[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 45 (Monday, March 16, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H3404-H3408]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  JOHN SCOTT CHALLIS, JR. POST OFFICE

  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 987) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 601 8th Street in Freedom, Pennsylvania, as the 
``John Scott Challis, Jr. Post Office''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 987

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. JOHN SCOTT CHALLIS, JR. POST OFFICE.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 601 8th Street in Freedom, Pennsylvania, 
     shall be known and designated as the ``John Scott Challis, 
     Jr. Post Office''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``John Scott Challis, Jr. Post Office''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. Lynch) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Massachusetts.


                             General Leave

  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Massachusetts?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. LYNCH. I now yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support for the consideration of 
H.R. 987, a bill to designate the United States postal facility located 
at 601 8th Street in Freedom, Pennsylvania, as the John Scott Challis, 
Jr. Post Office.
  Introduced by Representative Jason Altmire on February 11, 2009, and 
reported out of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee on March 
10, 2009, by a voice vote, H.R. 987 enjoys the support of the entire 
Pennsylvania House delegation.
  As recently noted in the Ellwood City Ledger, John Scott Challis, 
Jr., ``came into this world fighting.'' Only 2 days after his birth on 
December 16, 1989, John was helicoptered from The Medical Center in 
Beaver County to Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh, where he spent 16 
days in hospital care and received lifesaving surgery.
  As his beloved family and friends in Beaver County, and as many of us 
across the Nation well know, John never stopped fighting throughout his 
young life, even after being diagnosed with hepatocellular carcinoma, 
an adult form of liver cancer, at the age of 16. John's response to his 
initial diagnosis was indicative of his eternal determination and 
resolve, as well as a reflection of his own personal motto of ``courage 
and believe equals life.''
  In April of 2008, John learned that his cancer had spread and that, 
most likely, he had only a few months to live. Nevertheless, John never 
ceased to live his life to the fullest and do what he loved most, which 
was spending time with his family and friends and playing and following 
the game of baseball.
  On April 14, 2008, John first received national attention when he was 
able to pinch-hit for his beloved Freedom High School baseball team in 
a game against Aliquippa High. John cracked the first-pitch fastball 
into the outfield for an RBI single, and upon making it to first base 
proudly exclaimed to everyone, ``I did it, I did it.''
  The following month, John graduated with his senior class. And in 
June of last year, John was able to take a family vacation with his 
devoted parents, Scott and Gina, and his younger sister, Lexie. He also 
visited the Pittsburgh Pirates Clubhouse and reminded the players to 
cherish the game of baseball and, of course, to cherish life.
  Regrettably, John lost his battle with cancer in August of 2008. 
However, his memory and inspirational message will never be forgotten. 
In John's honor, the John Challis Courage For Life Foundation was 
established in 2008. The organization is dedicated to providing sports 
opportunities to student athletes with life-threatening illnesses.

[[Page H3405]]

