I Was Picked

by Howard Shapiro

  “I was intrigued by the questions John was asking,” said Scott. “And I will admit I was surprised that [Alex] took his lunch to work. These stars are no different than the average Joe, I learned.

  They play baseball for their job like I go to work.”

  When they had walked into the penthouse, there was no one outside. By the time they left, the paparazzi had arrived. A story had broken recently that Alex was having an affair with Madonna. “If you could imagine what you hear on TV about cameramen getting beat up or getting their cameras smashed, I can see why,” said Scott. “They were ignorant, very pushy, and they don’t care what they say and who’s around when they say it. John was trying to get to the car, and this one photographer was kind of pushing John to get close. One of Alex’s bodyguards cleared the way for John. I had to get in the back of the car . . . and John sat in the front with Alex while he drove to Yankee Stadium. As we drove through Harlem, Alex told John how he would gear up and get ready for games on the way to the stadium.”

  Things calmed down as they arrived at the old Yankee Stadium. On the way, Scott had talked about how John needed a bit of a break. They drove in through a back entrance to get to the locker room. John was tired, so Yankees manager Joe Girardi told him to lie down on the big leather couch in his office. John fell asleep in two minutes. What they didn’t know was that this was where Joe Girardi did his pregame show, on the couch and the chair in his office. Joe didn’t want to wake up John, though, so Joe worked around him. John slept through the whole show.

  “I thanked God John didn’t start to snore, because he was only about three feet from the microphone,” Scott recalled with a chuckle. “Joe was great to John. He has kids, and I think it touched home with him.”

  About an hour later they went onto the field, and out of the blue Scott received a call from Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona. He wanted to bring John to Fenway Park. John was starting to get weak, though, and Scott knew it was time to start settling down.

  When they walked onto the field, “John Challis” was all over the Jumbotron. That excited him.

  Dan O’Leary was one of John’s baseball coaches and had made arrangements to get John the tickets for the game. Dan and his son also had tickets to the game and met them there. When they got to the stadium, Scott asked Jason if he could get field passes for them as a favor for getting John the tickets. I called Dan on his phone and told him to go to a different entrance. He had no idea he was going to be on the field of the New York Yankees. Dan was the biggest A-Rod fan, and John knew it. John got Alex to meet Dan. “Dan looked like a little boy at Christmas. John was big on that; you always take care of the people who took care of you,” said Scott.

  A-Rod spent most of the batting practice with John, where John met all kinds of people. John was later in two press conferences on the field. “He handled himself with class,” Scott said. “I was so proud of him.”

  Scott recalled, “One reporter said to John, ‘The Yankees really laid it out for you. What do you think of the Yankees now?’ John answered, ‘The Yankees are a class act, but I’m still a Pirates fan.’ Never ask John Challis a question unless you can handle the answer!”

  There were more surprises in store and people to meet. On the way to the stadium, John had told someone he liked to eat wings, thinking nothing of it. But as they made their way to what they thought were their seats, Jason informed them they were actually going up to George Steinbrenner’s box, where John would be more comfortable. There in the box was a layout of wings that could feed an army. It was all about John that day.

  “The Yankees were great. I have been proud to call Jason Zillo my friend ever since,” said Scott.

  Halfway through the game, Scott was outside with Dan when the bartender came outside to tell them that former mayor Rudy Giuliani had come up to meet John. “I thought he was great ever since 9/11 and I wanted to meet him,” said Scott. He and Dan went back in time to see the door close behind John. “I asked John, ‘Why didn’t you come get me?’ And he said, ‘He’s here to see me, Dad.’ I just smiled.”

  His doctors had advised them against going to New York, but it turned out to be a wonderful trip. As John told New York Daily News sportswriter Anthony McCarron, “It was an amazing day. That’s the only thing I can say. It’s everything plus more.”

  Alex Rodriguez concurred. “We had a good time. The funny thing is, he really thinks he’s getting the best part of this, but I’m getting the treat, the blessing to be around him. It just reminds you of how blessed we are. He’s so special. He has such a great attitude; it’s a time I’ll never forget. I told him he’s going to be a future Yankee or another Michael Kay. He’s got great announcing potential, very witty.”

