Gulfport students rally in support of Nick Myers after leukemia diagnosis

If people truly are judged by the company they keep, Nick Myers couldn't have associated himself with a more special group. It seems character attracts character.

Or as Jen Myers puts it when talking about her son's friends: "We knew (Nick) hung around with a great group of kids, but until all this happened we never realized how caring and sensitive they were. They came forward in a big way."

On March 20, Myers was a typical teenager, a well-liked, outgoing and athletic sophomore among more than 1,500 students at Gulfport (Miss.). A day later, Myers became the rallying point for an already tight-knit high school community when he was diagnosed with leukemia.

In the span of 24 hours, Myers went from being a member of the Class 6A state runner-up soccer team to the namesake for a much larger and inspired contingent: Team Nick Myers.

“It made me feel loved," Nick said Tuesday. "You get this diagnosis and right away you think it’s the end of the world. You know your family will be there for you, but I never expected a lot of people I didn’t really know to come forward and help.

“You can’t really explain it, you just have to experience it. It was really eye-opening. It was amazing how the community could come together in such a short time.”

Every team needs a captain, and Team Nick Myers took its charge from senior Colton Caver. Caver, a standout on the Gulfport baseball team, spearheaded a fundraising effort that exceeded all expectations. Let's just say Caver turned in a stellar senior season (.370 average, four home runs, 28 RBIs) on and off the field.

Team Nick Myers immediately became more than a cause. It quickly grew into a social media movement complete with its own Twitter hash tag: #TeamNickMyers. Seemingly every week brought a new fundraiser.

"We decided to raise a little money for the family to help them out, but we didn't think it would be this big," said Caver, also crediting soccer teammates Gavin Helton, Hunter Myrick and classmate Austin Watts for their assistance. "It was easy because everybody wanted to do it for Nick because of the type of person he is."

Local restaurants and businesses also did their part, while the baseball team held a fish fry and the community participated in a kickball tournament that will become an annual event. At each stop orange Team Nick Myers T-shirts and rubber wristbands were sold, the color for leukemia awareness.

To date, nearly $30,000 has been raised, with $12,000 coming from the wristbands alone. Overall, more than 1,000 wristbands, inscribed with Luke 1:37, and almost 800 T-shirts have been sold to help spread the message.

What makes the story even more heartwarming? One might think because of Caver's exhaustive efforts that he and Nick were best buddies. In truth, they were mere friendly acquaintances, exchanging greetings in the hallway or at sporting events. Jen said she had never met Caver before Nick's diagnosis.

Still, for Caver, getting involved was never a question, even as he tried to pursue his own dreams this spring of securing a Division I baseball scholarship.

"(Nick's) a good guy who always puts a smile on your face; I've never seen him in a bad mood," said Caver, 18. "We are a very spirited school, and we take care of our own at Gulfport, especially the athletes."

Since enduring his first chemotherapy treatment on March 22, a day after he was diagnosed, Nick's life obviously has changed dramatically.

A lot of the past four months has been spent at Children's Hospital in New Orleans, an 80-mile trip from the Myers home. Nick recently finished his third phase of chemo in a treatment process for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (type B) that will take about three years to complete.

Of course, there will be no more contact sports for Nick, who will live with a port in his chest for the next three years to facilitate his chemo treatments. Even though he was the starting goalkeeper this past season, Nick is philosophical about his soccer career coming to a premature end.

"I knew I would have to quit eventually," he said, explaining he might not have played in college or beyond. "It might as well be now because of this. It's not something that is the end of the world."

Nick admittedly was more than a little drained Tuesday after he experienced a recent setback. For the past two-plus weeks he was hospitalized after coming down with a strep infection while on vacation with his family in Florida. Through it all his outlook has never changed, though.

"This has been a crazy ride. When he was first diagnosed, he never got the 'Why Me?' attitude," Jen said. "His spirits have been very good through all of this. We are all taking our cue from him."

Nick continues to live as normal a life as possible, and through the early part of this ordeal he was able to experience a teenage rite of passage. He turned 16 on April 18, but had to wait to until late May to get his driver's license because of treatments.

Nick's spiritual and family life, which includes his father, Dave, and brother, Logan, also have never been stronger. Jen said Nick and the 21-year-old Logan, who lives at home while attending the University of Southern Mississippi, have drawn much closer.

However, when Gulfport students return to school in the fall, Nick will not be among them. He will be home-schooled at least until the winter, or until he is healthy enough to attend.

For Caver, he will be off to Jones County Junior College in Ellisville, Miss., to play baseball and get a start on his accounting degree. Although he is leaving Gulfport, the experience of this past spring will be with him for a long time.

"I learned that we all take stuff for granted, like playing the sports you love," Caver said. "Then all of a sudden, it's taken away from you. It's kind of scary."

The Myers family also is focused on the bigger picture. There are plans to start a foundation with the Team Nick Myers funds at some point (which will be subsidized by proceeds from the yearly kickball tournament), and Jen said more than 100 people have attended local bone marrow and blood drives in support.

Those are efforts that perhaps could make a difference in someone else's life. Unfortunately, Nick is not a candidate for a bone marrow transplant.

"We appreciate all the outpouring in support of Nick, but we know now this is so much bigger than him," Jen said. "There is a lot of good that can come from this overall."

Nick, who said his constant hospital visits make him feel old, sounded wise beyond his years when expressing a final thought.

"There are people out there who will read this who have a disease or know someone who does, and I want them to know there is always a brighter side," he said. "No matter how bad a day you are having, how bad you feel or how tough things get, there is someone else out there in the same situation who knows what you are going through.

"There are people who are there for you. There is always light at the end of the tunnel."