  Mr. Speaker, it is my hope that we can further serve to honor John's 
life through the passage of this legislation before us. I urge my 
colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 987.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ISSA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of designating the facility of 
the United States Postal Service at 601 8th Street in Freedom, 
Pennsylvania, the John Scott Challis, Jr., Post Office.
  And I particularly agree with the gentleman from Massachusetts and 
share his belief that courage plus believe equals life. This simple but 
profound equation is more than an inspirational quote. It's a testament 
to the character and the life of its creator, John Challis. Born in 
Beaver County, Pennsylvania, John's life was too short, but not without 
meaning.
  Mr. Speaker, often we name post offices after individuals who have 
lived a long and significant life, sometimes former Members of 
Congress, Presidents and the like. Today we are naming after someone 
whose life was cut off altogether too soon. In fact, after only 18 
years, it is unusual that we would name a post office after somebody, 
but John went that extra mile to inspire America, reaching national 
prominence because, in fact, he would not quit, defying the odds by 
standing on a baseball field when most would be too weak to get out of 
bed and making the decision that he was going to live his every dream 
as best he could.
  John did that, and his life will be an inspiration for as long as 
that plaque shall be at the post office. Today we honor that.
  Mr. Speaker, I have been up here for many, many postal namings, and 
once in a while I get comments from back home saying ``why do you spend 
so much time naming post offices?'' And I guess the short answer is, 
Mr. Speaker, because we can.
  But also, the longer answer is because we have so many examples of 
people like John Challis who, in fact, exemplify all that is good in 
America. All that gives us hope for the future, all that, in fact, 
allows us every day to know that through these troubled times, these 
economic problems, the recession that's before America today, that 
there are people who get up every morning, no matter how hard it is, 
and they do the best they can with the time that God gives them and 
with the power that they have.
  John was, in every sense, a survivor, and he is survived by his 
parents and a younger sister who live on in his memory and who, in 
fact, will, for the time that this post office is in their town, 
realize that inspirations are important to America, particularly in 
difficult times.
  So I join with the majority today asking that this unusual naming of 
a post office be passed because John's life was so special to America, 
and because, at a time like this, inspiration is important to all.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, before closing, I would like to mention that 
the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Altmire) who is the chief sponsor, 
the lead sponsor of the bill under consideration, has informed me that 
he is en route. He has informed us that he regrets not being able to be 
here for this afternoon's discussion but has asked that his support for 
the bill and the Challis family be known.
  In closing, I urge my colleagues to join myself, Representative 
Altmire and the gentleman from California in supporting H.R. 987.
  Mr. ALTMIRE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill to 
rename the Freedom Post Office honor of John Scott Challis, Jr.
  John Challis inspired all of us with his determination to live every 
single day to the fullest. On June 23, 2006, John was diagnosed with 
liver cancer. He was only 16 and had just completed sophomore year at 
Freedom High School.
  John and his family had a lot of questions after the cancer 
diagnosis: questions for the doctors about the disease, his treatment, 
and how it would impact his life. But, in these most difficult of 
circumstances, John found answers.
  In a Pittsburgh Post Gazette article from May 2008, John's father, 
Scott Challis, recalls this time: ``He's always been one who had to try 
and find an answer for everything. He wants to figure things out.'' The 
article continues, ``Through his own thoughts and through his deep 
Catholic beliefs, John believes he has `figured it out.' When asked 
where he gained his wisdom, he answered, `Through cancer.' ''
  Despite his illness, John made the most of every day he had. Although 
he was too ill to play sports, Freedom baseball coach Steve Wetzel 
invited John to join the team and became one of John's closest friends.
  In battling cancer, John had come up with a message: ``Courage Plus 
Believe Equals Life.'' It was a message that along with his name, he 
inscribed on the inside of his baseball cap. His teammates followed 
suit.
  Then came the moment John had been waiting for, his opportunity to 
play. Coach Wetzel asked John to pinch-hit in a game against Aliquippa. 
John wasted no time. On the first pitch, John hit a single to right 
field that scored a run.
  After the game, John's story and message garnered national attention. 
He was featured on ESPN, invited to speak at a Pirates game, and 
watched the Penguins in their Stanley Cup playoff run.
  Unfortunately, John lost this battle to cancer on August 19, 2008. 
But he left us with an important legacy. In his last few months, John 
was quoted as saying, ``Life ain't about how many breaths you take. 
It's what you do with those breaths.''
  John was an inspiration to me, to his local community, and to the 
lives he touched. He will always be remembered.
  However, even after his death, his inspiration and work continue. 
Last summer, John helped to start a foundation, the Courage for Life 
Foundation, to help other student athletes with life-threatening 
illnesses be involved in sporting events.
  I have a few articles about John's life and his impact on those he 
touched. I ask unanimous consent to enter them into the Record.
  Thank you, Mr. Speaker and Chairman Towns, for the opportunity to 
honor John Challis.