  Scott summed the whole experience up: “In the days after John’s trip to New York, there was a lot of bad press coming out about A-Rod and what his intentions were when he met John earlier in the month. Was it a smoke screen to cover up the news about the Madonna affair, or was A-Rod being sincere? John didn’t care if it was or not. Alex was a good guy.

  “It was the last week of July . . . out of the clear blue sky, John received a phone call from Alex Rodriguez. There were no TV cameras, no media—it was just two guys having a conversation. Five to ten minutes into the call, John’s good friend Adam Rose showed up to see John. John told Alex Rodriguez that he had to go now, that his buddy was there.

  “A few years later my friend Bill Allmann, who was a reporter for the [Beaver County] Times, got a chance to interview A-Rod. I had told Bill about the time John told A-Rod he had to hang up, that his friend was there. Bill asked A-Rod about that time, and whether that had ever happened to him before. A-Rod said that no, John was the first. That’s what made John so special.”

  By August 2008 John’s condition had worsened, but he had one more thing to do: go to the Steelers training camp. Scott’s boss let him take the company van up to Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, where they trained. He set up a bed for John in the back of the van, complete with an air mattress and sleeping bags. “He was in his glory as he slept the whole way up. I wanted him to stay home that day, but there was nothing keeping him home,” said Scott. “I guess he just felt that he wasn’t going to let cancer get the best of him.”

  The Steelers were always very nice to John. By this point John had trouble getting around, so they had a golf cart pick him up in the parking lot. After practice, he met former Steelers legend Joe Greene, as well as Mike Tomlin and Charlie Batch. Charlie had gone to Freedom High School when the Steelers played the faculty in a benefit basketball game. After Ben Roethlisberger signed autographs in the crowd, he came over, and he and Santonio Holmes jumped in the golf cart with John, Scott, and the driver. They dropped Santonio off at the locker room, but Ben spent a little more time with John. He still remembered the time when John, Lexie, Gina, and Scott had met him in Mario’s box during the Stanley Cup playoffs. He looked at Scott a few times as if to say he knew it wouldn’t be long.

  John told him not to take anything for granted, alluding to his motorcycle wreck in 2006. “As we were leaving I went on the other side of the golf cart to shake Ben’s hand, and Ben wrapped his arm around me and whispered, ‘Take it easy,’ ” Scott recalled. “He also said, ‘You have a good kid and he’s very smart,’ and that I should be very proud of him. Hearing that from him made me feel good. I know he meets hundreds of people every day, but he knew John’s story. He never hurried him off, and he always had time for John.”

  On the ride home, Scott drove by the Olive Garden on Route 30, but John made him turn around to stop at the restaurant. It was their tradition after Steelers camp. “I want to do it,” John said. He knew he would never be back.

  PART 11

  IT WON’T BE LONG: JOHN’S FINAL ACT

  May 2008 was a busy month for John. As prom night approached, John (who loved to dress up) and his best friends Michael Tibolet and Dallas Betz decided to take their dates by limo to the dance. While the three couples
waited for the limo to arrive, John received a call from former Pittsburgh Steelers fullback Merril Hoge. He wanted to know if John and Scott were interested in playing golf at his benefit outing. John didn’t know who Merril was—he had played for the Steelers a few years before John was born—and ultimately declined the invitation; he had a chemo treatment set for the same day. He wanted Scott and Gina to change his appointment because he thought it would be cool to play golf with all those celebrities, but the treatment could not be moved.

  They must have talked for a good ten minutes, and from what Scott said, it was like they had known each other for years. Among other things, Scott overheard John tell Merril that he was on his way to the prom, and how sexy he looked. Scott also remembered that their neighbor, Dick Beitsch, came over as John was getting off the phone. He asked John, “Who are you talking to now?” John said it was Merril Hoge, and Dick remarked, “Who?” It seemed like they were longtime friends. Dick just shook his head and laughed.

