Batavia High School to raise funds in memory of alum
The varsity football rivalry between Batavia and Geneva high schools will serve as the backdrop for a fundraiser Friday at Bulldog Stadium honoring a former student who recently died of cancer.
Family, friends and fans of both high school teams will be sporting specially designed black T-shirts remembering Jay Burger, a 2010 Batavia High School graduate who died in June at age 24 after a 21-month battle with Ewing's Sarcoma - a rare bone cancer affecting children and adolescents.
As many as 9,000 people are expected at Friday's game. Proceeds from T-shirt sales, a raffle, and donations will benefit Jay's Hope, an Advocate Charitable Foundation fund that offers support and grants to college students and recent graduates undergoing cancer treatment. The fund has received more than $30,000 in donations since Burger's passing.
"In his two-year battle, the entire community really rallied around him, specifically the Batavia High School football, basketball and baseball teams," said Burger's mother, Kelly Jo Golson of Batavia, senior vice president and chief marketing officer for Advocate Health Care. "I know that Jay would be very touched."
Burger usually was front and center at all the high school games, even after graduating, supporting his younger brother Luke, a senior and defensive back on the Bulldogs football team. He was an avid leader of the student fan group.
"Every game I get pretty emotional just because of how much I enjoyed looking up and being able to see him in the stands," said Luke, 17. "He was always there watching the team no matter what. He wasn't only a big brother figure to me, but to a lot of my friends. The emotions will definitely be there for everyone because it's a big night."
Burger was diagnosed with cancer six weeks before graduating from the University of Iowa with a marketing degree. He just started a job in marketing for the Chicago Bulls, but intensive treatment to combat the disease made it difficult for him to continue working.
"Despite undergoing grueling treatment, there were many times we would literally leave the hospital after chemo and he would go straight to the football stands just to support Luke," Golson said.
Burger was "a happy, fun, outgoing kid" who loved athletics, said Dennis Piron, Batavia High School head football coach and math teacher.
"Our goal is to sell 1,000 T-shirts, and we'd like to raise $5,000," Piron said. "I'm glad that the game that we play can serve something extremely important. Our kids are really honored to be part of it. Jay touched the lives of so many people around him. No doubt, his strength will be felt in Bulldog Stadium on Friday night."