            [From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 4, 2008]

     Teen Is Running Out of Innings, But the Game Still Isn't Over

                            (By Mike White)

       The 18-year-old kid dying of cancer gets his wish, a chance 
     to swing a bat maybe one last time in a real baseball game.
       He hasn't played in a few years, but he's called on to 
     pinch-hit. His eyes light up at the first pitch and he puts 
     all of his 5-foot-5, 93-pound frame into one mighty swing, 
     making contact and sending a line drive into right field for 
     a single--if he can reach first base. The cancer he's been 
     battling for almost two years has spread to his pelvis, 
     making running nearly impossible.
       The kid worries about falling as he hustles down the first-
     base line. When he gets to the base, he lets out with a yell. 
     ``I did it! I did it!''
       Safe at first with a hit and an RBI, the kid is hugged by a 
     crying first-base coach. The opposing pitcher takes off his 
     glove, starts applauding and his teammates follow suit. The 
     kid's teammates run onto the field to celebrate.
       It sounds like the climax to a heart-tugger movie. But 
     there was no producer or film crew at the game between 
     Freedom and Aliquippa high schools two weeks ago. The scene 
     was as real as the tumors in John Challis' liver and lungs.
       John is a kid with cancer, a senior at Freedom in Beaver 
     County who was told a few weeks ago by doctors that cancer 
     was winning and it was close to the end. The disease that 
     started in his liver was now taking over his lungs.
       ``They said it could be only two months,'' he said, 
     fighting back tears.
       He paused before his seemingly never-ending optimism came 
     through again.
       ``I told my mom I still think I can get two more years.''
       But his story isn't about dying. It's about inspiring.
       His story, words, actions, beliefs and courage have become 
     known around Freedom and surrounding areas in Beaver County, 
     bringing people together from other communities and other 
     schools.
       Three weeks ago, Freedom baseball coach Steve Wetzel 
     organized ``Walk For A Champion'' on Freedom High's school 
     grounds. The purpose of the walk-a-thon was to raise money 
     for one of John's wishes--a last vacation with his mom, dad 
     and 14-year-old sister, Alexis.
       More than 500 people took part, including baseball teams 
     from eight Beaver County high schools and members of Center 
     High School's football team. John also used to play football 
     at Freedom.
       Mr. Wetzel, who calls the teen his hero, hoped to raise 
     $6,000. That total was easily surpassed ``and people are 
     still calling with donations,'' he said.
       The family has booked a cruise for June.


                           The Challis effect

       A Beaver County church had planned a fundraiser, but John 
     and his family asked the church instead to conduct the event 
     and give the money to a fifth-grade boy in Beaver County who 
     has a brain tumor.
       ``His family can use it more than we can,'' John said. 
     ``That's just common sense. Someone does something good for 
     you, then you help someone else.''
       Actions and statements like those are what has inspired so 
     many others. All of Aliquippa's baseball players wear John's 
     jersey number ``11'' on their hats. At the walk-

[[Page H3406]]

     athon, Aliquippa star athlete Jonathan Baldwin, a Pitt 
     football recruit, presented him with a ball signed by Pitt 
     players.
       After the walk, John addressed the crowd.
       ``He spoke from his heart,'' Mr. Wetzel, the coach, said. 
     ``He said, `I've got two options. I know I'm going to die, so 
     I can either sit at home and feel sorry, or I could spread my 
     message to everybody to live life to the fullest and help 
     those in need.' After hearing that, I don't know if there 
     were many people not crying.''
       Last Thursday, Beaver pitcher Manny Cutlip tossed a three-
     hitter against Freedom as John watched in street clothes. 
     After the game, every Beaver player came up to him and shook 
     his hand. Some hugged him and some said they were praying for 
     him. Manny Cutlip asked Mr. Wetzel if he could go to lunch 
     some time with John. It happened the next day.
       ``I don't know what to say. I just wanted to get to know 
     him better and see if I could learn anything from him to help 
     me in my life,'' said the young pitcher, an imposing 6-foot-
     3, 225-pound standout athlete who will play football at IUP.
       At lunch, he gave John a new football with a handwritten 
     personal message on it. Part of the message read, ``You have 
     touched my heart and I will always look up to you as my role 
     model.''
       Talk to John and you'll laugh at his sense of humor when he 
     says things such as, ``You can't let girls know that you know 
     how to text message because they won't leave you alone.''
       But listen to his mature views on life and his philosophies 
     . . . and you might cry.
       ``I used to be afraid, but I'm not afraid of dying now, if 
     that's what you want to know,'' he said. ``Because life ain't 
     about how many breaths you take. It's what you do with those 
     breaths.''


