Thursday's Blue Waves girls basketball hom game was the team's annual "Coaches Against Cancer" event, which is a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. But this year, the Waves coaches dedicated the fundraiser to Aquebogue Elementary School student, Christopher Timpone, who is battling a rare bone cancer.
Free will donations, yellow "Kids Against Cancer" bracelets, booster club snack sales and a 50-50 raffle raised $1,000 for the Timpone family, after the 50-50 winner, Amanda Riley — Melodee's sister — donated her prize back and assistant coach Gerald Wiesmann kicked in $45 to make the total an even thousand.
Christopher and his mother Kathleen Timpone were on hand for the game, having come directly from a chemotherapy treatment at Sloan-Kettering in Manhattan. The Waves, who wore yellow shirts hand-decorated with messages of hope and support, presented the 9-year-old — an athlete in his own right — with a basketball before the game.
Despite being out since 4:30 a.m. and dealing with an all-day treatment at the NYC hospital, Christopher stayed until the game-ending buzzer to root the Waves on to their 15th victory — and the League III championship. (See separate story and photo slideshow.)
At the girls' invitation, Christopher, clad in pajamas and slippers and tethered to an IV, climbed the ladder to the basket and made the ceremonial first cut of the net.