Team Support
October 05, 2011 03:24 PM | General
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – With one in eight women developing breast cancer in their lifetime, the West Virginia University volleyball team is doing its part to promote Breast Cancer Awareness in the month of October.
Starting Friday with its match against DePaul at 7 p.m. at the WVU Coliseum, the team will wear pink uniforms the entire month of October in support of Breast Cancer Awareness and in support of one of their own.
This past April, senior middle blocker Abby Monson lost her mom Linda to an eight-year battle with triple negative breast cancer. The people by her side were her teammates.
“I was home for a week with my family for spring break and my mom was not doing great,” Monson said. “She was sick, but I didn’t realize how serious it was. I got back to school and on Tuesday evening, I was in study hall with my whole team and coaches and I got a phone call from my aunt. As soon as I saw her name, I knew there was something wrong. My whole team dropped everything that they were doing and they were there just surrounding me and being awesome. Everybody was crying and I just knew that they were there for me 100%.”
Monson returned to her home in Centennial, Colo. for the final moments with her mom before she passed away.
After suffering the loss, friends and family gathered in Colorado for the memorial service and Monson also saw a familiar face in the crowd.
“Jill (Kramer) actually flew out for the service and that was what made me cry first when I saw her at the service,” Monson said. “It really meant a lot for me and it shows that she really does care about all of us as people rather than just as players.”
To keep Linda in their thoughts, teammates, coaches and friends in Morgantown and around the world flew pink balloons to support the Monson family.
“We like to think of our team as a family and that includes extended family,” coach Jill Kramer said. “We get to know each other really well and we all hurt for Abby when she was going through something that was really tough in her life.
“You always want to help out your family and there is only so much you can do with something like this. We are trying to do everything we can do to help and try and make the situation better for other people who could potentially be in her situation.”
Although the experience changed her life, Monson will never forget her mother, her faith and everything that she was taught.
“Something huge that I learned from my mom that I remember every day is to never lose faith,” Monson said. “Something that she always said to me before I would go out, before I would go to a friend’s house or before I would leave for school was that she would draw a cross on my forehead and she would say ‘Remember who you are and whose you are.’ That just sort of stuck with me that day and every day. I have to remember that I am me and I am not going to lose the faith in myself, the confidence I have in myself and I am never going to lose my faith in God. I just remember every day that she is looking down on me and I think that she gives me strength in volleyball and in school and life.”
The pink that can be seen all over campus this month will not only represent awareness and support for Monson, but it will also represent the memories she has of her mother.
“For me it is more about the memories with my mom than anything else,” Monson said. “I think this month is really good because it can help others realize the different resources that are out there to help for Breast Cancer Awareness. For me, whenever I do any fundraising or any kind of awareness for people, I always donate to Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation because that is the type of breast cancer my mom had. But it means a lot just to see all the support from the different fans and to know that they are aware and that they care.”
Having the pink uniforms is not only special for Monson, but it is also special to her father Paul who donated the money to the volleyball program that was used to purchase the uniforms.
“I think it was a really good way for him to show his support of us and at the same time we can all wear it to honor my mom and represent everybody else we are fighting for,” Monson said. “For me the pink is significant. I always wear a pink ribbon in my hair for most practices and then every match and I also have one on my shoe to just remember her, keep her on my mind all the time and play for her.”
Another way Linda will be honored this weekend is with Abby’s younger brother David serving as honorary captain for Friday’s match.
“My brother is being an honorary captain this weekend and it is important to me that he is out here to support me and my team with my dad,” Monson said. “I think it means a lot to him too that he can represent my mom in that way by being our captain and wearing a pink shirt as well.”
With the support of her team and coaches behind her, Monson looks forward to seeing the team improve its 3-13, 1-3 record.
“I am excited to be home this weekend with my family and friends here,” Monson said. “I am confident that we can get two really great wins this weekend and improve as a team.”
Starting Friday with its match against DePaul at 7 p.m. at the WVU Coliseum, the team will wear pink uniforms the entire month of October in support of Breast Cancer Awareness and in support of one of their own.
This past April, senior middle blocker Abby Monson lost her mom Linda to an eight-year battle with triple negative breast cancer. The people by her side were her teammates.
“I was home for a week with my family for spring break and my mom was not doing great,” Monson said. “She was sick, but I didn’t realize how serious it was. I got back to school and on Tuesday evening, I was in study hall with my whole team and coaches and I got a phone call from my aunt. As soon as I saw her name, I knew there was something wrong. My whole team dropped everything that they were doing and they were there just surrounding me and being awesome. Everybody was crying and I just knew that they were there for me 100%.”
Monson returned to her home in Centennial, Colo. for the final moments with her mom before she passed away.
After suffering the loss, friends and family gathered in Colorado for the memorial service and Monson also saw a familiar face in the crowd.
“Jill (Kramer) actually flew out for the service and that was what made me cry first when I saw her at the service,” Monson said. “It really meant a lot for me and it shows that she really does care about all of us as people rather than just as players.”
To keep Linda in their thoughts, teammates, coaches and friends in Morgantown and around the world flew pink balloons to support the Monson family.
“We like to think of our team as a family and that includes extended family,” coach Jill Kramer said. “We get to know each other really well and we all hurt for Abby when she was going through something that was really tough in her life.
“You always want to help out your family and there is only so much you can do with something like this. We are trying to do everything we can do to help and try and make the situation better for other people who could potentially be in her situation.”
Although the experience changed her life, Monson will never forget her mother, her faith and everything that she was taught.
“Something huge that I learned from my mom that I remember every day is to never lose faith,” Monson said. “Something that she always said to me before I would go out, before I would go to a friend’s house or before I would leave for school was that she would draw a cross on my forehead and she would say ‘Remember who you are and whose you are.’ That just sort of stuck with me that day and every day. I have to remember that I am me and I am not going to lose the faith in myself, the confidence I have in myself and I am never going to lose my faith in God. I just remember every day that she is looking down on me and I think that she gives me strength in volleyball and in school and life.”
The pink that can be seen all over campus this month will not only represent awareness and support for Monson, but it will also represent the memories she has of her mother.
“For me it is more about the memories with my mom than anything else,” Monson said. “I think this month is really good because it can help others realize the different resources that are out there to help for Breast Cancer Awareness. For me, whenever I do any fundraising or any kind of awareness for people, I always donate to Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation because that is the type of breast cancer my mom had. But it means a lot just to see all the support from the different fans and to know that they are aware and that they care.”
Having the pink uniforms is not only special for Monson, but it is also special to her father Paul who donated the money to the volleyball program that was used to purchase the uniforms.
“I think it was a really good way for him to show his support of us and at the same time we can all wear it to honor my mom and represent everybody else we are fighting for,” Monson said. “For me the pink is significant. I always wear a pink ribbon in my hair for most practices and then every match and I also have one on my shoe to just remember her, keep her on my mind all the time and play for her.”
Another way Linda will be honored this weekend is with Abby’s younger brother David serving as honorary captain for Friday’s match.
“My brother is being an honorary captain this weekend and it is important to me that he is out here to support me and my team with my dad,” Monson said. “I think it means a lot to him too that he can represent my mom in that way by being our captain and wearing a pink shirt as well.”
With the support of her team and coaches behind her, Monson looks forward to seeing the team improve its 3-13, 1-3 record.
“I am excited to be home this weekend with my family and friends here,” Monson said. “I am confident that we can get two really great wins this weekend and improve as a team.”
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