                            Figuring it out

       It's been almost two years since John found out about his 
     cancer. He knows the date like a birthday. June 23, 2006.
       He discovered only recently that doctors didn't expect him 
     to last through that first summer. ``To me, that's already an 
     accomplishment,'' he said.
       In the first few months after the cancer discovery, John's 
     father, Scott, would get up in the middle of the night, peek 
     into his son's bedroom and see him wide awake, staring at the 
     ceiling.
       ``He would just be thinking,'' the elder Challis said. 
     ``He's always been one who had to try and find an answer for 
     everything. He wants to figure things out.''
       Through his own thoughts and through his deep Catholic 
     beliefs, John believes he has ``figured it out.'' He answers 
     questions with maturity, courage and dignity, traits that 
     have become his trademarks.
       John requested that his mother, Regina, not be interviewed 
     for this story because it will be too hard for her. He talks 
     to his father about what to do after he dies.
       ``I sit up with him at night until 1 or 2 in the morning,'' 
     Scott Challis said. ``He'll tell me, `Dad, when I'm gone, you 
     have to do this or that. You have to watch your weight.' He's 
     worried about my weight. He tells me I have to take care of 
     mom.
       ``When the doctors told him a few weeks ago about how the 
     cancer was winning, he had a lot of questions about what it 
     was going to be like and about being comfortable. Later on, 
     he broke down with me and you know what he did? He 
     apologized. He was upset because he felt like he was letting 
     everyone down who had been praying for him.''
       Scott Challis has found talking about his son makes the 
     situation easier to deal with. But many people like to talk 
     about John. Shawn Lehocky is a senior and one of Freedom's 
     top athletes. For every football and baseball game, he wears 
     a red wrist band with John's No. 11 on it.
       ``It seems like everyone in this community knows who he is 
     now and he really has brought so many people together,'' 
     Shawn said. ``He's always on my mind. To see him and what 
     he's going through, I don't know if I could act like that. He 
     said some pretty strong words at that walk-a-thon that you 
     don't hear 17- or 18-year-olds say every day.''
       John fought back tears a few times during last week's 
     interview.
       ``Sometimes I cry, but people cry for all different kinds 
     of reasons,'' he said. ``Sometimes I just want to know why, 
     but I think I figured that out. God wanted me to get sick 
     because he knew I was strong enough to handle it. I'm 
     spreading His word and my message. By doing that, I'm doing 
     what God put me here to do.
       ``It took me about a half year to figure all that out. Now, 
     when I'm able to truly believe it, it makes it easier on me. 
     And when you know other people support what you're thinking, 
     it makes it easier.''
       When asked where he gained his wisdom, he answered, 
     ``Through cancer.''
       ``They say it takes a special person to realize this kind 
     of stuff,'' he said. ``I don't know if I'm special, but it 
     wasn't hard for me. It's just my mind-set. A situation is 
     what you make of it. Not what it makes of you.''
       He regularly wears his Freedom baseball hat. Under the bill 
     of the cap is his name, plus this line: ``COURAGE + BELIEVE = 
     LIFE.''
       ``I guess I can see why people see me as an inspiration,'' 
     he said. ``But why do people think it's so hard to see things 
     the way I do? All I'm doing is making the best of a 
     situation.''
       John then raises his voice.
       ``Why can't people just see the best in things? It gets you 
     so much further in life. It's always negative this and 
     negative that. That's all you see and hear.''
       John tries to keep complaining to a minimum, but he 
     acknowledges his moments of crying.
       ``If I'm mad at anything in this, it's that I'm not going 
     to be able to have a son, I'm not going to be able to get 
     married and have my own house,'' he said, fighting back tears 
     again. ``Those are the things I'm mad about. But not dying.''