  Meanwhile, a Japanese film crew that had flown in from New York wanted to do a story on John, to air only in Japan. They followed around behind John and his date, Lauren Szpak. John noticed how much of a nuisance they were becoming, getting in everyone’s way and shining their lights. John finally said to them, “You have enough film,” and politely asked them to leave. They didn’t like it, but they left.

  The Marriott where the prom was held prepared a room for John in case he did not feel well, just like they had the year before. This year, though, he had to use the room for an hour.

  At the after-prom picnic, John and his friends went to the Pittsburgh Zoo and to a Pirates game at PNC Park. When John came home, he was excited that the president of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Frank Coonelly, had taken time to come to his seat and speak with him.

  Even in the middle of the media frenzy, John continued to get his treatments. On May 19, John had his second TheraSphere treatment. This was a new type of treatment, in which millions of microscopic glass beads (the beads came from Canada) were embedded with the radioactive element Yttrium-90 and pumped directly into the artery that feeds cancerous liver tumors like John’s.

  This second treatment went to the other side of his liver tumor. He also was continuing to take Nexavar to treat his lung cancer. Unfortunately, as John told his friend Adam Rose a few days after the second TheraSphere treatment, the liver tumor was not shrinking.

  “He called me and he was really angry,” recalled Adam. “He said that the doctors were hoping that the beads would shrink the tumor, but that it wasn’t working. He then went on to say that he was not going to lose this one. I have to say that that was the only time when I talked to him that he let loose.”

  As Freedom’s graduation day, June 5, neared, John stopped in Dan Lentz’s office to talk to him about the graduation ceremony, and as Dan recalled, John wanted to make sure everything was set up in advance, his way. John said, “Do you remember . . . I made a promise to you that I was going to graduate, and I did it. So when I walk across that stage, I want you to be the one who hands me my diploma.”

  Dan told John that his job was to read the names of the graduates and that the superintendent handed out the diplomas. But John didn’t care; he wanted Dan to hand him the diploma. Dan promised to talk to the superintendent.

  “The night of Johnny’s graduation was unlike any before. . . . It was surreal,” Dan said. Every TV station in Pittsburgh was there, along with at least three newspaper reporters and even a Japanese TV station.

  Typically the number of people attending a Freedom Area High School graduation fit in the main set of bleachers at the football stadium with no problem. That night the bleachers were overflowing. Every step John took seemed to be recorded. Graduation began as usual, with various speeches. Then came the time to announce all the graduates, alphabetically, of course. Dan remembered, “When I got to Johnny’s name, I was supposed to read, ‘John Scott Challis Jr.’ I got ‘John’ out. The rest was pretty broken. Numerous people told me later that they were fine emotionally until they heard my voice crack.”

  Once he called John’s name, Dan received the diploma from the superintendent and handed it to John. At graduation practice, they had worked with the graduates to accept the diploma with their left hand while shaking hands with their right as they posed for the photographer. “Johnny and I got the handshake down okay, but we didn’t practice the bear hug that followed,” said Dan. “For a good thirty seconds, a 95-pound eighteen-year-old kid dying of cancer held up a six-foot-eight assistant principal who was more than a little emotional right then.”

  Gina recalled that, with John’s health and the media frenzy, graduation was an emotional time for her and the entire family. As she remembered, “I was so happy for John and proud of him, but at the same time scared because I knew what was ahead for us all. There were so many eyes on us, people watching what we said, what we did, and how we handled everything.”

  The family threw a graduation party for John the next day, and Gina made sure it was a celebration that John, family, and friends would never forget. “When you walked in the hall I wanted it to be a happy time,” said Gina.

  There were balloons and candy and nuts—everything in red and white for John’s school colors. Light music played in the background. Pictures of John were everywhere. “It was a very hot day and we had a lounge chair there for John,” Gina remembered. “He just hung out, and people would come down and sit with him. He was very relaxed.”

  Lexie got John a special graduation gift as well: an iPod dock that she bought with her own money. “I just remember the biggest hug he gave me,” said Lexie. “I can still feel his hands around me, and that’s something I will never forget.”

