pleasure to be his friend. We even had a “small world story” together. His dad and I were in Afghanistan together… His dad worked in the visits office, and I was the stingy tightwad that wasn’t easily giving helicopter transports to the VIP trips that he was trying to arrange.
Please check out these links provided below to learn more about a young man leaving us too soon. He worked to make the world a better place.
Here is a link to a podcast where he was recently interviewed and tells the complete hysterical story about how he came to use ANIMO as his personal mantra. Colin’s portion starts at about the 26 minute mark if you want to fast forward.
Here is a link to the news bit, including video about the hockey game
Here he is as the cover model Leap magazine
Facebook
Facebook fan page
Facebook group
He will be missed. #animo
I will miss him.
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