                           The role of sports

       John loves sports. He is an avid hunter--``got three buck 
     and two doe in the last year,'' he said.
       He played baseball through Pony League and always loved 
     football, despite his small stature. As a sophomore, he 
     started on Freedom's junior varsity team as a slotback and 
     cornerback.
       ``I was 108 pounds. I had to be the smallest player in the 
     WPIAL,'' he said with a laugh.
       The cancer forced him to stop playing football as a junior.
       ``But I will never forget,'' his father said, ``when he 
     first got sick he told me, `Dad, I have to dress for a 
     football game one more time.' ''
       He got his wish in the final game of his senior season, 
     against Hickory. Coaches let him kick off once. He was 
     supposed to kick and immediately run off the field to avoid 
     danger. Instead, he stayed on the field and got a little 
     excited when the kick returner started heading his way before 
     being tackled.
       Later in the game, the coaches put him in for two plays at 
     receiver. Mr. Wetzel and others who saw the game proudly tell 
     how, on one play, John tried to block a defender, fell down, 
     but got up and pushed another defender.
       Mr. Wetzel said seeing John play in that last football 
     game, doesn't compare to seeing his hit against Aliquippa in 
     that April 14 baseball game. John vividly remembers the 
     details leading up to the hit. When he walked into the 
     batter's box, he saw Aliquippa's catcher wearing a protective 
     mask with the initials ``J.C.'' and the number ``11.''
       ``I just looked at him and said, `Nice mask.' ''
       He then noticed an Aliquippa coach saying something to the 
     pitcher.
       ``I'm thinking, `If they're going to walk me or throw easy 
     to me, I don't want it handed to me,' '' he said. ``But sure 
     enough, he threw me a fastball. That's what made it so good. 
     . . . There were only about 20 people there watching, but 
     everyone was cheering.''
       Mr. Wetzel said: ``We made it to the state [PIAA] playoffs 
     two years ago and I thought that was the best feeling. I got 
     to play in WPIAL championships at Blackhawk as a player. But 
     that day, that hit, that moment . . . That was the best 
     feeling I've ever had in sports.''
       Six days later, Freedom played a game at PNC Park. John 
     attended the game, but had an IV line in his arm for a 
     treatment he was getting. He took out the IV line and asked 
     Mr. Wetzel if he could pinch-hit again.
       ``Unbelievable. He told me the doctor said he could take it 
     out for up to seven hours,'' Mr. Wetzel said. ``He told me he 
     just wanted to be a normal kid one more time.''
       So Mr. Wetzel let him pinch-hit. This time he struck out.
       They have a unique coach-player relationship. Mr. Wetzel 
     invited John to be part of the team a year ago and John calls 
     the coach one of his best friends. They talk every day, at 
     least on a cell phone, and go to lunch together once a week.
       ``The kid has changed my life,'' Mr. Wetzel said. ``I cry 
     for him just about every day. I'm 32 and I'm getting married 
     in September. You know what he told me the other day? He told 
     me to save him a seat in the front row of the church, because 
     even if he's not there, he'll be there in spirit.
       ``He just keeps doing things and saying things that are 
     just unbelievable. I know our team will never forget this 
     season because of Johnny.''
       The two want to start a foundation in John's name for young 
     cancer patients.
       ``Even if [the foundation] is something that can help only 
     one kid or one family, to see people in a different way like 
     I have, it will be worth it,'' John said. ``Maybe it will 
     help younger people who haven't gotten to see the finer 
     things in life that I got to see.''
       John plans to attend Freedom's prom May 9 and plans to 
     graduate in June. As John ended this interview, he said he 
     wondered how his story will come out in the newspaper.
       ``When you write this, don't overthink things,'' he said. 
     ``I've learned that. There are a lot of unanswered questions 
     in this world and the reason they're unanswered is because if 
     you think about them too much, you're always going to come up 
     with different answers. So don't confuse yourself and think 
     about this too much.''

            Challis Foundation Aims To Help Other Sick Kids

                         (By Elizabeth Merrill)

       The idea came over lobster bites and potato soup. It was a 
     good day for John Challis, because he cleaned his plate and 
     didn't become violently ill. Challis has defied grim cancer 
     prognoses for two years, because, he says, he has so much to 
     look forward to.
       ``God still has a mission for John,'' says Steve Wetzel, 
     his baseball coach at Freedom (Pa.) High School. ``I truly 
     believe that. John Challis isn't going anywhere. He still has 
     work to do on earth.''

