HAZELWOOD, Mo. – A video of the varsity boys’ basketball team at Hazelwood East has gone viral and it’s not for their skills on the court.
The team gave a dozen roses to two moms battling cancer before their game on Dec. 11.
Jordan Gilmore is a sophomore, and his mother has been diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer. Darrian McBride is senior, and his mother fighting colon cancer for the second time.
“She [doesn’t] let it get her down,” McBride said. “She’s a real happy person.”
Hazelwood East Varsity coach, Lawndale Thomas, understands the challenges his players face with a family illness.
“I lost my mother when I was in high school. I was 15 years old, a month before my 16th birthday, and my mother passed from breast cancer,” he said. “Yes, I’ve been in their shoes.”
With that experience, Coach Thomas decided to share his story with his team, and plan the surprise for the two team mothers. He bought two dozen roses, and gave every player two flowers to deliver to the two moms in the bleachers as a surprise.
“Both of those mothers are very caring and loving, and I wanted them to feel special,” Thomas said.
“She was surprised, she was happy too,” McBride said about his mother’s reaction. “She was real happy to see everybody come up to her with a rose and hug on them.”
Thomas considers the surprise a teaching moment for his team, and a show of support for McBride and Gilmore.
“Coaching… it’s bigger than basketball,” he said. “This is life, teaching these young men how to be affectionate, to show some caring, affection, compassion, and some love.”
Robert Mcbride shared this video on Facebook.