  After the Fourth of July, John’s health started to really deteriorate. The cancer was spreading and, sadly, was winning the battle. Still, there were times when John was just John. He had a notebook which he used to diagram what he planted in his garden as well as keep a list of phone numbers and email addresses. In this notebook he wrote the following:

  I John Challis Jr. give my parents Scott and Gina Challis permission in the event of my death to donate my organs and or tissue to someone who can benefit from them. As long as I would still look normal at my funeral and would still look proper in an open casket setting. I have given this issue much thought and if I’m dead and have no chance of resuscitation of my life, I can’t use them so I figure, give them to someone who can benefit from them. At least someone will benefit from my passing. Please see to it that it gets carried out.

  With thought,

  John Scott Challis Jr.

  My father and mother, Scott and Gina Challis have witnessed the signing of this document in the event of my passing. They have the right to make my medical decision to medical personnel.

  The thing was, neither Scott nor Gina knew anything about this. John had taken it upon himself to write it and make his feelings known about donating his organs and tissue “to someone who can benefit from them.”

  Lexie, too, did some writing. She penned the following note to John:

  Dear Johnny,

  So this week has been an emotional one for me. Not knowing why I am the one complaining when you’re the one who has to fight such a hard battle every day. You still manage to wiggle your way out of bed even though you know you have a tumor growing inside of you. You get letters each day saying how much of an inspiration you are to all kinds of people from all over the world. You probably weren’t expecting a letter from someone who sleeps across the hall from you. John, I remember the day I found out you had cancer like it was yesterday. I was at Aunt Jodos and I wasn’t too sure what was going on all that day with you. So, I wrote you a letter with some pen and paper that just explained how sorry I am for all the mean stuff I said to you over the years. Well John, over the past two years, days just haven’t passed, a new journey has begun. You’ve become a true hero to our town, our state and others across the world. I know there are so many questions that
are unanswered and that you just grew to live with the fact that we don’t have some of the answers. In this letter I just really wanted to share my feelings with you. Over this time I feel your sickness brought us somewhat closer together. I try my best to deal with your sickness. Although, sometimes I don’t know how to handle my anger, stress and confusion and may take it out on you. And I am truly sorry for that. We have all said some mean things in our life that we feel is right at the time, but now do regret. I just want to let you know I love you very much and that you change my whole outlook on life. You made me look at things on a totally different perspective on life. I don’t want you think as this letter as me telling you goodbye. I want you just to read this letter, and just know how I feel about you, my brother. I want you to realize when it is time for you to go, whenever that is. If it is in a week, or twenty-five years, I just want you to feel it as a new beginning for you, a new beginning to a better place. I want you not to be scared. Don’t be scared about mom not handling it well or dad eating his feelings away. I’ll be there to take care of them; will get through it as a family together. Johnny, I love you so much. I truly believe this battle isn’t over yet. I believe it’s another obstacle that we’re going to have to fight through. John, I know you are not giving up. Everyone knows that. Just stay strong John, and keep believing.

  Love your sister,

  Sheepdawg

  Lexie was on John’s mind too during this time. He expressed this in a phone conversation with Lena Holewski in late July. She shared the gist of that conversation with me.

  “Lexie, to this day, thinks that John hated her. John never had hate for anyone. Especially Lexie. Of course they shared the brother-sister love-hate relationship . . . but anyone knows that siblings are supposed to share that. By far not John’s case. . . . We used to talk about death,” Lena said. “He always told me he was never afraid. Except once he finally told me he was not afraid, but he was not ready. He wanted to watch Lexie grow into a young woman, graduate from high school, go off to college, and meet a very special man that would take care of her so that one day he could watch her walk down the aisle. He wanted to one day be an uncle to her children and share his story and keep the positivity in the family. He told me that it was something he never shared with anyone. But it was the one thing that made him believe he wasn’t ready. He knew that if he passed away before all that happened, that of course he would be there. But being there spiritually wasn’t enough for him.”