[[Page H3407]]

       Later this month, Challis and Wetzel will officially start 
     the John Challis Courage for Life Foundation to assist 
     seriously ill children. The foundation will arrange sports 
     trips for sick children to meet their favorite athletes. 
     Eventually, Challis wants to set up a message board for kids 
     to converse with each other about treatments and their 
     struggles with being sick.
       Challis has hobnobbed with the A-list of professional 
     sports lately, mingling with everyone from Steelers 
     quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to former Penguins hockey 
     great Mario Lemieux to Cleveland Indians skipper Eric Wedge. 
     They know about his inspirational story, and how he got his 
     first varsity baseball hit in April despite being sapped by 
     cancer treatments and weighing just 93 pounds.
       Challis says life has been a mix of good and bad days, and 
     he hit a very rough patch a few weeks ago. Wracked with pain 
     from a radiation treatment, he developed severe swelling 
     around his waist and legs. One night, he called Wetzel and 
     said, ``Coach, this has been the worst couple of days. I feel 
     terrible. But I'm not going to stop fighting.''
       A week later, Challis graduated from high school. He hopes 
     to go to college this fall, and is putting together a 
     scrapbook of his summer with Wetzel. They drove to Cleveland 
     for an Indians game recently, and Challis napped on the way 
     home. Normally, Wetzel says,
       Challis gets sick during a long, 13-hour day. But on this 
     day, he stayed strong.
       ``Before the game, he said, 'It's amazing to see two teams 
     I haven't seen before. That's going to be great, Coach. But 
     the best thing is that it's just going to be me and you.'
       ``We saved our ticket stubs,'' Wetzel says. ``That meant 
     the world to me. That makes my life all worthwhile.''
                                  ____


           [From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 26, 2008]

           Ailing Freedom Youngster Urges Pirates: `Have fun'

                          (By Dejan Kovacevic)

       John Challis shakes hands last night with one of his 
     baseball heroes, Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter.
       John Challis, the Freedom youngster who has gained national 
     attention for his battle with cancer, wrote a message on the 
     eraser board of the Pirates' clubhouse yesterday afternoon.
       ``Have fun,'' it said. ``The reason why we play ball is 
     fun.''
       He signed his name underneath.
       Challis, 18, also delivered a brief speech in the closed 
     clubhouse to all players and staff, after which everyone in 
     the room stood and applauded. From there, he spent extra time 
     with first baseman Adam LaRoche to ``talk about hunting and 
     stuff,'' then sat in manager John Russell's office--his 
     chair, actually--during Russell's afternoon news conference.
       Asked to compare his battle to those faced daily by Major 
     League Baseball players, Challis laughed and replied: 
     ``Baseball's not that complicated. You swing the bat, and you 
     hit the ball. You don't worry about your stats. You just play 
     the game.''
       Of his fate, he said: ``God thinks I'm strong enough to 
     handle it. He's just using me to spread His message.''
       Before Challis took his seats for the game, he also met 
     with ``the player I really want to meet'' when he spoke with 
     New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter during batting 
     practice.
       ``If we can all show the courage and faith that John has, 
     or even half of it, we'd all be better off,'' Russell said. 
     ``The unselfishness that's a part of his life should be a 
     lesson to all of us.''
       Challis announced the creation of his Courage For Life 
     Foundation to benefit high school students with terminal 
     illnesses. The Web site is www.courageforlifefoundation
.com.
 ____


           [From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Aug. 20, 2008]

   Obituary: John Scott Challis: Teen Delivered Message of Hope With 
                              Cancer Fight

                            (By Mike White)

