In a small community, such as the eastern end of Greenbrier County, bad news can travel fast and affect anyone, even if it does not directly involve certain individuals.
That was the case on Aug. 13, 2018 with Lewisburg native and nine-year-old Grayson VanBuren.
Grayson is the son of Wayne and Missy VanBuren and has experienced things in his life most people will never be able to imagine.
“We were parents of 1-in-48 children that would hear the words ‘your child has cancer’”, Missy VanBuren said.
“Your mind goes a million different directions, but you know you have to be strong and courageous for your child. Grayson was nine years old at the time and was getting ready to start the fourth grade, but that wasn’t going to happen now,” Missy VanBuren said of her reaction at the time.
She added that her son was able to be receive homebound education for that year and made it through the fourth grade.
The next few months and years became increasingly tough. The VanBuren family began their weekly trips to Charlottesville, VA, where Grayson received his tests, labs and biopsies at UVA hospital and started his inpatient treatments immediately.
“It’s so frightening to see your child go through something like this and you can only sit there and pray and try to comfort them the best way you can,” Missy said.
Grayson VanBuren was in the hospital on three different occasions by April 2019 and the last time he spent two-and-a half weeks in the PICU at University of Virginia Children’s Hospital.
“Our community and family and friends have been the best support system anyone could have. The prayers and well wishes are truly what got us through those difficult times. By August 2019, Grayson was feeling much better after going through the “intensification phase” of his chemo for four months. He was ready for school to begin and excited for the fifth grade,” Missy explained.
“In September of that year, Grayson had the privilege to be honored on the Senate Floor by WV Senator Stephen Baldwin declaring Sept. 18, 2019 ,“WV Wear Gold” day for Childhood Cancer. On that very same day Grayson was invited by WV Delegate Jeff Campbell to stop by and watch Greenbrier East football practice.”
And that is where it started. From that moment on, Grayson VanBuren was to be a huge part of the Greenbrier East football team, and when they walked down the to the field that day, something happened that Grayson VanBuren will never forget and will cherish forever.
“As we walked down the steps of the stadium onto the field, we could see the players dressed in their gold practice uniforms all gather around the coaches for a few seconds and then they all came running over to Grayson on the sidelines. They were cheering and high fiving him and saying how proud they were of him for fighting so hard,” Missy VanBuren stated.
Grayson VanBuren became known as “Junior Coach” and would go to practices after school as much as he could, and he started learning each player on the team by name. Head coach Ray Lee and defensive coordinator Aaron Baker invited Grayson to stand on the sidelines at every home game as long as he felt up to doing it. The following home contest, Grayson led the Spartans from the tunnel onto the field.
“The smile on his face was priceless,” his mother said.
That year, Grayson VanBuren never missed a home game and even accompanied his newfound buddies to a few away games as well. VanBuren became part of the Spartan Football Family and the boys treated him like a little brother. They surprised him on his birthday in October with a party in the locker room, and gave shout outs to him while he was in California on his Make-A-Wish trip.
“He was an inspiration to them just as much as they were to him,” Missy said.
Grayson VanBuren asked if he could get some gold arm bands that said “Team Grayson” on them for the entire team and to this day, they wear them according to his mom.
The Spartans finished 7-3 during the 2019 season and hosted a home playoff game. Grayson was right there with them on the field. He even selected the number 73 for his fall baseball league number in honor of the football team’s record.
However, it is not just the football team that holds a special place in Grayson’s heart.
The girls’ soccer team always made sure to say hello and had their picture taken with him a few times. He loves the cheerleaders as well and calls them his “East Girlzzz.” Also, the one team he had been around during his early stages of chemo was the Spartan basketball team. Grayson is very close to coach Bimbo Coles and he helped out as the water boy during the season when he felt up to it. When he was not able to be there or was in the hospital, he always got a shout out by Delegate Campbell on the radio who is the longtime play-by-play man for East.
“He truly loves being around the football and basketball players,” Missy commented.
As Grayson VanBuren progressed through his treatment this past year, he played basketball in the winter and baseball in the spring and fall. He would have chemo in the day and play a game at night.
“That’s was just the way it was,” Missy VanBuren said.
“He never gave up and kept fighting. What made it even more memorable was when the football team came to his basketball games and his baseball games to cheer him and his team on. The smile on his face when he saw his ‘brothers’ was wonderful.”
This past year was a little different on Grayson VanBuren. When COVID-19 protocols were put in place, only family could attend the football games. Unfortunately, that meant he could not be there.
“That didn’t stop him,” Missy exclaimed.
“Each home game he wanted to go to the back gate of the stadium and sit in the corner of the fence so that he could see the boys come from the locker room and down to the field. He would watch the game from that corner and cheer them on just as if he was on the field with them. Basketball has been postponed now and that makes him sad as well. He loves being with his East teams and they have certainly made a positive impact on his life,” Missy concluded.
However, the sports part of things pale in comparison to what happened last week for Grayson VanBuren.
On Dec. 2, 2020, Grayson, now 12 years old, took his final chemo treatment and has put all the negatives completely behind him. He is now cancer-free.
He plans on playing football next season for EGMS and hopes to be a Spartan football player in the future.
On Saturday Dec. 5, Grayson VanBuren was surprised with a “Drive By Parade” hosted by The State Fair of WV and Premier Bank during the Christmas Light Display at the fairgrounds. Cars were lined up for hours and the outpouring of love and support was beyond expectations.
The donations collected that night will be donated to the WV Kids Cancer Crusaders in honor of Grayson VanBuren.
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