On Saturday, Feb. 11, Central Bucks East will hold its Coaches vs. Cancer event from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. All proceeds will be donated to Team Morgan in memory of freshman Morgan Mysza, who lost her battle with cancer on Jan. 12, 2012.
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Morgan Mysza, according to Shannon Devlin, ‘stared cancer dead in the face’ and never stopped fighting. The Central Bucks East freshman lost her courageous battle with brain cancer on Jan. 12, 2012, but her fighting spirit is alive and well.
Mysza’s teammates on the Patriots’ basketball squad have battled and clawed their way to an SOL Continental Conference title, dedicating this year’s crown to their former teammate.
“Morgan wanted to be a Lady Patriot so badly,” Devlin said. “She actually made a comment to coach Lonergan in the fall when she saw him and said, ‘I’m not playing soccer this year. I’m saving all my energy for basketball.’
“I think that proves how bad she wanted it. When she made the team, I knew we were blessed because we were getting a fighter, someone who never gave up and someone who wanted to be there.”
On Saturday, the Central Bucks East community will celebrate its annual Coaches vs. Cancer day with a full slate of activities, including a special appearance by Temple coach Fran Dunphy (see complete schedule). The event, which is held in partnership with the Central Bucks Athletic Association, has been extended this year to run from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and all the proceeds raised will be donated to Team Morgan.
“In the past, all of the money that Coaches vs. Cancer raised has gone to the American Cancer Society, but this year – because it’s different and more personal – we decided to give all the money that we raise to Team Morgan, so that will go to her family,” said senior Elle Durkac, the student leader of this year’s event. “We wanted to do that because they’re part of our community.
“Morgan was a ninth grade student, and no one, especially a young kid, should be going through that, so we want to help give back to our community because she gave so much to everyone.”
This year’s goal, according to Durkac, is to exceed last year’s total of $55,000, and if the past is any indication, they will succeed in achieving that goal. The first Coaches vs. Cancer event was founded five years ago by four then junior girls who had played together on a CBAA travel basketball team, one of whom was Durkac’s older sister Nicole.
“They shared a unique bond as teammates and a common dream – to help fight cancer,” said Mike Reilly, their CBAA coach who continues to serve as an adult mentor to the committee.
That first year, the team raised $10,000, but that was just the beginning.
One year later, TJ Lonergan joined their team, and they raised $20,000. When that group went off to college, a brand new group of students took over the reins, and they raised $35,000, setting the stage for last year’s event that raised $55,000.
All told, in four years, the event has raised $120,000 that was donated to the American Cancer Society.
“We have a lot on our shoulders,” said senior Ryan O’Neil, a member of the boys’ basketball team who has been on the committee the past two years. “Every year we raise more money, and every year, we feel we have to raise that much, if not more.”
Several fundraisers have already taken place. The boys’ CB East/CB West game was designated as the Coaches vs. Cancer game and played to a full house. Special Team Morgan t-shirts were designed for both schools and sold the week before the game. They sold out so quickly that more had to be ordered.
“Our school bought white ones and West bought black ones,” O’Neil said. “Everyone was wearing them.
“I don’t know the number we sold but probably a thousand. Everyone is backing Team Morgan.”
O’Neil and Durkac both had the opportunity to meet Mysza, and although those encounters were brief, they were memorable.
Durkac met Mysza at a Coaches vs. Cancer banquet where she was the recipient of an award.
“That’s the only time I met her, but I haven’t heard anything but positive things,” Durkac said. “Just the fact that she was in ninth grade and battling through this has been an inspiration.”
O’Neil met Mysza at the Palestra when his committee was honored for last year’s Coaches vs. Cancer event.
“She just came off really, really nice,” O’Neil said. “She was obviously sick, but that didn’t phase her at all.”
Committee members pointed to the significant financial contribution of Johnson & Johnson, and a local philanthropist has agreed to match whatever is raised at Saturday’s event.
“This year feels a lot different,” Durkac said. “This year we’re giving back to our community.
“I feel like people around here take everything for granted. It’s a wealthy area. You see a little girl who’s battling brain cancer, and that puts things into perspective that not everything is perfect even though this seems to be a perfect community.”
“This year is different,” Reilly added. “It’s about a person. This year is about Team Morgan. Morgan Mysza has been the inspiration and will remain the inspiration for this group.
“Although she lost her battle to cancer in January, our team is committed to keeping Morgan’s spirit alive.”
All money raised will go to Team Morgan and a scholarship fund that is being established in Mysza’s name.
“Every year when we total the amount, I’m speechless,” Durkac said. “I have no idea how we do this. It feels amazing that I could help out with something like this.”
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Morgan Mysza was diagnosed with brain tumor when she was in third grade.
“They were monitoring it for a while,” said Devlin, Mysza’s neighbor and close friend. “They biopsied it in sixth grade because it was cancerous.
“She had three years of intravenous chemotherapy. It was tough, but you would never see her not smiling.”
And that smile, according to senior Lindsey Kelly, will not soon be forgotten.
“I loved that smile,” said Kelly. “When we first found out that she was really sick, we bought a basketball and wrote our names on it to give to her.
“Shannon and I went over to give her the basketball. She looked up at us and gave us the biggest smile, completely happy to see everyone like nothing was wrong. Just that smile – I’ll never forget that.”
Mysa’s impact on the Patriots’ season has been profound.
“It definitely made the season that much more important for us,” coach Tom Lonergan said.
Last Friday, the girls’ squad held its annual Coaches vs. Cancer game when the Patriots faced neighboring Central Bucks South. That night alone – which included raffle baskets, t-shirt sales, etc. – raised between $4,000 and $5,000.
“That was a big uplift,” Lonergan said. “I know the girls are looking forward to Saturday. They will be going from eight o’clock until four o’clock giving up their time, giving up their energy and also working with the younger kids and basically starting that tradition going forward.
“A lot of these seniors, juniors and sophomores remember when they were little kids coming to the camp, coming to games or coming to Coaches vs. Cancer. This group is really close, they get along well, and they’re excited about looking forward to what’s going to happen. There’s no question, it means a lot more to them than it did in the past.”
Mysza’s memory is evident not only in the Team Morgan shirts the players wear and in the #21 – Mysza’s number – they write on their hands and shoes but also every time the Patriots break their huddle.
“Every day in practice and at the start of the games, you always hear, ‘One, two, three, Morgan,’” Lonergan said. “They always have Morgan on their minds but in a positive way, trying to use the inspiration she provided to them.
“There’s no question, they seem to be playing a lot of inspired basketball right now.”
On Saturday, the entire Central Bucks East community will have a chance to give back in memory of a young athlete whose impact will not soon be forgotten.
“She was an inspiration,” senior Lexi Scrivano said. “She truly was. She smiled when she was on the court, and she fought 100 percent not matter what she did.”
That’s quite a legacy for someone as young as Morgan Mysza, whose short life touched an entire community.
What: Coaches vs. Cancer
When: Saturday, Feb. 11, 2011, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Where: Central Bucks East High School
The schedule for the day's activities is as follows:
All Day: Concession food, t-shirts, raffle tickets, silent auction, baked goods and fun!
8 am to noon: 3v3 Tournament for boys and girls third through eighth grades
Noon to 4 pm: CB East boys and girls basketball exhibition
Central Bucks East Teachers vs. Seniors game
Special appearance by Temple Coach Fran Dunphy, Kutz Jump Ropers, Fox Chase Cancer Research, Musical entertainment by students
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