       Over the past few months, John Challis watched a Penguins 
     playoff game with Mario Lemieux, was featured on ESPN 
     television, addressed the Pirates before a game and spent an 
     afternoon with Alex Rodriguez at the New York Yankee's 
     penthouse in Manhattan.
       Although he rubbed elbows with the rich and famous, John 
     likely will be remembered for the many people he touched--and 
     for his inspiring actions and words.
       John's two-year battle with liver and lung cancer ended 
     yesterday afternoon, when he died at his home in Freedom, 
     Beaver County. He was 18.
       On a warm June afternoon, John did one of his final 
     interviews. Lying on a couch in his living room, he spoke 
     about his young life. He struggled to keep his eyes open, but 
     talked about how, all of a sudden in the past few months, he 
     had become something of a national celebrity.
       Not long ago, John was simply a teenager battling a 
     terminal illness. Then a base hit in a Freedom High School 
     baseball game led to a May story in the Pittsburgh Post-
     Gazette, which led to national attention, on television and 
     radio and in other newspapers.
       The attention is what John wanted. He had decided that 
     through his fight with cancer, he could spread a message and 
     help others.
       ``Everybody is scared. It's not normal to not be scared,'' 
     John said of his plight. ``But I'm not scared as much now. I 
     have letters and other things from people, telling me how 
     I've helped so many people in numerous ways. That makes me 
     feel good.''
       In the corner of the family living room were two boxes of 
     letters and cards from well-wishers and people who wrote to 
     let him know they were inspired by his story. His family also 
     has two binders filled with hundreds of e-mails from people 
     who said John had impacted their lives.
       Near the couch in the Challis home, a folded American flag 
     sat on a chair. A Navy pilot flew the flag over Iraq with 
     John's name on it and sent it to the family.
       ``I just want to say thanks to the people for keeping me 
     going,'' John said. ``All them little cards and stuff I got, 
     keeps me going day by day. To know I'm going downhill a 
     little bit, it doesn't bother me because I've helped so many 
     people. Since I've helped so many people, this is easier to 
     handle.''
       Courage + believe = life.
       Life ain't about how many breaths you take. It's what you 
     do with those breaths.
       What teenager comes up with such sayings? John Challis did, 
     and they became his personal trademarks. A baseball glove 
     company sent John a black glove with ``Courage + believe = 
     life'' embossed in the leather along with John's name.
       ``We would get things almost every day from people all over 
     the country,'' said Scott Challis, John's father.
       When John attended a Yankees game in late June, he had a 
     news conference, surrounded by more than 20 reporters and 
     photographers.
       ``People would sometimes call, too, just wanting to talk to 
     him,'' his father said. ``Some wanted to come meet him. It 
     was amazing. I guess he touched so many people.''
       John was never more than an average athlete, at best. 
     Because of the cancer, he couldn't play sports as a junior or 
     senior at Freedom, except for a few plays in the final 
     football game of Freedom's 2007 season. Then in April came 
     ``the hit.'' John hadn't played baseball in a few years but 
     he wanted to be on Freedom's team. He wanted a chance to hit 
     one time, and Freedom coach Steve Wetzel granted the wish, 
     pinch-hitting John in a game against Aliquippa.
       In a storybook moment, John lined a run-scoring single to 
     right field on the first pitch. Although he had trouble 
     running, John made it to first base, yelling ``I did it. I 
     did it.''
       In May, John and Mr. Wetzel were guests on Dan Patrick's 
     national radio show. ESPN sportscaster Scott Van Pelt devoted 
     a segment of his national radio show to John's story.
       How did a teenager with a heavy Pittsburgh accent from a 
     small Western Pennsylvania town become a national story? How 
     did he tug at so many people's emotions from so far away?
       ``There is just so much these days with the Internet, and 
     Web sites, and blogs, but this was a story about a kid who 
     was just so real that it grabs you,'' Mr. Van Pelt said. 
     ``Then, you had sports involved in it.
       ``I know Pittsburgh is probably all concerned about what 
     the Steelers are going to be like this fall and how maybe the 
     Penguins could've done things differently in the Stanley Cup, 
     but this kid's story was just so different. It's a tremendous 
     story. Actually, it's a bad story because it has a horrible 
     ending.
       ``The story that [the Post-Gazette] did started the fire 
     for this kid. If maybe I threw another log on to help get it 
     going more, then great, because it deserved to be a 
     bonfire.''
       John lived long enough to reach some personal goals. He 
     graduated with his senior class. One of his last requests was 
     to take a cruise with his father, his mother, Gina, and 
     sister, Lexie, and they did that in June.
       The Pirates brought him to a game later in June, gave him a 
     uniform and let him address the team in the clubhouse. He 
     told the players not to worry so much about their statistics 
     and have fun. John told the Pirates to cherish the game--and 
     life.
       Mr. Wetzel recalled John's words: ``You never know what 
     life might bring you. You might have a few sniffles and think 
     it's not a big thing. Then you go to the doctor the next day 
     and they tell you that you have a 10-pound tumor in your 
     stomach.''
       ``Some of the Pirates got emotional,'' Mr. Wetzel said.
       First baseman Adam LaRoche stayed in touch with John after 
     his visit.
       ``It makes you realize how short life is and how unfair it 
     can be,'' Mr. LaRoche said yesterday from the clubhouse in 
     St. Louis, before the Pirates played the Cardinals. ``I think 
     what's cool is that, even with what he had, he chose to make 
     the best of it and touch a lot of lives that he wouldn't have 
     if this hadn't happened to him. He got the bad end of the 
     deal, but he touched a lot of people. For sure, he touched 
     the 25 people in here.''
       John also spent some time with the Tampa Bay Rays when the 
     team was in town to play the Pirates.
       ``Their manager, Joe Maddon, called and said he saw the 
     story on John on ESPN and he was just in his hotel room in 
     tears,'' Mr. Wetzel said. ``He said he just wanted to meet 
     John. Coach Maddon has really become touched by John and his 
     message.''
       Mr. Wetzel and Mr. Maddon now talk a few times a week. Mr. 
     Wetzel said Mr. Maddon now puts ``C + B = L'' on every lineup 
     card that he hands to umpires before games.
       John's favorite moment in the past few months was the trip 
     to New York for a Yankees game.

