Tim Campbell is the athletic director at Wadsworth High School, WHS, and a father to three boys. In December, he took his oldest son, Colin Campbell, age 13, to the doctor for a sore throat, only to find out he has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia or ALL.
“We took him to the doctor for strep throat. The diagnosis was obviously a massive shock as we thought it was a simple doctor visit,” Tim Campbell said. “We take things one day at a time and deal with every twist and turn as it comes.”
Tim Campbell started posting ‘vlogs’ to social media on his new profile ‘CoachCampbell41.’ He started by sharing how strong his son is and how hard it is to go into the new year with these ups and downs.
Since Colin was a young boy, he has always loved playing different sports. Lately, he has been resting his body, however, his mind will never rest. He is always thinking of ways to get better so he can come back stronger than ever before.
“Colin is an active kid, loves contact sports and competing with his buddies,” Tim Campbell said. “He plays football, wrestling and lacrosse.”
After the immediate shock, the news got out into the community. Everyone wanted to help as much as possible. The community decided to start selling t-shirts to help awareness of ALL and to help the Campbell’s faith.
The Wadsworth Grizzlies Football posted on Facebook a link to buy “Colin’s Crew” merch, and all the proceeds went to the Campbell family.
Colin did not know at the time, but this small gesture would allow him to continue being treated and help him stay strong.
“The hardest part has been losing out on athletics and being around friends, and the overnight hospital stays,” Colin Campbell said.
He has had many surgical procedures over the weeks but nonetheless, his mentality has been so energetic and positive, never letting his condition get under his skin and keep him from being himself.
Friends and family are going out of their way to help support Colin the best they can. Others donate, some finding creative, fun ways to bring joy to their eyes, like wearing “Colin’s Crew” shirts for everyone to see. Friends even shaved their heads for Colin and Tim, and others have changed their social profile picture to Colin’s camo Grizzly paw.
Tim worked as a strength coach for Akron’s basketball team. He was close with many different coaches, and at one of Akron’s games, two coaches played against each other. To show their support for Tim and his family, the coaches came together, and both wore Colin’s Crew t-shirts, saying that this is more important than a basketball game.
The GoFundMe page has been drastically increasing in just a couple of weeks. The goal was to reach 15k, and the community has helped greatly, raising over 16k so far. A donation of any amount will help so much, allowing Colin Campbell and his family to comfortably get through this tough time.
“It’s a long battle and a long journey,” Colin Campbell said.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-colin-campbells-fight-against-leukemia
