The mail must go through...

This afternoon I wrote a letter to the football coach of the University of Pittsburgh thanking him for signing a football for me at the beginning of the year. Then later tonight, Pitt knocked off # 10 South Florida in a great game. The win made the letter all the more appropriate. So, I thought I'd share it with you:



Coach Wannstedt,

In January of this year at the request of a friend of mine and fellow Pitt alum, you autographed a football for me in support of my battle with cancer:

"To Shawn,
Always keep the Faith
Dave Wannstedt
Hail to Pitt"

Well, I never lost that faith and after months of chemotherapy and a couple of surgeries, my cancer is now in remission. I just wanted to send you a quick note to say thank you and tell you how much your message has meant to me. The football rests firmly on top of my television stand as a constant reminder that anything is possible.

I know this football season did not start out as planned, but unlike some of my friends, I have not lost that faith. I calmly tell them that my year started off pretty bleak, too, and look what happened. Things can always change for the better.

I am still undergoing chemotherapy to make sure the cancer doesn't come back, so I am not able to make the trip from Washington, D.C. for all of Pitt's games, as I have done for the past seven seasons. I get to the games when I can and I am glued to the TV when I cannot.

Keep up the good work! I know you’ll make me and the University of Pittsburgh proud. Thanks again…

P.S. When you see Dan Cafaro on the practice field, tell him that he has a fellow cancer survivor in the stands rooting for him.