[[Page H3408]]

       ``Just because it was with my dad,'' John said. ``It was a 
     good time because we both got to experience it, and it felt 
     like something not just for me, but something he enjoyed as 
     well.''
       The afternoon at Mr. Rodriguez's penthouse was memorable.
       ``No Madonna,'' John said with a laugh.
       John was never shy about expressing his feelings on a 
     subject and was always known to ask questions. His father 
     laughs at a couple questions John asked as Mr. Rodriguez was 
     showing them around his home.
       ``Now John had no idea about these Madonna and A-Rod rumors 
     [about an affair], and John goes, `So, where's your wife?' I 
     couldn't believe it. But A-Rod just said she was in Florida 
     at their other home with their kids.
       ``Then John asked him if his wife worked. John wasn't 
     trying to be smart. He was just curious. He told John that 
     she didn't work, but that she had a psychology degree.''
       John faced his death with courage, dignity, a never-quit 
     attitude and an awareness that was hard to fathom.
       John's mother told of a nurse who started coming to the 
     family home in June. ``The first time she was here, John 
     said, `I know why you're here. You're here to make me 
     comfortable in my last weeks. But it could be more than a few 
     weeks, right?' ''
       ``The kid was just unbelievable,'' Mr. Wetzel said. ``His 
     attitude and messages I think changed how some people looked 
     at their lives. He changed how I went about life.
       ``I feel like a piece of my heart is gone now. The thing 
     I'll miss most is his smile. He had a smile that could light 
     up a room.''
       John said his Catholic faith and belief in God got stronger 
     through his illness.
       One of the things that made John happy in recent months was 
     the start of a foundation that will raise money to help other 
     sick teenagers enjoy a sports experience. The foundation was 
     the idea of John and Mr. Wetzel.
       ``If I can help someone else going through this, then that 
     would make me feel good,'' John said.
       The foundation has a Web site--
     www.courageforlifefoundation.org_where donations can be 
     made.
       When asked a few weeks ago how he would like to be 
     remembered, John said, ``I could see people having some beers 
     and hopefully remembering how I always tried my best, no 
     matter what I was doing. That's my message--just for people 
     to always do their best, no matter what they're doing or how 
     stupid it might seem. And no matter what, there will always 
     be a reward, no matter how small it is.''
       In addition to his parents, John is survived by his younger 
     sister, Lexie.
       Visitation will be tomorrow and Friday from 2 to 4 and 6 to 
     8 p.m. at Noll Funeral Home, 333 Third St., Beaver. A Mass 
     will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Saturday in SS. Peter & Paul 
     Church, Beaver. Burial will follow at Beaver Cemetery.
       The family asks memorial contributions be made to John 
     Challis Courage For Life Foundation, P.O. Box 123, Monaca, PA 
     15061.
       Also, there will be a golf outing to benefit John's 
     foundation Monday at Chartiers Country Club. For more 
     information, go to www.courageforlifefoundation.org.

 Mr. LYNCH. I yield back the balance of our time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Lynch) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 987.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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